July 13, 2021
Day 69: Sprague Creek Campground to Whitefish State Park Campground
Bikes Are King!
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Climbing Today; 1,256 ft Climbing to Date; 103,343
A thunderstorm was rumbling near us when I got up at 04:00 this morning. It occasionally sent a few drops of rain my way, but nothing much. I was very quiet breaking camp and loading up so as to not awaken my neighbors. Doc walked over to my tent to let me know that he was going to sleep more and would meet me at camp tonight.
I fired up the Jetboil stove and heated enough water for coffee and oatmeal, and ate the sweet roll I brought with me yesterday as well. One of our cycling neighbors awoke and came over and I gave him one of my “teabag coffee” to try out with the remaining hot water. I hit the road as the “Menstrual Cyclists” and Doc were beginning to stir. You can follow the journey of these 3 young ladies/med students at The Menstrual Cyclists should you wish.
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At 06:00 this morning there were more than 12 cars waiting in line hoping to get a spot at the Sprague Creek Campground. It was a wasted effort because the campground was full. Leaving the campground and headed west on going to the Sun Road was easy because there was very little traffic going that direction, all the traffic was headed the other way to go up the mountain. When I reached the park entrance there was already a couple of miles of traffic backed up, and they were being let into the park only a few at a time. It felt pretty good being on a bicycle and not having to deal with all that frustration. Cyclists should get special treatment, and sometimes we do! If you don’t want to have to deal with all the traffic issues in the national parks, just bring a bike and ride into the park - of course, you’d be well advised to get in good riding shape first.
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I stopped for a bit in Apgar and got a fruit juice, and sat outside sipping it and watching all the cars go slowly past. It was a very nice and traffic free ride all the way to Columbia Falls where I hoped to find second breakfast. I found it at a café called the Cowboy Diner and had some biscuits and gravy. While there I called my dentist and coordinated to see an oral surgeon as soon as I get back to Tulsa so I can take care of this fifth wisdom tooth insurrection.
The nice rural roads and traffic free riding continued as I made my way to Whitefish. I wandered off the route a bit to a Walgreens to purchase a USB-C cable for the GoPro. Apparently I lost the little cable that came with the GoPro somewhere yesterday, or I may find it buried deep within one of my panniers. The cables are common and relatively inexpensive, so getting an extra is no big deal.
I bought some food at a Safeway to bring out to the campsite with me and then rolled on out to Whitefish Lake State Park where they have a hiker biker section and a no-turn-away policy. While I got a campsite for a very reasonable price of eight dollars, they neglected to tell me that I had to buy three dollars worth of tokens to operate the shower. So really an overnight camp cost $11 here, no big deal, but they really ought to just price in the shower with the campsite purchase. The hiker-biker section is quite nice, it has a pavilion with a couple of electrical outlets so you can charge up your electronics. It also has a repair stand for bicycles and a lot of oversized tent pads that are meant to be shared with other cyclists if necessary. I set up my tent in a nice shady spot and I can tell it’s going to be nice and cool tonight and I expect to sleep well despite the fact that there’s a nearby train.
Campgrounds are usually full in the summer in Montana. But if you arrive on a bicycle, they have a no-turn-away policy that guarantees you a spot - so I don't need to worry about signs like these;
There was wildlife of a different sort roaming about in the Whitefish State Park campground today. These young Sapien females were strolling about to catch the attention of potential mates, a practice known as Courtship Display. I ignored them the first 2 times they walked past the hiker-biker pavilion, but on their 3rd pass I thought it worthy of a picture to add to the wildlife collection in this journal.
Tomorrow we are headed for Eureka where Doc and I are going to split a cheap hotel and plan out the next few days.We have some challenging days ahead of us with some long no service sections and a bit of climbing, even before we reach Washington state and the 5 mountain passes. As for me, I’m just happy that I’m still in the game and not sidelined with a tooth infection. It’s still lingering in the background and could still prove to be a spoiler, but for the moment I have it under control with antibiotics and opioids. Hopefully it’ll stay that way until I get done.
Video uploads are way behind, hopefully I’ll catch that up later. Good night all…
Today's ride: 45 miles (72 km)
Total: 3,516 miles (5,658 km)
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3 years ago
That’s where we are staying- glad to hear you recommend it!
Bud
3 years ago
It's a climb from town to the motel, one more reason to get your groceries at the big grocery.
The restaurant used to have a good buffet. COVID closed it last summer. I will be interested to hear if it's open again, if you visit.
https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/nearparadise/eureka-yaak-mt-bump-this-road-to-the-top-of-your-must-ride-list/
Unsolicited advice - see if you can work Yaak into your route. It's a worthy ride.
3 years ago