September 7, 2004
Day 11: To Madison campground
I got up at 6:15AM, as soon as it was light enough to see. I immediately biked north, steeply downhill for 2 miles to the Boiling River trail. The 1/2 mile trail ends at the Boiling River "swimming" area, where a very hot creek flows into the Gardner river. I arrived at 6:50 AM, before the sun had risen above the mountain to the east. The temperature was 40F (4C). Rocks have been piled up in the middle of the river to reduce the flow of the river where the hot water flows in. The result is a large area that is a pleasant swirling mixture of hot and cold water. I soaked there for over an hour and moved around a lot trying to find the perfect mix, but it constantly changes. It was a very interesting sensation, very different from all the other hot springs I have soaked in that have a relatively consistent temperature.
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Then I hiked back to the bike and pedaled up the steep hill to the campground, arriving at 9 AM. I ate breakfast, packed up, and got on the road at 11AM. Somehow it always takes me 2 hours to eat and pack up. It was warm and sunny, so I wore short sleeves for the first time on this tour. I biked up the steep hill to the Mammoth store but didn't buy much food because the selection was uninspiring. Then around the bend to the Mammoth terrace parking area. I walked a mile on the nature trail there. The first major sight is Minerva Terrace which is a huge mineral formation created by a hot spring that is now inactive. The geothermal activity at Yellowstone is constantly changing due to earthquakes.
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Then the trail passes Pallette Spring which has many different colors of mineral deposits as the water gradually cools.
Back on the bike I continued south, climbing steadily to a 7500 foot summit at Rustic Falls. The road is very narrow with old pavement. The traffic was significantly heavier than I have seen so far on this tour. Long lines of cars and trucks passed me by. This was the traffic density that I expected before this tour. But it seems that the heaviest traffic is only in the western part of Yellowstone on the highway that goes through all the geyser basins.
Near the summit is Rustic Falls which is a very tall waterfall right next to the road, but I didn't take a picture because it was in deep shade looking into the sun. But from in front of the falls there is an interesting view of the road on a concrete platform in the narrow gorge.
At the summit is a great view of the Gallatin mountains looking back the way I came.
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After the summit the road is relatively level in a wide valley that has numerous small creeks, marshes, and ponds. Starting at the Norris campground turnoff the road is recently reconstructed with a nice shoulder. The new pavement continues all the way to Madison Junction. That made the heavy traffic more tolerable because I could ride on the shoulder and not obstruct traffic.
My next stop is the Norris Geyser Basin. It's the hottest geyser basin in Yellowstone. First I hiked the Porcelain Basin nature trail which is in an open area that gives wide open views of the hot pools and geysers. The hottest pools are blue. The blue color indicates a pool that is too hot for bacteria to grow. Red, green, and yellow pools get their color from bacteria that grows in the not-so-hot pools. Some pools are blue in the hot center and red around the cooler edges. In the middle of the day most pools didn't produce visible steam. So it was difficult to judge how hot each pool was. But even the coolest pools are scalding hot and would be fatal if you fell in.
Then I hiked the Back Basin trail which is in a mostly forested area. So you can't see things from a distance. I managed to catch Steamboat Geyser erupting slightly. On rare occasions this geyser erupts 400 feet (120m) high, and is the world's tallest geyser.
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The map shows that the road from Norris Geyser Basin follows the Gibbon River downstream all the way to Madison Junction with a net drop of 840 feet. After a short easy climb the new wide pavement is gradual downhill. The late afternoon sunshine was very pleasant. I took the short side road to the Artists Paint Pots trail and walked that 1 mile trail. I had heard that it was very interesting but was kind of disappointed.
After Artists Paint Pots I continued the steady fast ride to Madison Junction, probably averaging 20 mph despite the headwind. The road passes Gibbon Falls, which looked very nice in the late afternoon sun.
I arrived at the Madison Junction campground (6640 feet elevation) shortly before 6 PM and set up in the large hiker/biker area. This is on the ACA TransAmerica bike route. The ranger told me that 300 bikers per year stay at this campground. The hiker/biker area had all kinds of junk left behind by previous campers. Folding chairs, tarps, and old stoves. It was nice to have a comfortable folding chair to sit on. Two other touring cyclists were at the campground. One was a German cyclist riding cross-country, and one was a Japanese cyclist riding from Alaska to Mexico. I had a homebrew shower in the woods and cooked the last of my food. I didn't realize that that Madison has no store, so I didn't stock up on food at Mammoth. I ate all the food I had and wished I had more.
Today's weather was mostly sunny with a high of 72F (22C). Very nice. I had a headwind all day because I was biking south and west. But the wind wasn't extremely strong. It was an easy day of cycling with relatively short mileage and moderate climbing. But the traffic was significantly heavier than the previous days of this trip. I walked a total of 5 miles at Boiling River, Mammoth Hot Springs, Norris Geyser Basin, and Artist Paint Pots. It wasn't exactly a lazy day.
Distance: 41.7 miles (66.7 km)
Climbing: 2410 feet (730m)
Average speed: 9.4 mph (15.0 km/h)
Maximum speed: 35 mph (56 km/h)
Hiking: 5 miles (8 km)
Today's ride: 42 miles (68 km)
Total: 499 miles (803 km)
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