Day 6, Thompson Falls, MT

Another great day on the bike. Today was a shorter ride than the past couple of days, 70 miles. The temperature was pretty cool with most of the riders wearing jackets at the stop. We retraced our steps on the bike path, riding in group of about 7 or 8. I stopped on the bike trail to take some photos and noticed that I was near an espresso shack. Lori was at the window ordering an drink so I had a tall latte as well, then it was off to catch the rest of the pack.

The road was quite, flat and fast, with cars and trucks occasionally passing us. We caught the group as they were pulled over at a small general store sipping coffee and hot chocolate. After sunning ourselves for a while, it was time to resume the ride.

The challenge for the day was a climb to Thompson's pass that in spots reached a 12% grade, which is pretty tough for a bicycle. At the top was a great picnic stop. The highlights for me was the banana and strawberry salad and the turkey hot dogs.

From the top of the pass the rest of ride was truly down hill 20 miles to Thompson Falls, MT. After a bit over 10 miles we pulled into a general store/bar/casino for some additional refreshments before the final 8 or nine downhill miles to town.