It was nippy today, some folks said it was downright cold as we left the school to the Elks Lodge for breakfast. After a breakfast of eggs, bacon, potatoes and coffee we were off. The morning was clear as we rode through a valley. Depending on our position, we were either warmed by the morning sun or chilled by the valley's shadow. Mostly flat but with some gentle climbs.
We stopped at 25+ miles in a town of Paradise that had more folks on Harley motorcycles then bicycles. Jim and Lauri convinced some of the tough looking guys to have their photos taken with us. We also had coffee and sweet rolls in the small cafe.
We were soon on the road again and sped along to lunch. At the lunch stop my cycle computer was showing an average speed of 16.4, a pretty fast speed for me.
After lunch the winds started to pick up. Sometimes pushing us and sometimes showing our progress. There was still one more surprise stop. I had pulled off the road to take some photos of a one room schoolhouse, then looked up to see that group that I was riding with was gone. Normally you can look down the road and see them about 1/2 miles ahead, but no, they were gone. Got back on the bike and within a minute, the mystery was solved. Up ahead the was a coffee stop with truly homemade donuts, still warm from the oven. A dutch windmill was also there as an attraction an two very well fed dogs.
The day was getting late and the total mileage was going to be over 103 miles so we had to get moving. That's when the wind started to turn against use and the road was starting to climb at 3%. The combination slowed me down to 6-8 miles and hour. The directions provided by Cycle America promised a steep downhill toward Missoula. With the promise of downhill ahead I continued.
The final miles into town was fast and the temperatures climbed as we rolled into Missoula.
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