Day 46 - Simms, Montana to Lincoln, Montana

I crossed over The continental divide at Rogers Pass today. The ascent to the pass was steep and challenging, but not as challenging as the headwinds I battled all day. The wind was blowing so hard in my face that on my descent i was unable to hit even 30 mph. A cyclist I passed going east on the Lewis and Clark trail told me that he had hit 50 mph on his descent from the pass!

This is gorgeous country, but the smoke is becoming somewhat of an issue. There are all kinds of air-quality alerts and warnings out throughout Montana and I am exerting a lot of energy for upwards of seven hours a day! This may not be healthy!

Near the top ofthe mountain the mountain pass, I was happy and a little surprised to see that Minnesota does not hold the record for the coldest temperature ever recorded In the continental United States! When I arrived in Lincoln, I learned from one of the locals that same area also holds the record for the biggest temperature change in any 12 hour period - Apparently it was 40 below zero up there one night. Then the Chinook winds started to blow. 12 hours later it was 60°!

Day 45 - Great Falls, Montana to Simms, Montana

Great Falls, Montana is where Lewis and Clark first encountered a grizzly bear. They mistakenly believed that they would behave similar to the timid black bears of the Appalachian mountain range. Lewis was shocked when he shot the grizzly several times and he just kept a  comin’. 

The grizzly bear population in this region is way up and the smoke from the forest fires is causing the bears and other wildlife to seek refuge at lower elevations. All of the locals here seem to have stories about grizzly bear encounters and universally recommend that I: travel with bear spray, not keep food anywhere near my tent, and not camp near rivers. I guess bear spray out here is another one of those things that you’d rather have and not need than need and not have!

I am camping alone in a small campground Tonight that is within view of the Blackfoot river. The owner told me I should be OK because the bears are all down by the river!  I will be sleeping with my bear spray next to me tonight!

Great Falls was also The residence of Charlie Russell, the famous artist Who captured the brief Wild West period in American history with great detail and accuracy before many cameras had found their way out to Montana.

Below is a photograph of a modern-day cowboy looking at a display in the magnificent CM Russell museum in Great Falls.

Tomorrow I will be crossing the continental divide, which should help take my mind off grizzly Bears!

Day 44 - Fort Benton, MT to Great Falls, MT

There was a bad surprise waiting for Lewis, Clark and the Corps of Discovery When they arrived in what is now Great Falls in mid June 1804. Instead of one waterfall that they could portage in a day, as they had expected, there were five spread out over 18.5 miles. Portaging the canoes and gear was arduous work that took them well into July. There is a Lewis and Clark interpretive Center next to the river in Great Falls that has an excellent depiction of the portage.

I, too, had a bad surprise today as I rode to Great Falls. The smoke from the forest fires west of here is starting to get worse. Fortunately, it looks like we might be getting cooler weather and some rain starting in the next couple days that should help.Whatever may happen, like Lewis and Clark, I shall persevere!

As I rode around the perimeter of Malmberg Air Force Base on the outskirts of Great Falls, I was reminded That the guy camping next to me in Lewistown said that Boeing is moving over 300 employees to that area for the purpose of doing some kind of government contract work on the 100+ underground missile silos in that area that date back to the the Cold War. Fake news?

I look forward to visiting the Charlie Russell Museum here in Great Falls tomorrow.

A rest day in Fort Benton, Montana

I am so happy to be back together with Lewis, Clark, Sacagawea, Lewis’ dog Seaman, And the entire crew of the core of discovery here in the historic town of Fort Benton, MT.

I took a much-needed rest day here today to stroll around town, visit its fort and four wonderful museums, take a swim and hang out by the river.

About 10 miles downstream from here in what is now the village  of Loma, Lewis And Clark had a huge decision to make. There was a fork in the river. One branch headed north and the other south. For nine days they deliberated which way to go while taking expeditions along well with rivers to figure out which was the Missouri.Ultimately they correctly decided to take the South River, Which turned out to be correct.

I have a similar decision to make. I can either rent a car in Great Falls, drive home and be done with this leg of my trip or continue on to the ocean. Great Falls is the decision point because I don’t expect to have an opportunity to rent a car until I arrive in Portland. Clark (my wife, Sheila) And I just discussed the pros and cons of each option at length over the phone, Including a plan to finish with the final leg next year. Ultimately we decided I should continue on and get ‘er done.

This part of the river is the prettiest I’ve seen. One of the museums I visited today is called the upper Missouri River Breaksmonument. The Bureau of land management owns the river and shoreline for many miles downstream from here. It is the portion of the river that most resembles the river as it was seen by Lewis and Clark. The breaks are vertical cliffs along the river that I estimate to be about 700 feet in height. 

There are also ancient volcanoes along the riverbank, all of which make this little town a gorgeous place.

Fort benton has an intriguing history dating back to the fur trading days and continuing into the days when gold was discovered near here in the 1860s.Steamboats brought speculators and others up from St. Louis on a six week riverboat journey that landed them here in a bustling town full of saloons, brothels and outlaws. 

In the pre-statehood 1860s this territory and town were as lawless as any old west town. But for the most part The exploits that took place here seem to have escaped the attention of Hollywood movie makers of westerns.The spectacular gunfights, mysterious drownings, And colorful outlaws who frequented this place would make for a great cinema.

Day 43 - Denton, MT to Fort Benton, MT

This is a busy time of year in Central Montana - harvest time. I had to contend with semis hauling wheat all day long on a narrow 2 Lane Highway with no shoulder. The truck drivers were very courteous and careful. Even with the trucks it was still a very lonely highway.

For much of the day I was treated to amazing views of a Squate Butte, A wide butte that is 5,280 feet tall and was formed by the lava from a volcanic eruption To bubble up and Harden in its current shape.

I saw a lot of wildlife on today’s ride, which is becoming quite commonplace.

A Night in Winnett

Winnett (pronounced WIN-it with a heavy accent on the first syllable) Has 143 residents and one bar. I head into the bar on a Saturday night at about 6:30 and grab a stool between a cowboy in traditional garb and an elderly gentleman.

I buy a couple of beers for the cowboy and he Answers every question I can think to ask about cowboy life over the next couple of hours. It is a nice conversation.

Having exhausted my cowboy questions, I ask A question designed to elicit his views on gun control. Yes, he has a semi automatic weapon. It’s great for shooting coyotes. Coyotes kill calves. 

So, I ask, under Montana’s open carry law could he walk into a movie theater with that semi automatic weapon in plain sight?The bartender, who has been itching to interject, says loudly, yes and thank God for that! 

With that the bartender abruptly walks away. But he cannot stay away for long. He returns to add an important proviso. A Private property owner can prohibit semi automatic weapons or other guns on his property. As it should be. Private property rights Trump gun rights.

He would rather have a gun with him and hope he never has to use it than not have one and need one. I get it. That’s how I think about the bicycle tire pump and spare tubes I carry.

Having inserted himself into the conversation, the bartender takes over. He wants to talk. Not listen. Fine. I’m here to listen.

He had a daughter who just graduated from University of Montana at Missoula. Some of her professors will flunk students just because they are white. Really? Then who passes?I decide not to ask. Is University of Montana a liberal university? Yes, very much so.

His daughter returned to Winnett With some pretty warped views. It didn’t take long to set her straight. When she got her first paycheck she was surprised to see how much had been deducted for taxes. Her dad explained where that money was going. Before you knew  it she was back in the fold.

There are a lot of liberal Californians moving into Missoula and other places in western Montana. And they’re bringing their liberal culture with them to Montana.

The cowboy mentions that Michael Keaton has a ranch south of here near Yellowstone. They hunted from the same hunting lodge. Nice guy. They didn’t talk politics. He’s probably liberal, but not as liberal as most people in Hollywood.

There’s going to be another Civil War. and that everyone seems to agree. Really? Between Western Montana and the rest of the state? Never mind.

And those oilfield workers up in the Bakken formation are a bunch of criminals. A few of them came to town a couple weeks ago and were harassing the townspeople and taking drugs. They had to get the sheriff involved. He ran them out of town fast But not before arresting a couple of them who had outstanding warrants for their arrest.

As long as people work and don’t break any laws, the bartender has no problem with them no matter what color they are. Now Obama, he’s a racist. More to the point, there is an overabundance of people in this country who don’t want to work.

(Gulp) Fortunately, bicyclists seem to get a pass. It doesn’t seem to matter much what kind of work you do and bicycling, I guess, is work. Anyway, we are not talking about me.

There’s a guy right here in Winnett who has never worked a day in his life. All he does is sleep, sit around all day, and eat. He now weighs close to 400 pounds and gets more money in government handouts than many of the people in Winnett who work.

Elderly people and people who cannot work? We take care of our own. We always do. What exactly does that mean? Never mind.

The lecture then flows into the subject of criminals, another Area in which there is an overabundance of people. There seems to be a great deal of respect for the local sheriff. Unlike most taxes, that is tax money well spent. The sheriff does a good job of deciding who should get a gun and who should not. And he and his deputies fight crime.

A lot of the crimes Are being committed in this country by Muslims. Do I have any idea what the Koran says? Freedom of religion is not thriving here.

The bartender is not a Republican. He’s a conservative. Of the 500 residents of petroleum County, only 13 to 15 are liberals. 

The lecture is winding down. The Cowboy speaks again. 

He’s all about freedom, and that means that on the abortion issue he is pro choice. Sounds to me like he’s a libertarian, but I keep that to myself.

He’d like to ride a horse across the country. never going to happen. Would probably take three horses. A horse can only make about 20 or 25 miles in a  day.

I later learn that there are some speculators buying up mineral rights in petroleum county. If oil prices get to $80 a barrel, there is money to be made there. There seems to be a consensus that many of the local residents like Winnett just the way it is. 

My takeaway. Even in the information age, people are still very much products of their immediate environment. What is best for Chicago is probably not best for Winnett. Maybe we should repeal the Second Amendment and make it a states rights issue.

Oh, and the older gentleman sitting on my other side. Turns out he is one of the most knowledgeable authorities on  the Lewis and Clark expedition in Montana I have ever met.

I have very much enjoyed my evening in Winnett!

The life of a modern Cowboy

Upon entering a bar one night I am overjoyed to see a stool next to a real cowboy in uniform. He welcomes me to sit down on the stool next to him.

Cowboys are a vanishing breed - Victims of technology. There’s far less need for cowboys with today’s modern cattle feeding equipment, hay balers, etc. Still, there are some things that only a skilled cowboy can do. 

Branding is one of those things. That can be hard work. Not easy work like separating calves from their mothers. Both require herding. 

Herding cows is still usually done on horses. But even Cowboys sometimes use ATVs to get around ranches that are often 10,000 acres or more. Ranches are divided into large sections and cowboys ride long distances to mend fences and herd cattle. 

There’s no need to chip a cattle on these large ranches. Cowboys know where the water and feed are and where the cows will be at given times. 

Cows are generally free to roam, but cowboys do sometimes need to herd them - to brand them, separate calves from their mothers, and to load them on trucks to send to slaughter houses.

Cattle out here are grass fed. The meat of grass fed Ccows is leaner than the meat of corn fed cows. Often when cattle are shipped to Kansas City they are fattened up with corn before being slaughtered. The meat of corn fed cows is  much more tender, but the meat of grass fed cows sometimes brings a premium price.

It is hard to grow much grass to feed cattle here. The summers are short and dry, and the average cow needs 40 acres. That is why the ranches here are huge. There are more cattle raised in Florida than in Montana or any other Western State. 

Winters here are long and it takes a lot of hay to feed cattle during the winter.

Many of the cedar posts Used as fence posts are original equipment - over 100 years old!

For many years my new cowboy friend saved money to buy his own ranch. He had his own herd and leased land from other ranchers. Things were going well and he was very close to being able to buy a ranch when his marriage fell apart. He got divorced and his dream of owning a ranch died with his marriage.. Now he works as a hired hand for other ranch owners.