Wednesday, July 11th, Drummond, MT or … black snakes on the road?

Leaving Missoula is a bit like leaving home. Specially since we haven’t cycled today’s route. We have driven it by van with CA – connecting from one tour to another, but never on two wheels. Keeping the afternoon thunderstorms in mind, we left early enough. To be on the road by 8.30 am is just fine. This blue sky uplifts the mood of my woman. We started out on the frontage road: the road running next to the Interstate 90. The change from the city to East Missoula is dramatic: just 3 miles out of town and already it looks like small town America. Milltown has the biggest gas station so far: it is actually huge! I asked for some directions but the woman behind the counter didn’t know her way very well. Anyways – they told me to go on the Interstate. And so I did – and felt rather comfortable. 

It looks as if we get a whole road as shoulder to cycle on. My woman told me she had thoughts of the route being more wooded – not so open We spent the day along the Clark Fork – going upstream. That river made it more peaceful.

 Well, cycling on a Montana state route is sometimes more difficult (no shoulder at all) We stopped to pick up a license plate of Montana…It’s now gonna go all the way to ST. George. Were we happy to see a rest area at mile 43 (or so): a perfect spot for my woman to get her t-shirt soaked and there is a pet area too! Some nuts gives her enough energy to go on – she thinks The railroad is also next to the river and very  soon we see a train coming.  We wave and the driver blows his horn: my woman is so excited with this response that tears well up in her eyes. Silly human!

 I haven’t told yet - the road were laying lots of “black snakes” – which my boss tried to go around. It made me almost bicycle sick, but she told me she had to do this ‘cause those snakes were rests of tires form cars and they have iron in them which make holes in our tires! Our tempo the last 10 miles was much slower again – heat and being tired I guess! It was time now to arrive at Drummond. White clouds were now gathering – a storm already in making. Wonder where it will go. Drummond is not a whole lot. Getting into town I cannot help but notice the sign that this is a town that is meth free. Boy, it gets us thinking. Even along the main road (there is only that road) several buildings are painted with slogans about meth and how it destroys people. 

We first head for a cool drink, then go shopping in the old store before checking into the motel. The lady warns us not to be afraid in the middle of the night: there will be trains passing and it will sound as if they enter your room. Now this is something to look forward to (or not).