Day 8: Seeley Lake to Big Nelson Camp - 47 miles
Jeb's mother wasn't working but we still had the royal treatment from our very friendly waitress. She convinced Sean to have the special - a pancake, 2 eggs and 2 bacon. With the bottomless cup of coffee and an english muffin it was quite a meal. I did equally well having a 'tall stack' of pancakes (3). I only got through 2.5 of them, although Sean managed to eat the entire meal with 3 cups of coffee. We were ready for the day!
Before hitting the trail we visited the local Radio Shack to try and get some advice on the cell phone. No luck but the fellow gave us a number to call for advice. When I rang it later it didn't work. Ho hum. Will try in Helena when we get there.
With our dawdling we didn't hit the road until 10:30 and the first section took us up along the Seeley Creek Nordic Ski Trails which, of course, was all uphill. Our breakfasts sat very heavily on us.
There was a climb of about 1000' to Cottonwood Lake which was harder than it should have been, but from there we had extended sections of downhill which were fun. While at Cottonwood Lake we stopped for a rest. The lake was attractive from a distance, but up close it was clogged with algae so the green tinge was not very attractive.
Three teenagers drove up on 4WD farm bikes. They were headed up to the Morrell Mountain lookout and stopped for a chat. There were identical twins from NY and their friend from Helena. We had a yarn and they took our photo, surprised to find people from NZ cycling in outback Montana.
Travelling past the lake we saw an eagle in the sky swooping around the lake. I wondered if it was looking for fish to catch. A magnificent bird I was impressed with its speed an manoeuverability. It was in and out of site several times as it flew around.
As we cycled down the road we passed some forest workers having lunch. I recognised one of them from the previous day and she called out hi to us as we travelled past. They were a larger group with men and women so the do work together sometimes.
The road skirted the edge of the Swan Mountains and it was rolling so not too difficult. We could see down to our right the plain with farms and the Mission Mountains in the distance. There were wonderful forested sections which we zoomed through on downhill runs.
Eventually we left the forest and entered farmland. Much of it was similar to that below with irrigated grasses. No cereals or other crops.
Some of the farms were old and I found the barn below quite fetching. Shame about the modern conveniences which detract from the period setting.
As I cycled up the road the two horses below ran beside me and then stopped at the fence to check me out. Very friendly I was sorry that I didn't have an apple to give them.
For lunch we decided to go to the town of Ovando which was just off the route. It was a delightful small settlement with buildings all of which looked like they dated back 100 years. We went into a shop advertising snacks but wandered around aimlessly trying to find something to eat. The owner advised us that if we wanted anything but junk food we need to go to 'Trixies' but they weren't likely to have much there either.
I noticed a historical sign in town and went over to have a read. It is one of the advantages to cycle touring insofar as it is easy to stop and read such signs. It told how the explorers Lewis and Clark split up and Lewis explored this area on his own. He named a local creek after his Newfoundland dog, but that was subsequently renamed after someone less worthy.
Trixies was on the main highway and when we parked our bikes we saw that Wayne and Dustin were there. It transpired that they had bene there for 2.5 h and were having a hard time leaving. When they finally did they found that Dustin had a flat tyre so we saw him fixing it through the window.
It is impossible to adequately describe Trixies. It was a saloon, restaurant and local hangout all rolled into one. It was decorated in everything from animal heads to neon signs to old photographs of locals, often accompanied by a dead animal they had hunted.
It was started by Trixie who was a famous stunt cowgirl. She appeared in rodeos throughout the world and even made 2 films. She could swing 2 lasoos at the same time while playing her harmonica and tap dancing on her horse Silver Dollar. And there were photos to prove it, although I can't attest to the tap dancing since it was a still photo.
My favourite story was how she saved the Calgary stampede from bankruptcy. After losing money for 2 years it was on the rails and in 1940 she was asked to perform. She agreed if they supplied the costume and travel expenses. The costume was a short skirt and halter top which led the eastern Canadian newspapers to tell of this naked cowgirl at the stampede. Needless to say the shows were a sellout...
She died a few years ago at 91 and they had a big party before spreading her ashes in the area. There were photos of her great-great grand daughter at the ceremony so the family is still strong in the area.
After a forgettable lunch it was out into the headwind. It looked and felt like a storm was blowing in. We went east along Highway 200--finding the presence of cars most disconcerting after our quiet roads--before turning off towards the wilderness again. Ahead of us was the next range of mountains we need to cross and these are sown below.
The cycling was a bit tedious as it was through flat grassland being grazed by cattle and horses. The headwind didn't make it any easier. However, we made good time and eventually turned off to the campground. The guidebook didn't say that there was a 2 mile mostly uphill run so I was not in a good mood when I got there as I needed to cycle out again to try some calls on my cell phone since there was no reception at the campground.
It was nestled by a lake and quite lovely, although the wind on the lake was very strong. Wayne and Dustin were here as was Kevin, otherwise there were no other campers. After pitching our tents I headed out to try my luck with phoning (I had none). When I returned Sean, Kevin and I talked about Yellowstone Park and Kevin gave us some excellent advice. We then told him a lot about NZ before we all retired for an early night.