Day 8. August 2: US 12 closed . . . but not for bicyclists

Townsend to Harlowton http://cyclemeter.com/85ef50859d8f1e5c/Cycle-20150802-0832

Distance: 98.8 miles

Riding time: 8:17

Average speed: 11.9 mph

Maximum speed: 29.9 mph

Weather: middle 60s, blue skies with some cirrus clouds; by afternoon it had reached the low 90s, as seen in the screencap below. Weather Underground put the visibility at 10 miles - not because of water vapor in the air as the dew point was only 47° but because of forest fire smoke in the region. For example, parts of Glacier National Park are closed because of fire. The screencap shows an ENE 13 mph wind that was close to a dead-on headwind for me. In the morning there was no wind, and after that a headwind until about 3:00, followed by a tailwind, and then the 13 mph headwind. This wind direction variability has been typical of the trip. Wind direction seems to change from one valley or basin to the next depending on the configuration of the local mountains.

Weather Underground phone app screencap.

Terrain: uphill 4085, downhill 3518. This was a challenging day. I went about 99 miles, began with a 25-mile climb up some foothills and Deep Creek Canyon, and I had some brisk headwinds toward the end of the day. These Montana hills and mountains have gentler slopes compared to those Tom and I have done on our Pennsylvania rides. The accumulated uphill climbing and downhill gliding here in Montana is less than that of Pennsylvania rides too. The 4100 feet uphill I did for this day will be one of the biggest climbing days of the trip but this is much less climbing, for example, than an average day on the Mercer to Washington DC ride Tom and I did. We climbed 31,600 feet in four days (see tmacd.com).

The route followed US 12, US 89. MT 294, and then US 12 again.

Irrigation wheel line just east of Townsend.

Irrigation wheel line just east of Townsend on US 12.

A snake sunning itself on the side of the road. It is probably a bull snake instead of a rattlesnake because there is no rattle at the end of the tail. I assumed it was a rattlesnake at first so I gave it wide berth and used the zoom feature on my phone camera.

Probably a bull snake.

I saw a sign saying that US 12 was closed at Deep Creek Canyon ahead. The next warning sign repeated the message but added that there was a motorcycle advisory. Then three motorcyclists passed me, and a few minutes later they came back, most likely having been turned away. This gave me pause. I reached the work zone and the guy I talked to didn't want me to go through. He said it was a cluster**** up there, that there were machines everywhere, and that the road was all torn up. I persisted, and he said that if I had to go, I could go.

Road closed . . . but not for bicyclists.

The work area was a busy scene. About two dozen people were working on a bridge, on a Sunday. I walk around and through without disrupting their operation. Then I had the whole highway to myself.

US 12 bridge repair in Deep Creek Canyon.

The construction zone lasted for another 8 or 10 miles past the bridge, and it was uphill all the way. I got partly distracted from the work of climbing because it was a beautiful V-shaped valley with many views of Deep Creek. At the top I got a view of the mountain that still had some snow on it.

There's a snowfield in the far distance above the short pine trees in the center of the photo.

Long straight road.

I followed US 12 to US 89, and then headed east on MT 294, where I had my first really bumpy road on this trip. Lots of cracks in the road for about 5 miles.  This highway traverses cattle country and an occasional horse farm.

Angus in silhouette (this phrase is borrowed from William Nutter's "Directions in the Nebraska Sand Hills."

More quadrupeds.

For the last segment of the ride I faced a pretty stiff headwind. The tattered conical textile tube below indicates a wind of at least 10 mph.

 A wind sock provides an approximate measure of wind speed.

There were no services whatsoever on this ride until the 70-mile mark when I reached the Crazy Mountain Inn in Martinsdale. This was the first day that I needed to drink from my 4 liter bladder (stored in a pannier) after finishing my two quart water bottles held in cages mounted on the bike frame. Snacks tided me over until I had a nice chef's salad and rhubarb pie à la mode. Despite the somewhat ragged appearance of the exterior, the Inn has good food. On one wall, they have the beautiful Raven Map of Montana (the link points to a zoom-able map)

Martinsdale had 64 people in 2010. Most buildings are vacant, such as the former Heath Hotel. Martinsdale maintains a Post Office and the Mint Bar.

Crazy Mountain Inn, named after the nearby Crazy Mountains. 

The former Heath Hotel on Martinsdale's Main Street

Two Dot is a few miles from Martinsdale. Both towns were station stops on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad ("the Milwaukee Road"). Two Dot has fewer people than Martinsdale. It supports a bar and a post office. Two Dot is named after a local rancher whose nickname reflected his distinctive cattle brand.

Two Dot Bar

A fierce guard kitty at the entrance of the Two Dot Bar, but she let me pet her.

On the final leg I saw several clusters of wind turbines. They made me think of Deb Pile who will soon retire from her job with the MN Department of Commerce where she works on the permitting of wind turbines and associated issues.

Thirteen wind turbines along US 12.

I pulled into my destination of Harlowton, or Harlo for short. I soon met Karen Hammel, a recently retired attorney who worked for the MN Attorney General's Office and is a friend of Deb's. Karen represented Deb's division. Karen gave me a couple glasses of water and then we enjoyed a beer sitting on her porch that overlooks tiny Jawbone Creek and a vast pastoral landscape with mountain ranges in the distance.