Summer recovery ride: Terlingua to Glacier

[Goat10]

WOW great ride! I spent many years of my career in SD, MT, and CO and have ridden most of those areas, beautiful and great memories. Thanks for sharing!

 

[cheez]

Excellent ride report- and I've got to say, you've had possibly the best recovery plan for heart issues that I've seen yet... the most ambitious for sure!

 

[ed29]

Thanks y'all! When I broke camp there I headed west on 14 and past Sheridan I picked up 14A which is a wonderful mountain road. There were several places where the old 14A split off to a rocky dirt track winding around and returning to the pavement in spots where the road was modernized (straightened). I resisted the temptation to follow the old tracks. I split off on 310 which is a larger faster straighter highway in hopes of making some time and doing the run from DT to Glacier in one day. High temperatures and high winds worked against me. Going north at 70ish into a 25 wind with gusts to 35 meant I was low on fuel in 135 miles instead of the usual 180-200. Extra stops, extra time. Temperatures crawled into the high 90s with a peak at 99 while I was blasting interstate. My disease lowers my tolerance for heat so I was pretty whooped by 3:00 in the afternoon. I decided to cool off at the town of Big Timber and evaluate. The Fort is a combination gun shop, store, restaurant, and filling station there. I bet they have at least one of every rifle currently in production on the for sale racks there. What they didn't have was an inviting looking motel. After a rest I decided to ride on and if I made the park great, if I found a place to stop then okay too.

A couple of hours later I stopped in a wide spot called Eddy's corner. Clean cheap motel with a good restaurant/bar and a gas station. Still had half a tank, but might as well start the next day full. Left there Sunday morning for the relatively short day's ride to Glacier. Took my time on smaller roads. Stopped for a donut at a little bakery in Choteau which is the north end of US287. Kind of cool to think I could have ridden from there to Fort Worth and beyond on that one old highway.

Made camp in mid afternoon which was lucky timing. Found out from the camp host that they had been full since Friday and had I arrived in one day as planned there would have been no place to set up. They were full again on Sunday by 7:00PM. Pulled out the camera and went for a hike.

Like at the Pecos I decided to cool the boot hot feet...

While I could stand for a good while in the Pecos this snow melt stream was cold. VERY COLD. In 30 seconds the feet were hurting and by a minute, no more pain. Numbness set in that fast.

Glacier was home for three days and the turn around point for the trip. Recorded the time and miles on the GPS upon arrival.

 

[ed29]

Day 2 at Glacier was my day to go over and back on Road to the Sun.

Marvelous how the lakes have such color to them. The camera does not do it justice,

Encountered my first Bear Jam just past this lake. Momma and cub were on the right side of the road minding their own business while drivers pulled up short in the middle of the road to gawk and take pics. When people started piling out and moving towards the pair of bears I got the heck out of there. That meant riding on the wrong side until I passed the cars on my side, splitting a couple of parked cars then zipping away on my side. Found out later from a ranger that the bears ran off and climbed trees to escape the people. One arrest was made of a woman so bent on getting a picture that she ignored rangers orders and actually tried to climb one of the trees for a better shot. How can a person be that ignorant of behavior around wild animals?

The ride over was great! construction zones have part of it torn up but all at lower elevations. Go early on this road to avoid traffic!

Happy to be here!

I visited with a volunteer over at Avalanche Campground. Jane had done a season at Big Bend as I learned from Amy at RMNP who also works Big Bend. She (Jane) was not enamored of Big Bend so I asked about parts of the park she visited. It seems she hung mostly at Rio Grande Village, her post. Never saw Castelon, The Basin, Santa Elena, or the roads to and from. Only saw Panther Junction on the way in and on the way out. Never ventured to the ghost town. I asked her to give it another tour and see more of it, but she was not enthused. It's a shame that someone spends half a year living inside the national park and sees so little of it. If RGV was my only reference for Big Bend I would have a dusty hot opinion of the place too I suppose.

The ride back east was more of a chore for traffic. Lots of drivers are afraid to drive near the edge and will share your oncoming lane. After I made it to St. Marys I was pondering my lunch options and trying to reach Graeme and Mike who should have been close by on their long ride. Calls were not going through and texts were not getting responses. As I sat outside the little shop I see a green Versys riding south and say Hmmm. That is the same color Mike has. Not far behind is a GSA that is unmistakably Graeme. I know his gear from so many rides in the desert. I geared up and chased them down. Turned out they were at the other store in town trying to call me while I was calling them.

Getting them to stop was tricky. They had not seen my GS or my new gear so they had no idea of who this lunatic was that passed them and then pulled off. I yelled out to Graeme as he passed me and he realized who the crazy rider was. We all had a good lunch back at the sandwich shop. Pretty cool to be thousands of miles from home and see bikes and people you know that are on their own vacation ride.

 

[Cagiva 549]

Thats one of the awesome things about riding , You can be a long way from home and always see friends . Sure wish I had made it up to Glacier while I was up that way . SEYA SEYA

 

[ed29]

The Tuesday I spent in Glacier was dedicated as a day off the bike. It had been two weeks since I left Terlingua and I had ridden every day. Time for a break before packing the next day and starting the return leg of the journey. I had my sights set on hiking as much as Grinell Glacier Trail as my system could handle. In May I cold not walk 100 yards on level ground without resting along the way and was sapped after that short walk. Here I was in July setting off on a 9 mile round trip (including the walk between camp and trailhead) hike up and back down with altitude gain of 1840' topping out around 6500'.

Ambitious pushing my recovery that way but I was feeling good that day and had been at higher altitudes in the Rockies.

The park offers a boat ride on Lake Josephine aboard Morning Eagle that shaves time and miles off the hike. I opted to walk.

As you climb the small streams that can be heard the whole way show themselves.

The view changes with every bend in the trail.

As I climbed I got to the first snow field.

This was an easy walk in the compacted tracks of other hikers.

Still with the changing views...

I come to this sign suspended across the trail.

A group of people were debating pressing on or turning back. I didn't take time for talk. I ducked under the sign and pressed onward and upward.

The next xnow field was steeper than the first but not too bad.

Looking back on that one from above.

The last one I encountered was intimidating.

Way steep and has a stream of water running under coming out pretty far down the hill. No crampon, no ice axe, no ropes or climbing partner... Turn back point for me. I could see the trail exiting the snow above the rock to the left in that last picture but had no idea where the ice bridge over the hidden water stream is.

Heading back down after resting by the snow.

I took my time on this hike and when I reached lower altitudes it was warm compared to the morning. What had been green flowerless fields in the morning now looked like this.

What a good day for a hike.

 

[swoody126]

WOW!!!

what a great day

the MORNING EAGLE is one fine piece of HISTORY, hope you got to read up on her, while you were there

sw

 

[Vinny]

The picture with the lake, boat and mountains is amazing

 

[bmcdonau]

Great trip! Sounds and looks very therapeutic.

 

[philipbarrett]

Hey Ed! Thanks for sharing & sorry to hear about your troubles. I'd always associated congestive heart with certain lifestyle choices (my Dad suffers from it, mostly as a result of his Mad Man days) but you are the fit, healthy type.

I liked the picture of Mt. Rushmore but never understood why they put David Crosby and Stephen Stills between those 2 presidents?

 

[ed29]

Breaking camp at Glacier that Wednesday marked the start of my return leg of the journey. Road construction and detours really slowed my progress south. I gained appreciation for the lack of delays on Sunday when I was northbound. My goal of getting from Glacier to Yellowstone in a day faded as the clock seemed to be spinning faster than my odometer. Lots of things were running through my mind including the need to do laundry.

As I was zipping south on 287 around 5:00pm I spotted a campground called Driftwoods Resort. It has RV and tent accommodations, a coin laundry, and a restaurant/bar. Tent camping for bikers is $5.00. That includes a very clean shower room too. I found my spot to clean up me and my clothes and had a short 35 mile ride to the park in the AM. The campground backs up to the Madison River and is a favorite spot for fly fishermen. Several folks invited me to spend a full day on the river and join them in fishing. Fly fishing wasn't high on my list of things to do. Besides I have no waders or fishing tackle stuff in the Beemer. Waders are a must for fishing that river. I opted for fishing in the restaurant. They have a trout salad for ten bucks. Healthy food for the price of a burger sold me on dinner.

I broke camp early. In spite of the overnight drizzles the tent was dry enough to pack by 7:00am. I observed that on rain free nights humidity would soak the inside of my tent, and both sides of the fly, but on rainy nights the inside of the tent and fly would stay dry. Only the outside of the fly was wet. Seems strange to me, anyone have thoughts on how or why that was so?

After breakfast in West Yellowstone I began my circuit of the park.

Obligatory stop here,

I had an interesting encounter with a pair of buffalo. They were walking along the road traveling the same direction as I was and of course cars were backing up traffic to get pictures. These critters are bigger than the buffs I saw in Oklahoma a few years back. Their humps are taller than my head when I am on the GS. As the people in front of me moved on and I started to pass them both critters picked up the pace to a trot with the trailing buff eyeballing me on the bike. They paced me for a bit, not 20' away on the shoulder of the road. Kind of a spooky feeling having a large unpredictable animal trotting next to your motorcycle. I was concerned that people in front of me would stop again, thankfully they kept going and I was able to slip ahead of them. Once I was past the pair they stopped and snorted at me. I just kept rolling. Later on the loop this solitary animal was just doing his thing oblivious to traffic.

One of the falls in Yellowstone..

Traffic jams were all over the place. By early afternoon I had completed a partial circuit of the park from the west entrance counterclockwise to the northeast entrance. Without knowing I had avoided the portion of park road that is melting from below. At the northeast entrance there is a sign warning of road damage and closures on the north part of the loop road. Just my lucky day to avoid that.

Had a great lunch in Silver Gate at Log Cabin B&B. More fish, salmon today. That good luck just kept coming my way. The place was packed and the next people in the door after me were a couple of pretty young gals from Switzerland exploring the U.S. They joined me at my table rather than wait for one of their own. We shared our travel stories and I recommended a trip to Big Bend when they come again this winter. We'll see if they show up.

After lunch Beartooth Pass was my dessert. Rode over and then back to where it intersects the Chief Joseph byway which I followed into Cody. Both roads were a blast and most of the way on Chief Joe I was in light rain. So much fun even at reduced speeds for the rain. Came upon a backup where a mixed group of cruisers (Rocket III, Shadow, a pair of V-Stars, and a big Suzuki) was holding up cars and trucks. I worked my way to the front of the automobiles then passed the pack. As I moved over to our side on a slight curve the wet paint stripe gave the GS a good wiggle. At the gas station in Cody they pulled in and said hi. The group was from Chicago and all thought I was nuts. I wasn't going fast, just smooth and steady. The slip on the wet paint was no biggie as it caught as soon as it was off the paint.

Spent the rest of the afternoon at the Buffalo Bill museum in Cody. I could have spent a whole day there, quite a place.

 

[The Bruce]

Best selfie I've seen in a while.

 

[ed29]

Next morning I rode back into the southeast entrance. The road from Cody over to Yellowstone is one that must be ridden. Such a beautiful canyon ride. The lake was very calm that morning.

As wonderful as the mountains were I was missing the desert. I made tracks across Wyoming and camped at Riverside, just north of the Colorado line. Riverside is a river tourist town that also serves hikers on the divide. It is also a twilight zone cousin to Terlingua. Locals hang out on the porch of the Mangy Moose bar. People their are near doubles of Terlingua characters. Five people I visited with were ringers for locals here. Made me miss the desert even more. Another rainy night made for a strangely dry tent and a good early start.

I zipped down through Walden and cut west towards Steamboat Springs. A fruit stand was set up next to the gas station so I snagged two peaches and a small bag of cherries. That last item went into my tank bag as a snack while rolling. Spitting the pits out of the DS helmet was tricky. A few didn't make it over the chin bar. I was avoiding interstate highway as much as possible but didn't see a good alternative to get over to Glenwood Springs. To my surprise that stretch of slab winds through Glenwood Canyon and is actually pretty good riding. It was under construction, cut to one lane and 35mph. That actually made it better than if we were full speed and two lanes.

From there I headed south towards Paonia and cut east on the dirt road to Kebler Pass. Great little zig zag except that it deposits you in Crested Butte. That city is a tourist trap nightmare for a desert rat. I was getting tired but no way could I afford a room there. I headed south to Gunnison, checking a few lodges along the way. No bargain rooms to be had in that area. I figured Gunnison has lots of hotels/motels, so getting a room should be no problem. Well.... unknown to me the PRCA tour was in town for the rodeo and all rooms were booked. I was in and out of rain all afternoon and dealing with a downpour in town. I had been camping the last few nights and was ready for a room so I pointed west to Cimmaron CO. I figured if that was a strikeout Montrose was just a bit farther. Found a room at an agreeable price, and found the cafe had closed already. Great thing about small towns, the man running the cafe was enjoying the evening on a bench in front. He opened the place up, turned on the lights and asked what I wanted. You meet some nice people in tiny towns.

 

[tshelfer]

First of all,

Second, I like your philosophy of therapy. Hmm, water aerobics or motorcycling through Glacier? Water aerobics or motorcycling through Glacier? Hmmm. Yeah, Glacier. Good call.

Third, it sounds like Crazy Horse was pretty disappointing. Just goes to show that you can't manufacture awe & wonder. And when you try, the stuff God put here just blows it away.

Glad you found the Clear Creek CG. I love the falls there, even though I didn't quite make it over there in June.

 

[ed29]

Early the next day I was rolling down 550 through Ouray, Silverton, and Durango. Light traffic, good weather, what more could a rider ask for! For some reason the camera just stayed put away. I have no pictures to share from that ride. Since the day before had me traveling until after 7:00 I resolved to make this a short day. Stopped for a late lunch in Chama at High Country Restaurant. Visited the train yard.

And decided to knock off early with a quick stop at the grocery store for dinner and breakfast food followed by camp at Heron Lake State Park.

Took an afternoon walk and got treated later to a great sunset.

The next morning I rode out via NM112 which is unpaved for a bit.

As I crossed the dam at El Vado Lake an Osprey flew alongside checking me out. He was off my right shoulder over the water only a few feet out and up. Cool experience.

Homesickness was getting serious at this point. At Cuba I considered going left on 550, straight shot to interstate and a beeline home. I stayed with my plan of going NM197 through small towns and Navajo country. My reward was seeing red rock canyons, wild mustangs, clay draws, sage covered steppes, rocky buttes, and small towns like Torreon, Pueblo Pintado, White Horse, and Seven Lakes.

After gassing up in Grants I cut down through El Malpais. These roads cut back and forth across the divide and I met a group from Canada riding the divide northbound. I took their picture with their camera, but forgot to use mine. DOH!

The only picture I took all day was of the arch in El Malpais.

Got a room in Glenwood NM, too tired to continue way too early in the day.

My plan for the next day was to visit with friends in Kingston after enjoying the best of NM152 over Emory Pass. the plan came together with one hitch.

Rains the night before had washed mud over the road. Blind left curve about 3 miles west of the pass. I was going slow and chopped the throttle when the mud came in sight. Throttle was still off when I got on the mud so the front pushed very badly. This stuff was slick as grease on the asphalt. With the hard surface below the mud there was just nothing for the tires to grip. The bike lowsided hard enough to dislodge the handlebars. A crew from NMDOT was the first vehicle coming the other way. Their morning assignment was to see if a sweeper truck was needed for that highway. Obvious answer was YES the sweeper was needed.

We got the bike upright and I fixed the handlebar. A plastic bolt on the windshield broke away as designed so I put a zip tie in its place. Off to visit with Tom and Satomi. We rinsed the mud off the bike and my gear, found another missing bolt on the fairing. Another zip tie, then we all visited a while letting my gear dry.

Satomi snapped this picture as I geared up to continue. I covered almost 400 more miles that day after the wreck.

That was the last big day of the trip. I snapped this odometer poker shot later.

Made it to Pecos TX that day and on to Terlingua the next. Back where I started....

Trip mileage from the GPS...

Until next time. I started the trip with new tires, just about polished off that back one so I ordered a new one yesterday.

 

[The Bruce]

Glad your spill didn't do more damage. Great trip! Thanks for the report.

 

[JMZ]

Wow, . Nice pics. . I am also jealous .

 

[SpiritAtBay]

Thank you Ed, for posting your story and pix.
Cool about the osprey checking you out.

 

[_RG_]

A very enjoyable read. You have some post card images...really beautiful. Thanks for taking us along with you.

 

[jsb223]

Most excellent journey!

 

[humanrace]

Very enjoyable report.

 

[Goat10]

Superb sir, thanks for taking us along and re-defining Therapy! ��

 

[nevlec]

Wow, what a great pick-me-up from my desk! Thank you so much for sharing your report!

 

[R1200ST]

Thanks for sharing. Even my wife said that must have been a fantastic ride. She asked me when I was going to do it. LOL

I have a little camping tent in the closet that is ready to go. I just need the GS, cooking gear, camping stove, time, yada yada yada...

We shall see. maybe a long weekend trip just to try it out.

R

 

[TX_northstar]

Great report! Thanks for sharing.