Go day. It was really happening. Months of planning and preparation have paid off today - the bike was packed with all the necessary equipment, sporting new rubber, a much needed driver backrest, and even new chromed out grips. Rain or shine, today was go day.
Two nights before (Thursday) I made some significant changes to my trip, or at least that would affect the first two days
. I had originally planned on taking I-94 out to Medora and Glendive, and then jump on hwy 200 all the way out to Great Falls, MT. However, the weatherman was predicting some showers for Saturday night into Sunday early afternoon, with possible heavy rains at times. Well, if you ever have looked at a Montana map, hwy 200 is near... eh... nothing. Towns are spread 80 to 100 miles apart, and these are just towns barely big enough to even have a name! So, I did cave in to my wits and decided to change my route to take US 2 across the northern section of ND and MT. From the weather maps I looked at, it looked like the rain would be heavier in the southern state, and the farther north you go, the less rain. As it turned out, they were right (see Sunday's entry).
So anyways, my goal for today was to make it to at least Williston, ND and possibly an hour or so beyond.
Since I had packed the bike the night before, there was very little that needed to be done this morning
. Basically a last inspection of all the gear and the bike, and I was ready to roll. Kim was just coming off of a night shift, so I told her to try to be home as soon as possible and I would wait up for her to "kiss her off", as they say. I'll be honest, it was a hard moment for me to say goodbye to her, as I knew it would be many, many miles before I would see her again. But at the same time, I was antsy to get the adventure going...
Unfortunately, I really didn't take any pictures on the run up to Williston. It was too hot to stop (my on-board temp said between 93 and 96 degrees all day long). Plus, there isn't nothing too impressive to photograph today.
I did meet and talk with a few other bikers on they way out west. Most were riding on a charity bike run. As always, almost all bikers are very friendly people to talk to - they are more than happy to give you information on roads they were on, and where you will meet construction
. I talked to a group riding from Minot on a run, and I also talked with a group from Manitoba heading for the Black Hills.
Oh, one thing I did notice today - the birds out in the western part of the state are on some kind of suicide mission. In the Red River Valley, when your biking down a two-lane, most birds will fly off the road and out of your way long before you even get up to them. Not so in the western part of the state. Here, the birds come flying out of the ditch and zoom across the road right in front of you. It is almost like they are magnetically attracted to you or something. Weird. I had to duck behind my windshield a few times because I thought I was going to clip one of those turds. But I didn't.
Anyways, I made it into Williston without a hitch. If you are ever headed for Williston, take road 1804 north out of New Town - it's a great road with good scenery. I stayed with uncle R.J. out there, who is currently driving truck to haul crude and drilling equipment around.
Parked the bike for the night - leaving for Montana in the morning...
Miles Today: 383
Day 1 - Saturday
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Williston, North Dakota, United States
Other Entries
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1Prelog - The Start
Jul 091 day priorHarwood, United Statesphoto_camera0videocam 0comment 3 -
2Day 1 - Saturday
Jul 10Williston, United Statesphoto_camera3videocam 0comment 0 -
3Day 2 - Sunday
Jul 111 day laterKalispell, United Statesphoto_camera130videocam 1comment 11 -
4Day 3 - Monday
Jul 122 days laterLibby, United Statesphoto_camera33videocam 0comment 3 -
5Day 4 - Tuesday
Jul 133 days laterLolo Hot Springs, United Statesphoto_camera33videocam 0comment 11 -
6Day 5 - Wednesday
Jul 144 days laterBoise, United Statesphoto_camera12videocam 2comment 2 -
7Day 6 - Thursday
Jul 155 days laterArco, United Statesphoto_camera42videocam 1comment 0 -
8Day 7 - Friday
Jul 166 days laterYellowstone National Park, United Statesphoto_camera45videocam 0comment 1 -
9Day 8 - Saturday
Jul 177 days laterCody, United Statesphoto_camera49videocam 1comment 1 -
10Day 9 - Sunday
Jul 188 days laterLead, United Statesphoto_camera30videocam 1comment 0 -
11Day 10 - Monday
Jul 199 days laterHarwood, United Statesphoto_camera8videocam 0comment 0 -
12Postblog - The End
Jul 2010 days laterHarwood, United Statesphoto_camera0videocam 0comment 0
2025-02-08