Down in the dumps to riding high

Virginia City, Montana

DAY 46
Ennis, MT to Dillon, MT

"Why are you going West? You'll be battling winds the whole way, you should have gone East. You guys are crazy!?!" It never ends. Everyone has an opinion as to how we should be directing our bicycle tour. Usually I can hold my tongue and give a polite diplomatic answer such as, "Well, they're mostly crosswinds regardless of which way you go," or "Well we really wanted to ride home." What I want to say is, "No one asked you."

Bagels for breakfast

Today is the first day that I have doubted my convictions about riding West. We start the day with a grueling 2,000 foot climb over the pass dividing Ennis and the Historic Mining Village of Virginia City. Between the steep ascent, the unforgiving headwind and the plethora of false summits, I was in a foul mood. Once a challenging climb such as this is over, the reward is always a couple miles of effortless downhill travel. Not so today. The cold headwinds were so strong we had to pedal in order to muster any kind of speed descending into Virginia City. It took a Ben and Jerry's ice cream stop 30 miles further to break this funk I was in. Vanilla, chocolate, marshmallows, caramel swirls, fudge fish. Who could be in a bad mood eating the best ice cream ever created. I'm glad we're going West despite the adversity.

The flat valleys dividing the massive Montana mountains

From our ice cream stop to Dillon the terrain is slightly uphill for the next 25 miles. Not enough to be exhausting, but surely enough to slow us down. The road was busy and narrow which played to our advantage in a dangerous way. As the endless string of semis and livestock trailers cruised by we were essentially drafting alongside them. At one point, with minimal effort, we maintained a 19 mph speed for an extended amount of time. However, this type of riding is not for the light hearted or the intelligent.

All it took was a little Ben and Jerry's to bring him back

Bison!

Arriving in Dillon where my Great Uncle and Aunt live, we again have a roof over our head for the evening. Having not seen these two for close to a decade since my Grandfather past away, and even then not living near or knowing them, it was as if we were meeting again for the first time. The four of us visit, order pizza, and enjoy each other's company into the late hours (10 o'clock). They are two of the sweetest, yet funny and edgy people I've met. I'm proud to be related to them and feel sad I haven't put forth the effort to have visited with them sooner. Thank you Elmer and Nell, we won't dream of passing through Montana without visiting you again.

Stats:
Miles: 74.41
Average speed: 11.7 mph
Max speed: 33.2 mph
Odometer: 3239 miles