A Western Odyssey (very photo heavy)
- Thread starter my_wild_dreams_
- Start date
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAMPING N.E. of YELLOWSTONE
Near Cooke City
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After driving through Yellowstone, I camped just outside the Northeast entrance - pretty close to Cooke City.
Driving up:
Here’s where I camped. Not a big fancy campsite, but I don’t need one. There wasn’t much traffic on this road, so it wasn’t so bad being right next to it.
There sure are a lot of flowers here!
I got up around 4:30am to walk up a hill near where I camped to set up the GoPro on a tripod to take a time lapse of the sunrise. I don’t know why I keep doing this around here - there’s never any clouds in this region in the morning so there’s not really any sunrise to capture.
Later that morning I went for a hike:
CAMPING N.E. of YELLOWSTONE
Near Cooke City
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After driving through Yellowstone, I camped just outside the Northeast entrance - pretty close to Cooke City.
Driving up:
Here’s where I camped. Not a big fancy campsite, but I don’t need one. There wasn’t much traffic on this road, so it wasn’t so bad being right next to it.
There sure are a lot of flowers here!
I got up around 4:30am to walk up a hill near where I camped to set up the GoPro on a tripod to take a time lapse of the sunrise. I don’t know why I keep doing this around here - there’s never any clouds in this region in the morning so there’s not really any sunrise to capture.
Later that morning I went for a hike:
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BEARTOOT SCENIC BYWAY
Cooke City to Red Lodge
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I drove the rest of the way from my campsite near Cooke City to Red Lodge. It’s only 64 miles, but I stopped so many times (and hiked around and took pictures) that it took me all day.
Thank you to those who told me to drive this road. It really is incredible. The drive from Cooke City to the pass is nice on it’s own. There are a lot of lakes pretty close to the pass.
I would pass a whole lot of lakes. Over the whole day, I probably saw more than 100 (many far off in the big views on top of the pass)
Once the pass starts, there are a lot of switchbacks and elevation gain. This isn’t a pass that goes over a low, easy route. It goes to seemingly the highest point in 50+ miles. The views are incredible. This is why I spent so much time stopped. Up at the top, I spent a couple hours walking around. There are views to be seen in all directions - it does take a bit of walking to get to them. I spent a lot of time walking around north of the road. There is a high point with big views, but there is a moderate hill down from there - that goes down a couple hundred feet before dropping nearly straight down. I hiked all along that lower edge. It took a lot of hiking because it goes in and out, it’s steep, and it’s almost entirely covered in big rocks.
I’m fairly disappointed with the pictures I got there. They really don’t do it justice. Part is just that taking pictures of some of these views flattens out the view and you can’t see the distances properly. Part is, I think, I haven’t captured and processed them nearly as well as is possible. When I’m back next summer, I’ll probably be better.
Thanks.We had some of the same sights and thoughts of the Beartooth Pass area.
I think that road you camped on will lead you to a small lake campground,which was awesome.
When we were there in 09 the area was closed to camping due to bear activity.
Your photos are great and yes it's hard to capture all the beauty.
Waiting for the next area of the trip.
Frank
I think that road you camped on will lead you to a small lake campground,which was awesome.
When we were there in 09 the area was closed to camping due to bear activity.
Your photos are great and yes it's hard to capture all the beauty.
Waiting for the next area of the trip.
Frank
longhorn1
Ouch, that stings!
Keep those reports coming. Really enjoy your TR's. jd
Sent from my SM-G900V using Wander The West mobile app
Sent from my SM-G900V using Wander The West mobile app
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RED LODGE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I like Red Lodge and found it fairly similar to West Yellowstone, except that here there are many more regular residents. The Beartooth pass closes during winter, and I assume they get very few tourists and the town becomes just a normal rural small town.
There sure were a lot of old white dudes passing through on their motorcycles.
I spent one day researching and buying health insurance. I’ll have no gap between then my previous employer-provided coverage ends this month, and my new coverage starts August 1. My income for this year is too high to get any subsidy. The cheapest plan on the healthcare.gov exchange was $235/month. I bought one that is $277/month because it has better coverage out of network and after deductible is passed. There as only ONE plan with a nationwide network. It was a gold plan from Samford, whom I read has a practice of canceling the policies of people using mail forwarding addresses. I’m looking forward to January of next year when I will get a big subsidy - since my income will only be my investment returns (mostly dividends), the amount I convert from one type of IRA to the other, and maybe some income from a hobby or two. My health insurance cost should drop to below $100/month.
So… where next? The factors impacting route decisions are:
- To get to Seattle around August 10
- Need to pick up some mail in West Yellowstone
- Don’t spend a lot more on gas than I really need to (I’m already buying gas much more quickly than would - in order to get from Denver to the PNW pretty quickly)
oh, fancy seeing you here
RED LODGE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I like Red Lodge and found it fairly similar to West Yellowstone, except that here there are many more regular residents. The Beartooth pass closes during winter, and I assume they get very few tourists and the town becomes just a normal rural small town.
There sure were a lot of old white dudes passing through on their motorcycles.
I spent one day researching and buying health insurance. I’ll have no gap between then my previous employer-provided coverage ends this month, and my new coverage starts August 1. My income for this year is too high to get any subsidy. The cheapest plan on the healthcare.gov exchange was $235/month. I bought one that is $277/month because it has better coverage out of network and after deductible is passed. There as only ONE plan with a nationwide network. It was a gold plan from Samford, whom I read has a practice of canceling the policies of people using mail forwarding addresses. I’m looking forward to January of next year when I will get a big subsidy - since my income will only be my investment returns (mostly dividends), the amount I convert from one type of IRA to the other, and maybe some income from a hobby or two. My health insurance cost should drop to below $100/month.
So… where next? The factors impacting route decisions are:
- To get to Seattle around August 10
- Need to pick up some mail in West Yellowstone
- Don’t spend a lot more on gas than I really need to (I’m already buying gas much more quickly than would - in order to get from Denver to the PNW pretty quickly)
oh, fancy seeing you here
Lighthawk
Weekend warrior
Looks like some fine country. Your photos are wide angle, so the landscape will diminish on the distance in favor of closer objects being larger. If you plan to return and want better photos, look for a full frame sensor and DSLR kit.
Interesting about your search for health insurance.It's a confusing job.
Keep us posted on your next route.
Thought we might cross paths in Seattle but we will be ahead of you by a few days.
Thanks.
Frank
Keep us posted on your next route.
Thought we might cross paths in Seattle but we will be ahead of you by a few days.
Thanks.
Frank
mitch h
Senior Member
I wonder how many people have a view out their van window like that? We did not get a subsidy either and my wife's insurance is $800/month. What a rip.
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
------------------------------------
General Updates
------------------------------------
One awesome thing that has happened since quitting: I don’t have to spend any “decision energy” on work. I’ve made changes to other things much quicker – so far: diet and exercise. Even in the van with a very minimal kitchen, I’m eating as well as I ever have. I’ve also started exercising almost every day.
DIET IMPROVEMENTS
I hadn't been eating that great over the past two years. My job required a lot of travel, and it was much more difficult to eat well while traveling. Also, I let my diet go a bit over the last year while I was building the van, getting my house prepped for and selling it, spending time with a girlfriend, and getting ready to quit my job.
After quitting my job and that “last first day” (hitting the road for good) - it only took about a week to change my diet.
When I moved into the van in late March, I was eating food that I could prepare without cooking: mostly sandwiches and salads. I started cooking gradually. Now, I’m eating almost the same as I would with a full kitchen:
- Most meals are a sort of stir-fry, always including chicken*, bell peppers, rice, and 2-3 other types of vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cucumber, mushrooms, etc.). Then I add some type of sauce - these days it’s mostly green chili sauce. Using different sauces makes the meal seem very different. I also use some types of indian and asian sauces.
- Smaller meals are typically an apple, orange or banana, and either a can of sardines or a whey protein shake.
- When out on a long hike or bike ride (2-3 hours or more) I bring along peanut butter and jelly sandwiches - using some wonderful jelly and jam that my brother’s girlfriend makes.
The only other thing I eat is a bit of dark chocolate. mmmmm. And some tea occasionally. About 65% of the food I eat by volume is now vegetables and fruit. Then about 25% meat, and 10% bread or rice.
* Chicken — when I had a kitchen, most of my meat (including for sandwiches) came from buying and roasting whole fresh chickens. I don’t want to carry and clean a solar oven, so roasting meat is out of the question now. I’ve started buying the rotisserie chickens at grocery stores. I know these aren’t the greatest chickens, but they’ll work well enough for now.
EXERCISE IMPROVEMENTS
I’ve been exercising nearly every day. I’m doing a lot of hiking, some bike rides, and some strength-training calisthenics. I’m hiking about 5-10 hours per week, running 1, bike riding 1-2, and doing the strength training once or twice.
For the strength training, I’m currently doing:
- One-leg squats, while holding onto something static to give more resistance
- Sort of one-arm pushups (I put the other arm out further and keep that arm straight. If there is a way to do it with my feet up higher, I do)
- Pull ups (pronated grip, fairly wide. I switched to these from supinated grip which I I’ve used for years because it is easier on my tendons)
I do 4-5 sets of each. Sometimes the pull-ups are a challenge - it can be tough finding a tree with a good branch. In cities it’s easy - find a pull-up bar in a park, or use playground equipment. I imaging after some time I’ll need to add more resistance for all three of these. I can wear a backpack with stuff inside.
There are some things I want to add to this regimen:
- Replace overhead press - I’ll probably start trying handstand pushups
- Grip/hand strength. I have an Ivanko Super gripper. Need to start using it. Plus other things I can do without needing equipment.
- Stomach/core strength
- foot raises - for the muscles on the front of my lower leg.
- L-Flys
- Neck strength (I haven’t done them much, but I’m not a fan of bridges. I can figure something else out - I could use the weighted backpack)
I’ve gotten to be what I consider too fat over the last few years. When I use a caliper on a certain spot of my stomach (about 2” above the top/front of my pelvis) I’m at 18mm. I expect to get down below 10mm. In very ballpark conversions, that will be less than 10% body fat. I’m quite good at gaining and losing weight, but not having a scale makes it significantly harder. In lieu of that, I’m using the fat caliper, and body dimension measures. I feel like I may be losing weight a little too quickly, but it’s hard to tell without a scale. I should check the caliper and measurements again soon.
I’ve ridden my bike exactly one time on Forest Service roads. It did not go well. One issue was washboarding on the road – when I went down some too fast, I got a flat tire and my saddleback attachment broke (it has a plastic part that was already cracked). The other problem is riding my road bike tires on gravel/dirt/sand that is too soft and too deep. I’m going to take a look at how wide of tires I can fit in my current bike, but I expect to be buying a different type of bike soon. I’m looking at cyclocross bikes right now, which will allow tires of at least 35mm, and in some cases up to 45mm. I want a bike that I will also be happy riding on roads. I think a flat-bar bike will be harder to store than one with road/curved handlebars.
READING
I’ve started reading “Undaunted Courage” by Stephen Ambrose. It’s about the Lewis and Clarke expedition. It’s incredibly interesting for me. There are some very specific details - starting with how the trip originated and the relationship between Meriwether Lewis and Thomas Jefferson (I’ve been learning about Jefferson over the last year or so from listening to the “Thomas Jefferson Hour” podcast. If you like podcasts, you should check it out)
There are some interesting similarities between their expedition and Vandwelling. The beginning of the book has a lot of details about Lewis’ preparations - from building boats to use as their main means of transportation (at least for much of the trip), deciding what provisions to bring, and studying various subjects before leaving.
I’m in Bozeman now and today I went on a bike ride – on a road someone here recommended. It’s funny, I’d spoken to her last night about the Lewis and Clarke book, and she knew a LOT about them and their trip. What she didn’t tell me is that on the bike route she had already recommended, there is a sign noting that Clark and the other men camped right there on their return trip. Awesome!
General Updates
------------------------------------
One awesome thing that has happened since quitting: I don’t have to spend any “decision energy” on work. I’ve made changes to other things much quicker – so far: diet and exercise. Even in the van with a very minimal kitchen, I’m eating as well as I ever have. I’ve also started exercising almost every day.
DIET IMPROVEMENTS
I hadn't been eating that great over the past two years. My job required a lot of travel, and it was much more difficult to eat well while traveling. Also, I let my diet go a bit over the last year while I was building the van, getting my house prepped for and selling it, spending time with a girlfriend, and getting ready to quit my job.
After quitting my job and that “last first day” (hitting the road for good) - it only took about a week to change my diet.
When I moved into the van in late March, I was eating food that I could prepare without cooking: mostly sandwiches and salads. I started cooking gradually. Now, I’m eating almost the same as I would with a full kitchen:
- Most meals are a sort of stir-fry, always including chicken*, bell peppers, rice, and 2-3 other types of vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cucumber, mushrooms, etc.). Then I add some type of sauce - these days it’s mostly green chili sauce. Using different sauces makes the meal seem very different. I also use some types of indian and asian sauces.
- Smaller meals are typically an apple, orange or banana, and either a can of sardines or a whey protein shake.
- When out on a long hike or bike ride (2-3 hours or more) I bring along peanut butter and jelly sandwiches - using some wonderful jelly and jam that my brother’s girlfriend makes.
The only other thing I eat is a bit of dark chocolate. mmmmm. And some tea occasionally. About 65% of the food I eat by volume is now vegetables and fruit. Then about 25% meat, and 10% bread or rice.
* Chicken — when I had a kitchen, most of my meat (including for sandwiches) came from buying and roasting whole fresh chickens. I don’t want to carry and clean a solar oven, so roasting meat is out of the question now. I’ve started buying the rotisserie chickens at grocery stores. I know these aren’t the greatest chickens, but they’ll work well enough for now.
EXERCISE IMPROVEMENTS
I’ve been exercising nearly every day. I’m doing a lot of hiking, some bike rides, and some strength-training calisthenics. I’m hiking about 5-10 hours per week, running 1, bike riding 1-2, and doing the strength training once or twice.
For the strength training, I’m currently doing:
- One-leg squats, while holding onto something static to give more resistance
- Sort of one-arm pushups (I put the other arm out further and keep that arm straight. If there is a way to do it with my feet up higher, I do)
- Pull ups (pronated grip, fairly wide. I switched to these from supinated grip which I I’ve used for years because it is easier on my tendons)
I do 4-5 sets of each. Sometimes the pull-ups are a challenge - it can be tough finding a tree with a good branch. In cities it’s easy - find a pull-up bar in a park, or use playground equipment. I imaging after some time I’ll need to add more resistance for all three of these. I can wear a backpack with stuff inside.
There are some things I want to add to this regimen:
- Replace overhead press - I’ll probably start trying handstand pushups
- Grip/hand strength. I have an Ivanko Super gripper. Need to start using it. Plus other things I can do without needing equipment.
- Stomach/core strength
- foot raises - for the muscles on the front of my lower leg.
- L-Flys
- Neck strength (I haven’t done them much, but I’m not a fan of bridges. I can figure something else out - I could use the weighted backpack)
I’ve gotten to be what I consider too fat over the last few years. When I use a caliper on a certain spot of my stomach (about 2” above the top/front of my pelvis) I’m at 18mm. I expect to get down below 10mm. In very ballpark conversions, that will be less than 10% body fat. I’m quite good at gaining and losing weight, but not having a scale makes it significantly harder. In lieu of that, I’m using the fat caliper, and body dimension measures. I feel like I may be losing weight a little too quickly, but it’s hard to tell without a scale. I should check the caliper and measurements again soon.
I’ve ridden my bike exactly one time on Forest Service roads. It did not go well. One issue was washboarding on the road – when I went down some too fast, I got a flat tire and my saddleback attachment broke (it has a plastic part that was already cracked). The other problem is riding my road bike tires on gravel/dirt/sand that is too soft and too deep. I’m going to take a look at how wide of tires I can fit in my current bike, but I expect to be buying a different type of bike soon. I’m looking at cyclocross bikes right now, which will allow tires of at least 35mm, and in some cases up to 45mm. I want a bike that I will also be happy riding on roads. I think a flat-bar bike will be harder to store than one with road/curved handlebars.
READING
I’ve started reading “Undaunted Courage” by Stephen Ambrose. It’s about the Lewis and Clarke expedition. It’s incredibly interesting for me. There are some very specific details - starting with how the trip originated and the relationship between Meriwether Lewis and Thomas Jefferson (I’ve been learning about Jefferson over the last year or so from listening to the “Thomas Jefferson Hour” podcast. If you like podcasts, you should check it out)
There are some interesting similarities between their expedition and Vandwelling. The beginning of the book has a lot of details about Lewis’ preparations - from building boats to use as their main means of transportation (at least for much of the trip), deciding what provisions to bring, and studying various subjects before leaving.
I’m in Bozeman now and today I went on a bike ride – on a road someone here recommended. It’s funny, I’d spoken to her last night about the Lewis and Clarke book, and she knew a LOT about them and their trip. What she didn’t tell me is that on the bike route she had already recommended, there is a sign noting that Clark and the other men camped right there on their return trip. Awesome!
Foy
Resident Geologist
X "whatever number" as to enjoying your reports. I'm stuck (albeit happily in the grandfather sense) in North Carolina this summer and pining hard for some Montana funsies.
I read "Undaunted Courage" for the first time in May 2016. While I'm not the biggest fan of Stephen Ambrose's style, it was a great read. My wife's family lived in Ivy, VA when we met, on the same side road off of US 250 as the Meriwether Lewis farm, and we together lived in the heart of Jefferson, Madison, and Lewis country for a decade or so. With that, the inclusion of the pre-expedition background as to Lewis and Jefferson met with much appreciation as I read the book.
At some point, I heartily recommend ascent of Lemhi Pass from the Montana side. A great starting point is Clark Canyon Reservoir, a water project which now floods Camp Fortunate. There's replica of a dugout canoe and a number of signboards at a nice overlook of the reservoir just on the west side of the dam, opposite I-15. It's an easy paved drive west on MT 324 through the Horse Prairie valley to the foot of the Divide Range, the spectacular Beaverhead Mountains. A short drive up a graded gravel road then transitions to good two-track a couple of miles from the pass. The BLM has built a nice information kiosk about 75 yards from the crest, and if you park there, you can walk up to the pass and see essentially the same view as Lewis & Clark saw (much to their disappointment), which was range after range of mountains as far as they could see, rather than a nice, gentle descent to the Columbia River.
If you go to Lemhi Pass, consider doubling back to Grant, north on Bannack Bench Rd past Bannack (but stop for a visit to the first capital of Montana Territory (1864-1865 or so), then northwest on MT 278 through Jackson to Wisdom via the Big Hole. If there is a more spectacular high valley in the Lower 48, I'd love to see it. From Wisdom, west on MT 43 brings you quickly to US 93 and you can easily run up to Missoula from there. Caveat: There's a gi-normous wildfire immediately west of Hamilton, MT as I type this, and for sure the Bitterroot Valley is some kind of smoky right now.
Foy
I read "Undaunted Courage" for the first time in May 2016. While I'm not the biggest fan of Stephen Ambrose's style, it was a great read. My wife's family lived in Ivy, VA when we met, on the same side road off of US 250 as the Meriwether Lewis farm, and we together lived in the heart of Jefferson, Madison, and Lewis country for a decade or so. With that, the inclusion of the pre-expedition background as to Lewis and Jefferson met with much appreciation as I read the book.
At some point, I heartily recommend ascent of Lemhi Pass from the Montana side. A great starting point is Clark Canyon Reservoir, a water project which now floods Camp Fortunate. There's replica of a dugout canoe and a number of signboards at a nice overlook of the reservoir just on the west side of the dam, opposite I-15. It's an easy paved drive west on MT 324 through the Horse Prairie valley to the foot of the Divide Range, the spectacular Beaverhead Mountains. A short drive up a graded gravel road then transitions to good two-track a couple of miles from the pass. The BLM has built a nice information kiosk about 75 yards from the crest, and if you park there, you can walk up to the pass and see essentially the same view as Lewis & Clark saw (much to their disappointment), which was range after range of mountains as far as they could see, rather than a nice, gentle descent to the Columbia River.
If you go to Lemhi Pass, consider doubling back to Grant, north on Bannack Bench Rd past Bannack (but stop for a visit to the first capital of Montana Territory (1864-1865 or so), then northwest on MT 278 through Jackson to Wisdom via the Big Hole. If there is a more spectacular high valley in the Lower 48, I'd love to see it. From Wisdom, west on MT 43 brings you quickly to US 93 and you can easily run up to Missoula from there. Caveat: There's a gi-normous wildfire immediately west of Hamilton, MT as I type this, and for sure the Bitterroot Valley is some kind of smoky right now.
Foy
hoyden
Lady Bug
I just reserved that on audio-book at my library. Going to listen to it on my drive up to campering this weekend!my_wild_dreams_ said:
Thanks for posting your trip reports! Great fun to 'ride along'
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAMPING IN SHOSHONE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
While driving east on Beartooth, I’d seen a few roads going off the highway just before the mountain pass. They were in the area that has a lot of lakes. As I passed one, I thought I’d really like to go explore that road and camp out there. I resolved to check if I can dispersed camp on these roads.
Turns out I can.
So I went down FSR 149, and, I believe, 149.1a, to camp near Fantan lake. It’s a cool area, and a nice lake, and all that. I spent a couple days there.
Driving over Beartooth pass again:
Here’s the lake I camped near.
There are very few camping spots along the FS Roads I took to the lake (I only remember 1). There are a few spots at the lake. One, where I camped, is up a hill and about 100 feet or more from the lake. The other two are RIGHT ON the lake. Am I right in thinking that it’s not a very good idea to camp right next to the lake? (mainly to not disturb the animal and land too much)
Found a sweet beach! Of course I went for a swim. I didn’t see obvious snowmelt running into this lake, but it was still cold.
I did some hiking around the lake
This was a small lake or pond I happened upon while hiking
I did a lot of reading up here.
CAMPING IN SHOSHONE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
While driving east on Beartooth, I’d seen a few roads going off the highway just before the mountain pass. They were in the area that has a lot of lakes. As I passed one, I thought I’d really like to go explore that road and camp out there. I resolved to check if I can dispersed camp on these roads.
Turns out I can.
So I went down FSR 149, and, I believe, 149.1a, to camp near Fantan lake. It’s a cool area, and a nice lake, and all that. I spent a couple days there.
Driving over Beartooth pass again:
Here’s the lake I camped near.
There are very few camping spots along the FS Roads I took to the lake (I only remember 1). There are a few spots at the lake. One, where I camped, is up a hill and about 100 feet or more from the lake. The other two are RIGHT ON the lake. Am I right in thinking that it’s not a very good idea to camp right next to the lake? (mainly to not disturb the animal and land too much)
Found a sweet beach! Of course I went for a swim. I didn’t see obvious snowmelt running into this lake, but it was still cold.
I did some hiking around the lake
This was a small lake or pond I happened upon while hiking
I did a lot of reading up here.
my_wild_dreams_
Advanced Member
- Joined
- May 26, 2016
- Messages
- 98
------------------------------------------------
NEW BIKE
------------------------------------------------
DRIVING TO SPOKANE
After camping in Shoshone, I drove back to West Yellowstone.
Leaving my campsite:
I had some mail there. I had also ordered a new micro SD card for my GoPro. When recording, the GoPro was often pausing for a little bit and putting gaps in the video. Although I think the card I was using has a high enough transfer speed for HD video, after making sure it wasn’t due to overheating, that was the next thing to try.
Once in West Yellowstone, I realized that the carrier for the SD card was UPS, and that they won’t/can’t deliver to the post office as General Delivery. (I assume now that the Post Office refuses since they would be rendering me service with no pay). So I drove up to Bozeman Friday evening to pick up the package before the UPS place closed for the weekend. Then I hung out in Bozeman a couple days. It’s a nice town.
After a couple days in Bozeman, I northwest. I took the Interstate to Missoula, and then 200.
200 was a nice drive. Next summer I definitely want to spend more time around here, and also along the area between West Yellowstone and Bozeman. I stopped for a night in Noxon
NEW BIKE
I brought a road bicycle along with me. I prefer riding outside of cities - out in rural areas on roads without a lot of traffic. This results in me wanting to ride more while I’m outside of cities - while i’m out in a camping spot. That means that I’m out on forest service roads. I went for a ride from a camping spot in Colorado once. It was a wonderful area. The forest service roads weren’t that bad, and there was a gravel road that I wanted to explore. I’m used to riding road tires on crushed stone paths - which are generally very hard packed and have just a little bit of loose rock and only a few sections of what I’d call normal gravel. Riding on real gravel roads is another thing. The road I went down had a LOT of washboarding, and had some pretty deep/soft gravel. I went too fast down some washboard sections which resulted in a flat tire and my saddlebag attachment breaking and the bag falling off. (The bag attachment part is plastic and it was already cracked, so I was worried it would break).
I gathered that I need to use wider tires. My road frame could probably accept tires around 25mm or MAAYBE about 28. I want to be able to use wider. I started looking at Cyclocross and Gravel bikes. I don’t want a full-on Mountain bike because I will still ride on paved roads and I don’t want to be limited by the gearing. This also meant that about half of the cyclocross bikes (which have only one chainring) wouldn’t work either. I searched the Craigslist postings for Bozeman, Spokane, Seattle, and Vancouver, and found some good options. Vancouver was a very real possibility because of the favorable exchange rate. I’d saw a bike I liked in Spokane and made plans to meet the guy to check it out…
The bike looked good, and I bought it. It is a Felt F65x Cyclocross bike. It’s a mid-level bike. I love buying things at prices that are nearly fully depreciated, and that’s what I did here. New, the bike costs $1,500 or more. The guy had a $1,000 price on his ad. We agreed on $700. The bike was practically new. He got it a year or less ago, and has a lot of bikes, and it appears he didn’t get around to riding this one much.
Here I’ve started moving components over from my road bike. I moved the seat, handlebars, stem, pedals, and bottle cages. Because of the angle, my road bike looks like it’s smaller than the new bike. It’s actually not, other than a slight different in the wheelbase.
My 23mm road tires vs the 33mm tires on the new bike. The next set of tires I get may be 38mm.
With everything moved over (except bottle cages) and the bars taped up.
This bike has a lot of modern bike features that I’ve never experienced before: 11 speed drivetrain, disc brakes, internal cable routing, tubeless comparable wheels (though they don’t have tubeless tires on them now).
The frame is definitely not as nice as the old bike (it doesn’t smooth out the bumps nearly as well), but the wider tires with less air pressure will make up for some of that.
The van was a total mess inside while I had the two bikes. I got a cardboard bike box from a shop, packed up the road bike, and mailed it to a family member to store in their basement.
I’ve wen’t for a few rides now on the new bike and it is working great. My knees are giving me a bit of trouble - hurting after the riding. I think some of it is due to small differences with the new bike (probably some slight difference in bottom bracket and crank arm widths - which cause the pedals to be slightly closer or further apart), and some of it is because I’m just using them a lot more and differently than I have been over the last couple years. So I need to make sure I work up my use and intensity gradually.
NEW BIKE
------------------------------------------------
DRIVING TO SPOKANE
After camping in Shoshone, I drove back to West Yellowstone.
Leaving my campsite:
I had some mail there. I had also ordered a new micro SD card for my GoPro. When recording, the GoPro was often pausing for a little bit and putting gaps in the video. Although I think the card I was using has a high enough transfer speed for HD video, after making sure it wasn’t due to overheating, that was the next thing to try.
Once in West Yellowstone, I realized that the carrier for the SD card was UPS, and that they won’t/can’t deliver to the post office as General Delivery. (I assume now that the Post Office refuses since they would be rendering me service with no pay). So I drove up to Bozeman Friday evening to pick up the package before the UPS place closed for the weekend. Then I hung out in Bozeman a couple days. It’s a nice town.
After a couple days in Bozeman, I northwest. I took the Interstate to Missoula, and then 200.
200 was a nice drive. Next summer I definitely want to spend more time around here, and also along the area between West Yellowstone and Bozeman. I stopped for a night in Noxon
NEW BIKE
I brought a road bicycle along with me. I prefer riding outside of cities - out in rural areas on roads without a lot of traffic. This results in me wanting to ride more while I’m outside of cities - while i’m out in a camping spot. That means that I’m out on forest service roads. I went for a ride from a camping spot in Colorado once. It was a wonderful area. The forest service roads weren’t that bad, and there was a gravel road that I wanted to explore. I’m used to riding road tires on crushed stone paths - which are generally very hard packed and have just a little bit of loose rock and only a few sections of what I’d call normal gravel. Riding on real gravel roads is another thing. The road I went down had a LOT of washboarding, and had some pretty deep/soft gravel. I went too fast down some washboard sections which resulted in a flat tire and my saddlebag attachment breaking and the bag falling off. (The bag attachment part is plastic and it was already cracked, so I was worried it would break).
I gathered that I need to use wider tires. My road frame could probably accept tires around 25mm or MAAYBE about 28. I want to be able to use wider. I started looking at Cyclocross and Gravel bikes. I don’t want a full-on Mountain bike because I will still ride on paved roads and I don’t want to be limited by the gearing. This also meant that about half of the cyclocross bikes (which have only one chainring) wouldn’t work either. I searched the Craigslist postings for Bozeman, Spokane, Seattle, and Vancouver, and found some good options. Vancouver was a very real possibility because of the favorable exchange rate. I’d saw a bike I liked in Spokane and made plans to meet the guy to check it out…
The bike looked good, and I bought it. It is a Felt F65x Cyclocross bike. It’s a mid-level bike. I love buying things at prices that are nearly fully depreciated, and that’s what I did here. New, the bike costs $1,500 or more. The guy had a $1,000 price on his ad. We agreed on $700. The bike was practically new. He got it a year or less ago, and has a lot of bikes, and it appears he didn’t get around to riding this one much.
Here I’ve started moving components over from my road bike. I moved the seat, handlebars, stem, pedals, and bottle cages. Because of the angle, my road bike looks like it’s smaller than the new bike. It’s actually not, other than a slight different in the wheelbase.
My 23mm road tires vs the 33mm tires on the new bike. The next set of tires I get may be 38mm.
With everything moved over (except bottle cages) and the bars taped up.
This bike has a lot of modern bike features that I’ve never experienced before: 11 speed drivetrain, disc brakes, internal cable routing, tubeless comparable wheels (though they don’t have tubeless tires on them now).
The frame is definitely not as nice as the old bike (it doesn’t smooth out the bumps nearly as well), but the wider tires with less air pressure will make up for some of that.
The van was a total mess inside while I had the two bikes. I got a cardboard bike box from a shop, packed up the road bike, and mailed it to a family member to store in their basement.
I’ve wen’t for a few rides now on the new bike and it is working great. My knees are giving me a bit of trouble - hurting after the riding. I think some of it is due to small differences with the new bike (probably some slight difference in bottom bracket and crank arm widths - which cause the pedals to be slightly closer or further apart), and some of it is because I’m just using them a lot more and differently than I have been over the last couple years. So I need to make sure I work up my use and intensity gradually.
norcalhusky
Advanced Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2014
- Messages
- 97
great report so far. thanks for sharing!
If you are/were at 1401 N Fancher in Spokane you're within about 10 blocks of me right now. Normally I'd offer to meet for a beer when I get off work but I'm heading to Post Falls climbing with friends right after work. Check your PM's for my contact infor if you're going to be around for a couple days.
shortbus4x4
Advanced Member
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2015
- Messages
- 33
How long are you hanging out in Spokane? Depending on how long you have to get to Seattle I would recommend taking Highway 2 instead of the Interstate.
Boise
Member
Thanks for sharing your journey, pics and random adventure are priceless. MM
Similar threads
- searching for nowhere
- Trip Reports
- Replies: 0
- Views: 80
