Walla Walla, Washington

Today HP was heard saying: "Voilá, voilá, me voilá a Walla Walla!” Obviously, getting there was great. HP started his ride with clear skies and cool temperatures; and most importantly without headwinds. In addition he enjoyed a good shoulder and little traffic!

On the way to Walla Walla, he stopped in Waitsburg (on highway US 12). There HP got a cup of hot chocolate at the White Stallion Café. He quickly drew a crowd and he had to tell about his ride. When he tried to pay his bill the waitress told him "I don't care about that, I want to hear more!" From Waitsburg HP again left highway US 12 and followed the Adventure Cycling route to Walla Walla. While this route had more hills, it also had a lot less traffic. Just west of Walla Walla, one of 4 east bound cyclists yelled "Are you HP?" HP stopped and met Stephen, Amy, John and Donna. They know HP from our blog and are traveling from Astoria, Oregon to Missoula, Montana.

As HP got closer to town the temperature rose significantly to over 90 degrees. In fact it was so hot that HP jumped into the hotel pool before he registered at the office.

Dayton, Washington

HP’s departure from Clarkston on June 25 occurred after a sleepless night of thunderstorms with lots of heavy winds but just a few drops of rain. HP started the morning with good temperatures but tough headwinds as he climbed a 2,200 feet to the Alpowa Summit. Needless to say, he was tired. Adding insult to the day, HP even had to pedal downhill to Pomeroy.

Tom, an old friend from HP's first trip across the United States, bought supper for HP in Pomeroy. Tom was celebrating his remarriage with Victoria. During HP and Tom’s 2002 cycling trip across the U.S., Tom and Victoria were getting divorced.

Dayton offered HP another view of U.S. history. The town boasts 90 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. What really got HP's interest however, wasn’t the history but the nearby wineries. Now that he is fully refreshed he looks forward to more westward cycling. The Ocean is getting nearer!

Clarkston, Washington

On June 23rd HD left Kamiah following the Adventure Cycling route to Winchester. He choose this route over US 12 because several east bound cyclist reported heavy traffic on that route. HP felt that the change was good even though he gave up cycling along the Clearwater River and acquired a tough uphill climb of 3,500 ft. The landscape reminded him of the Swiss Pre-Alps. He reports that the weather was good and not too hot.

At lunch in Ferdinand he spoke German with a lady traveling from Washington State. She has been working as a teacher in Germany and was excited to practice her language skills.

HP found Winchester to be a very nice quiet town with a wonderful Lake. However, HP had to keep moving so on June 24th he cycled out of town and enjoyed a glorious downhill of several thousand feet. At the end he only had a slight uphill of 700 feet to the Snake River. Near Clarkston he enjoyed cycling on a bike path along that River. Interesting fact: Clarkston was originally named Jawbone Flats. Before he leaves, HP hopes to find out the origin of this name.

Kamiah, Idaho

After spending a few days in Missoula, Montana, HP and Carl headed to Lolo Hot Springs on June 18th. On the way they experienced some flat tires. But once they arrived they enjoyed relaxing in the hot springs and sleeping in a cabin. They decided that the extravagance was warranted because they faced Lolo Pass the next day.

Going over Lolo Pass proved more challenging because the weather turned unfavorable. They experienced rain and cool weather which continued for several days. However, what was most troublesome was that Carl got sick requiring them to spend an extra day in Powell, Idaho at the Lochsa Lodge. While the Lodge was filled to capacity, Trudy the manager came to their rescue and gave them one of the staff’s rooms. Trudy’s husband, Dr. Wang treated Carl and recommended that he not continue bike riding. Trudy drove Carl back to Missoula where he will catch a flight home. Once again HP is alone.

In Kamiah, HP was invited to a veterans’ barbeque for supper. There he heard some great stories from Vietnam and World War II Veterans.

After talking to some east bound cyclists, HP changed his planned route for June 23 and will head toward Winchester, Idaho before going into Lewiston.

Missoula, Montana

HP got to Great Falls on June 10th after cycling 39 miles from Fort Benton. He experienced nice weather--cool but sunny—and enjoyed the city. However, the next night in Augusta was much more exciting. After a long cycling day HP just wanted to get to sleep early. In the middle of the night he was awakened by someone trying to get into his hotel room. While this gave him some wonderful fantasies it also produced some fears. Could it be a serial killer or burglar? With raised bike pump, HP flung opened the door only to see a late night partier who got the wrong room. The next morning HP saw this man at breakfast with his companions and said “Ah, burglars are not just working during the night; you have a day job too?" His companions must have heard the story because they laughed themselves silly.

On June 12 HP reached Lincoln after cycling 57 miles. It was tough riding over Rodgers Pass but the weather was cool. However, the only place to stop was a closed saloon. Not only was a cool drink denied HP, a nasty dog kept him from resting in the saloon’s shade. The local sheriff saw HP’s dilemma and offered him a ride to the local jail. While HP declined the ride he did accept some bottled water and friendly conversation.

By June 13 HP reached Ovando, Montana and stayed at Nord Johnson’s B&B. While running a B&B with his new family, Nord also leads outdoor activities including mountain climbing, river rafting, and fishing. In case you think that the world has gotten too large and impersonal, Nord asked HP to stop in Geneva, Switzerland on his way home to meet and greet his very good friend Yves Menoud.

Despite all the great cafes’ enjoyed along the way, HP tells us that Ovando has one of the nicest.

Finally, HP arrived in Missoula on June 14th after 52 miles of cycling. It was nice weather, but a little warmer than on previous days in the mountains. However, the best part of the day was the downhill ride with good shoulders, wonderful forests, and scenic mountain views.

In Missoula, HP received great news. Carl, who cycled with us in Missouri, decided to rejoin HP for the rest of the journey. They are spending a few days there while they await the arrival of Carl’s bike and gear. In addition, HP’s friend Leo, from Chicago, was also in Missoula at the same time and bought him lunch. Leo was heading to Seattle where he would meet his wife Sue for the start of their bicycle trip along the Columbia River.

Click to view recent Photos
Click to view overview map of the trip

Fort Benton, Montana and Falls Church, Virginia

While Jeff decided to go home to Falls Church, Virginia, HP continued cycling. He spent a warm night in Havre, Montana watching it snow. From there he cycled to Big Sandy and then Fort Benton. What started out as a group ride has become a solo adventure for HP.

Chinook, Malta, and somewhere east

We are sad to report that Joe is not feeling better and decided to go home. Someone above must have been looking out for him. His back home neighbors and friends were touring the west and just happened to be in Glasgow and decided to call Joe and see where he was. They offered Joe a ride home and he felt that it was his destiny to go. Our ride will not be the same without him and he will be greatly missed.

With out Joe our readers will see some changes to the blog. Joe's computer went home with him which means that we are dependent on getting access to the Internet at hotels and libraries. In addition, we no longer have the capacity to upload photos and maps.

To the extent that we can, here is an update of what we saw over the last several days. Leaving Glasgow we stopped at the local museum. While it was not opened we were able to see its eclectic yard display that included tractors, a steam shove, a caboose, and a jet plane. We figured that, except for the jet, all the items were likely local. But we don't have a clue as to how or why the jet was there.

A little further out of Glasgow we saw a hill side full of dinosaurs. They are on display and sold by a local sculpture. I wonder if the homeowners association back home would object if we bought one of them for yard art?

About 10 miles east of Malta we saw our first glimpse of mountains. Presumably, they are the Rocky Mountains or at least their foot hills. Looks like we will soon be trading headwinds for hills.

HP is in Malta and Jeff cycled to Chinook. They plan to meet up in Great Falls where they will develop their strategy for the rest of the trip.

Saco, Malta or Glasgow

HP and Jeff are cycling ahead for a few days while Joe is taking some rest and relaxation in Glasgow. Joe has not been feeling well. Yesterday, he was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection and ordered off his bike for a few days. We expect that this will disrupt our daily blogs. When we rejoin at the end of the week we will update the narrative, photos, and maps. Otherwise we are all well but will miss the opportunity to keep in daily contact with our family, friends, and followers.

Jeff has biked to Malta today while HP biked only as far as Saco. HP continues to smell the roses. Jeff is anxious to reach Havre before the weekend to get some much needed repair work done to his bike. Joe is anxiously waiting to be able to bike to anyplace other than to downtown Glasgow. All three should meet up again in Great Falls by Monday.

The Old Men

Glasgow, Montana

Perhaps we should train our bodies to sleep a little latter. We were on the road before 7 a.m. and the temperature was only 40 degrees. However, the sun was bright and the winds calm. It quickly warmed up to make a wonderful day.

Besides yesterday’s weather not being conducive to photograph, Joe has not been feeling well. Despite his feeling poorly, he could not pass up some old barns today. We plan to monitor his recovery by the number of barn photos that he takes.

We did make a café stop at Nashua. We ate at Berger’s Café and Ice Cream Shop. Their food looked great and the portions were enough to feed an army of hungry cyclists. However, we behaved ourselves. Joe had soup, Jeff oatmeal, but HP had the works—soup, breaded chicken sandwich, and gems (potatoes). The folks in the café were curious about our trip but offered a gloomy forecast of what could lie ahead. If the weather warms in the next day or two, we will be cycling though mosquito ally. Just west of here there is lots of irrigated agriculture. One of the farmers said that the standing water breeds mosquitoes big enough to carry off a cyclist. Perhaps we should wish for a few more cool mornings?

Click to view today's Photos
Click to view an overview Map of our trip
Click for a detailed map of today's ride

Wolf Point, Montana

Today’s weather proved that strong winds are not exclusive to the Dakotas. It was a challenge but we got here and all is well. Near our destination we met Chase and Clancy who were cycling east. They are in their 20s and full of energy. They started on the west coast and their plans are to cycle to Maine before heading south to Virginia. From there they plan to cycle directly west to California before heading home to Washington, We were exhausted just hearing about their plans; oh to be young again!

Click to view today's Photos
Click to view an overview Map of our trip
Click for a detailed map of today's ride