RV Trip Day 16: Ennis to Dillon, MT

Countdown to cross-country biking: 9 days

Mileage today: 73 miles

This was day two of the five-day ride from Yellowstone to Missoula. Another beautiful day, with incredible views of the mountains.

Brian was my hero today, stopping four times on the route so I could restock with cold water or anything else that I needed (like a phone charger).

We stopped at the halfway point for lunch in Sheridan, MT, a great little town with a few restaurants. One of the locals recommended a new restaurant called Sunflower Sweets. I had a great sandwich on their homemade sourdough bread. Delicious.

So, the route… Yesterday I complained about the berms, but I might take that back. Today, most of the trip didn’t have any berm, and with tractor trailers passing at 70 mph, that’s a little sketchy.

I learned that Montana just raised the speed limit on its two-lane highways to 70 mph, and that’s been controversial. I can see why. It’s just too fast for a narrow road with trucks, RVs, motorcycles, and bikes. This route is part of the official TransAmerican Trail, a historic bike route across the country. But, the faster speed makes it less safe. Plus, it seems some roads on the route have been recently re-paved but with a narrower (or no) shoulder.

Fortunately, I didn’t have any incidents, though a few vehicles passed too closely. Montana allows cyclists to “take the lane” meaning we can ride in the road and take the space we need, but frankly, with the kind of traffic I saw today, I wouldn’t recommend it.

Here are some of my thoughts at the end of a long ride.

Overall, today’s ride wasn’t difficult, just 2600 feet of climbing in 73 miles. Tomorrow has two mountain passes, so we’ll see how it goes! More fun ahead.