Saturday, June 30, 2012

Day 5 - Tiger, WA to Sandppoint, ID

The longest day so far - 97.5 miles and no support. I dropped the guys off, wished them well and headed to Spokane. A tire with a bubble needed to be replaced and the nearest place was a BMW dealer in Spokane.  I am in the drivers seat again - meeting for lunch and hop skipping ahead.  One week already gone - looking forward to the days ahead :)   Our rest day in Sandpoint was spent doing luggage re-arranging, laundry and unwinding.  Great town!

Notes from Jerry:  All the mountain passes are done except for "Road to the Sun" in Glacier Nat'l Park.  Now it is just wind and rain to worry about.  A headwind was hitting us this leg and we had to take turns pulling into the wind - it really sucked as Tom said.  Luckily our route turned for the last 10 miles into Sandpoint ID and we had a tailwind or we would still be out there.  Our Motel was litterally a walk away from the best micro brew in town, Laughing Dog.  ONWARD to MONTANA!


Notes from Tom:  We've made 442 miles so far, including 5 mountain passes and one day of riding all day in a pouring rain.  My one word description of the North Cascades Highway, and this area in general, is WATER.  Not just the rain, but all of the hundreds of little streams and waterfalls, and the big rivers.  The Skagit, the Columbia, and Pend Oreille rivers are huge.  Sunday we will put Washington and Idaho in the rear view mirror and head to Montana, where we will spend more time than any other state.



3 comments:

  1. Like the personal comments. Keep it up. Triple digits in GJ for the past week and on through at least Wednesday. Be glad you aren't passing thru here.

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  2. Great commentary! (I'm not a beer drinker, so the biking/weather/terrain/(even the laundry!) descriptions are terrific!)

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  3. Hope the weather is fine for your ride on Going to the Sun Road, it will certainly be a highlight of the trip. On the other hand if it is storming, it could be miserable.
    Remember you need to be at Logan Pass by 11 AM.
    Note to Patty, Many good hikes in Glacier but consider the Highline trail from Logan Pass along the Garden Wall toward Granite Park. Go as far as you like and return. Try to get to the Pass early to ensure a parking space.
    You should be able to add mtn goats and bighorn sheep to the wildlife file.
    Mark M

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