Spokane, WA → Beyond Hope, ID → Thompson Falls MT → Missoula, MT

Jun 7, 2016
2 min read

We are long overdue for an update

. After our last post, my Mom commented that we needed to include more of the hardships. It's true, behind all of the Instagram photos and Strava posts are plenty of daily trials and tribulations.

After sailing through Washington with perfect cool weather and solid tail winds, temperatures (and at some points tempers) began to rise on our ride from Spokane to Sandpoint, ID. We avoided the direct route to Missoula, MT because it involved several hours on the I-90 shoulder and a steep climb over a remote 5,000 ft pass. Instead, we rode around the steepest climbing and the Interstate by going through a valley north of the Couer d’Alene mountains (part of the Rockies). That Friday afternoon turned out to be a hair-raising ride along Hwy 95 which has no shoulder in parts and lots of semi-truck traffic. One would think we were relieved make it to Sandpoint.

But this is when I made a rather poor decision. Instead of calling it a night and enjoying a burger and beer on a nice outdoor bar patio, the Ibuprofen I’d taken earlier told me to convince Kate that we should push ahead 20 miles to put a dent in the coming weekend’s miles. Two hours and those 20 miles later, Kate was very upset with me, the sun was starting to set, my right knee hit me with a sharp twinge, and the remoteness of the area near Hope began to worry us. We had only an idea of where we were camping. Long story short, we found food, stumbled (literally) into a campsite in the woods, set up our tent in the dark, and I tried to clean up the sunscreen bomb that had exploded inside my pannier. Getting to bed well after midnight resulted in a sub-optimal 5.5 hours of sleep.

The rest of the weekend turned into a record breaking heatwave across the Pacific Northwest and, as a result, we spent the last three days and 221 miles riding through 80-102 degree temperatures. Thankfully we've done a good job of staying well hydrated and fairly well covered. We owe particular thanks to the Dixon ice cream stand, our nameless friend in Perma who let us fill up on water from his well, and the Arlee Conoco gas station for saving us in the hottest hours of need.

Our riding strategies are evolving every day to outmaneuver the weather, the traffic, and our own aches and pains. We intend for our blogging game to improve as well! Thank you for your patience and, more importantly, for your support! At the end of a hard day's ride your words of encouragement are worth their weight in gold.

Onward and Eastward!