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Rolled out of Glendive, MT this morning in 41 degrees; add the wind chill while
blasting down the road and that equals a rather chilly ride! Less than a week
ago I left Phoenix in temps almost three times that! After the last 2 mornings
of near 40 degrees I'm glad I didn't wait to do this run later though I reeeeally
wanted to go during early fall foliage colors.
Antelope were everywhere this morning casually sitting in the morning sun. I
entered North Dakota within 20min of the ride today. I found it interesting
there was no “Welcome to North Dakota” sign or even “thanks for visiting” type sign
upon exiting ND. IN fact, this is the only state I can think of at the moment
that doesn't have such a sign at the state's border. North Dakota is in the
exact center of the North American continent and is often considered to be the
epitome of the Great Plains prairie environment. It's sparsely populated
with flat to gently rolling plains and would certainly be an ideal place for a
geology fanatic to visit.
Gas stops were very, very frequent again today since exits are few and far between and
because my GPS showed some exits had only 1 gas station and I didn't want to risk it
being closed because the owner decided to go fishing or something. Traffic was
even lighter than it was in MT. Went through another time change today (now in
CDT) after Richardton, ND. Losing an hour a day isn't helping my explorations.
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Exited near Dickinson, ND to hit the “Theodore Roosevelt NP” and also to collect my 36th state stamp for my National Parks Passport book:
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Just after leaving Teddy's place I passed the most mammoth sized pickup truck-camperish
looking vehicle I've ever seen that said “Earth Roamer” on the side. Google it and
you'll see what I'm talking about---WOW!
Scampered on into Bismarck, ND and crossed over the Missouri River. Bismarck is
also where I started seeing huge billboard signs roadside that said “Livestock contributes
1.6 billion to North Dakota” and “Livestock eat 94% of North Dakota's soybean meal.” I
couldn't really grasp what the average traveler is supposed to do with this
information. Passed through Jamestown, ND which proclaims to have the “world's largest
buffalo” (no mention of whether this stud was alive or not) and the "National Buffalo
Museum". Geez, I didn't know buffalo had such a following. BTW, in case you're ever asked
“how much does the average buffalo pie weigh” the answer is “approximately 8lbs.” (I learned
this today at the National Park). Also just after Jamestown I passed another “Continental
Divide, Elevation 1,490 feet” sign today. This is where I also hit serious crosswinds all
the way into Fargo.
Took I-94 to Fargo, ND then crossed into Minnesota and took US-10 towards Detroit Lakes, MN
then continuing east on MN-34 until I turned north on US-71. I then zigzagged over to
“Paul Bunyon Scenic Road” by way of MN-200 and MN-371 and basically explored the local roads,
many named “County Road” with a number behind it. Did 560+ miles today of which the last
200mi were non-slab and some were dirt. I specifically intended to ride the “Lake Country
Scenic Byway” which was just super (for detailed info click:
LAKE COUNTRY SCENIC BYWAY). It's touted as a nature-lover's dream, has more than 1,000
lakes and runs near or through a national forest, a state park, a national wildlife refuge, and
six state forests. The pictures I took don't represent the area at all. It's
difficult to capture the expansiveness of all this water when roadside. Basically there are
lakes everywhere.... off in the distant, right along the road, down at the end of a road,
etc. Every road could have been declared scenic if you asked
me. I sure enjoyed the enormous Aspens that lined much of the byway.
Most every road that was immediately off the byway was either dirt or quickly became
dirt. I did notice a strange absence of signs warning of such transitions.
Minnesota touts itself as being "the land of 10,000 lakes." I think they miscounted... it
sure seemed like I saw at least that many today!
You can tell these folks get some snow here...frequently sighted signs displaying “chains on/off”
or “snowmobile crossing” or “ice skating.”
Filled up with cheapest gas thus far of the trip in Park Rapids, MN this afternoon = $2.39/gal
Tomorrow I'll be heading towards International Falls, MN and Voyageurs National Park; hopefully
I'll find a way to stay in my own country when near the border this time!
Two elder Gold Wingers are staying at the same hotel I am tonight. One commented on my AZ
plate and then asked where was I heading. In all seriousness he replied "Ma'am, if you're
headed to Key West didn't you take a wrong turn somewhere?"
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