Wisdom, MT

I started the day cycling towards a rainbow. Then I realised I had made a wrong turning and cycled away from the rainbow again!

The rainbow set the weather for the day, a mix of cloud, sun and light rain. The mountains were mainly hidden by cloud so I didn't get the best views.

Today was a long day for me, 68miles taking 9 hours with two passes to climb. I think I climbed around 3500ft in total, into strong headwinds. The descents were more fun than the climbing, a few miles of perfect gradient when I didn't have to pedal or brake, that's the dream - just to sit on the bike and watch the scenery wizz by.

After crossing the second 'big hole' pass I was rewarded with better views of glacier topped mountains. I wish I had a better camera, the photos are not at all how it looks! I was also rewarded by another 'historical marker'. This one explained that the Lewis and Clark expedition crossed this path, at 7,400feet being one of the highest they crossed. It was Lewis' 31st birthday on that day. In his journal entry for the day he reflected that he had not achieved much to date and would try to do better in future!

I was going to stop at Jackson after 50 miles but the hostel was closed for Father's Day. I could have pitched up in the camping space alongside the hostel but no restroom was open or water available, and I needed water to drink and cook with! Nothing else in the small town was open at all so I added an extra 18miles to get to Wisdom. Luckily the last 18miles were flat and by the evening the sun had come out and the wind dropped so it was a pleasant evening cycle. I also rang a motel ahead so I knew there would be somewhere to stay. It's a nice countryside kind of motel meaning I could cook on my camp stove outside my room which saves buying a meal out.

Strong headwinds made this a tough day! This is my 11th consecutive day of cycling, I'm looking forward to a couple of rest days when I get to Missoula.