July 23, 2001.
Ennis to Dillon, Montana. (73 mi.) Mile 3211
Virginia
City to the Beaverhead Valley
Readers of this journal may remember
that we enjoyed spending the 4th of July with
the cycling Grant-Perzanowski
family from Vermont. Yesterday we were shocked and saddened to learn that 13
year old Kara and her mother Jen had
been involved in a collision with a semi while bicycling back to Vermont, and
that Kara was receiving treatment and surgery for a serious injury to her foot. On
their online journal, the family urged TransAm cyclists to stick to the
Adventure Cycling route, since it has been mapped out with an emphasis on
avoiding high traffic areas when possible. Just last night we had been seriously
contemplating taking a shorter alternative to Missoula via Butte Montana, but
are now sticking to the TransAmerica Trail as originally planned. We wish for
the speediest recovery for Kara, who had impressed us with her strong and
adventurous spirit.
Looking back down
on the Madison River Valley from our 2600 ft climb to Virginia City.
Our thoughts have been on bicycle
safety today, as we climbed up out of the Madison Valley to mile high Virginia
City. This whole town is a National Historic Landmark. In 1863, gold was
discovered in what was a small wilderness stream lined with alders. In the gold
rush that followed, Virginia City and numerous other small towns sprang up along
Alder Gulch, to become Montana's largest settled area at the time; 10,000 people
at its peak.
Virginia City's colorful history includes a period of rampant
lawlessness, robberies, and murders, ending when a vigilante movement hanged two
dozen men in a one month period in 1864. We visited some of the museums in town,
where one had on display the club foot of Club Foot George, one of Virginia
City's early bad guys. After he was hanged, his body was later dug up to
confirm his identify, and somehow his foot ended up in a bell jar in a museum
display.
A few miles down the road from
Virginia City is Nevada City, another historical mining town, as well as the
rocky dredgings and rusty mining equipment that have impacted the otherwise
attractive environment along Alder Gulch.
We've noticed out West, that when we
use the restroom, we often have to decide whether or not we are a Cowboy or
Cowgirl, Buck or Doe, Stallion or Filly, Ram or Ewe, etc. In Virginia City, we
had a choice of Bull or Cow. This reminds me of those poorly designed multiple
choice questions in college where none of the above are good answers. One just
has to guess at the intent of the author of the question, give a sigh of
resignation, and, in my case, go in the door labeled "Cows".
We also had an experience in tiny Riverside, Wyoming, in the Bear Trap
Cafe, that characterizes the small towns we have been traveling through out here
in the West. I had the sudden feeling we were at a costume party representing some
of the principle customers to the small town cafes in this area. First, there were the cowboys, dressing
their part in cowboy boots, hats, big belt buckles, and Western shirts,
swaggering in from their dusty 4x4 pickups. Then there was a table of
fly-fisherman, all dressed in khaki and earth tone clothing. They came in the Suburban.
Then there were the RVers, in pleat front shorts, polo shirts, and white crew
socks, and finally, there we were, in lycra bike shorts, funny tan lines, and
helmet hair, easily matched to our vehicles outside too.
Ever since I dropped the digital
camera, I have been missing photo opportunities. Some shots which I had high
hopes for did not, for some reason, show up on the memory card when I went to
edit them later. It may just be that the battery contacts have not been good
since then and I might be able to solve this. Meanwhile, I will have to simply
describe the Beaverhead River Valley in an inadequate way, as broad,
beautiful, and green, with an immense blue sky overhead, and fluffy white
clouds. This is country that was explored by the Lewis and Clark expedition in
their successful search for the headwaters of the Missouri not far from here.
I have loved the Missouri Headwaters valleys since I first saw this area years
ago.
We had a very long but good ride
into Dillon. We rode hard, with special purpose, driven by the knowledge
that...... the Patagonia Outlet Store in Dillon would close at 6:00 pm. We have
been asked by other travelers how we can fit all of our clothing into our
panniers, and the answer is that we have carefully chosen the minimum high
performance clothing (no cotton) that can serve multiple functions, be
layered, washed and dried quickly, and packed small. Patagonia makes clothing
like this. When we got there, a couple of other touring bicyclists were also
in the crowd pawing through the bargains. The sales people told us that for
bikers, they would ship any purchase to our homes free, or else, ship our
dirty clothes home so we could continue on with the new ones. What a great
alternative to doing laundry.
We ended up camping at the Dillon
KOA on the banks of the Beaverhead River, again sharing our site with Jen
Saks, as we have for the last few evenings. A brief thunderstorm passed
overhead once we had pitched the tent, but it only added to the drama of this
country. Montana has been good to us so far, with expansive scenic beauty and
good weather; temperatures in the 70s-80s during the day, and no threatening
storms or severe winds.
