Tag: ogre

Day 28: Salida to Upper Dome Reservoir

February 9th, 2016

Heeding the advice from our bartender the night before, we woke up from our stealth camp early to avoid being detected. We found a nice bakery, ate breakfast burritos and ordered bagels to-go. After a few more errands we set off for the long climb of Marshall Pass. The first 26 miles were nearly all uphill. The climb was long and steady while the heat made it hard. The changing Aspens made summiting the climb enjoyable and a few hours later, we finally reached the top. We took a short break to admire the view and devour our bagels, both wishing we had ordered more. The long descent was a nice break and a few miles later we stopped at a small bar/general store. As Brett wasnt feeling too hot, we took another small break and ordered a beer. Still not feeling well we sat outside where Brett rested and I mended my frame bag’s zipper. We then left and rode a few more hours until night came and we camped at the Upper Dome Reservoir.
Day 22: Diagnus Wells to Rawlins, WY

March 25th, 2015

We woke up to the solitude that is the Great Basin, packed our things and set off from the remote Diagnus Well. A tailwind offered us some hope for the days ambitious goal of making it to Rawlins. As we continued deeper into the emptiness of the basin, we encountered wilded horses and pronghorn. It was incredible to see the horses, wild and free, unlike any horses we had seen before. The pronghorn always seemed to be in a hurry, running at FULL SPEED, constantly, with no signs of slowing down, ever. The wind and mellow grade helped us crush through more miles than we had hoped in the early part of the day. We passed through an oil field and after a short climb, the road switched directions and we started into the wind. It was incredible to think how quickly you take a tailwind for granted. The silence and peace of the tailwind was soon replaced with white noise and suffering. At times we were blown sideways, making little progress. After an effort, the road turned and the wind was in our favor. We pressed on, taking advantage of the helpful wind, but knew that soon we would face another long section of headwind. We made it to a junction and after debating if it was worth a two mile ride to fill up on water, we decided to press on and take our chance on what we had left. We continued and began a 10-15 mile section of death wind. Our progress was slow, and full of swear words. The suffering finally abated as we reached a paved highway that turned us in favor of the wind. After a quick lunch of the usual PB, Nutella and Jam bagel – maybe some string cheese in there for good measure – we set off into the final stretch of highway that would lead us to our destination of Rawlins, Wy. We rode into civilization, feeling completely haggard, but a cheap motel, delicious burgers and mediocre beers did the trick. We fell asleep feeling content with our effort for the day.
Day 17: Warm River to Colter Bay

February 18th, 2015

Today was a little tough. Our legs were sore and the heat was on for most of the day. We rode by Idaho Potato fields on pavement, then entered Wyoming on the Ashton-Flagg Ranch road. The road became severely washboarded as we wound our way through the Targhee National Forest. We eventually made it to Flagg Ranch, after what felt like forever, and stocked up on food. We turned right onto US 89 and enjoyed a glorious golden hour descent down to Jackson Lake. We were told that there was a great pizza place nearby and we found it. Leeks Pizzaria and Marina was a most welcomed spot. We drank a couple beers and ate a couple pizzas. Our worries and soreness soon washed away. We then rode a few short miles down the road to Colter Bay, where we camped and met a great family. They invited us to use their campsite, as they had a nice RV, and we chatted and ate smores.
Day 14: Grasshopper to Lima

January 21st, 2015

After a good nights rest, we powered up in the morning with a hot breakfast of oats, nutella, and pb. We probably threw pop-tarts in the mix for good measure since we knew today was going to be a long one. We set off, continuing down the second half of the descent we had started the night before. It was fast and fun. After bottoming out, and sending off a package at the post office in Polaris, MT, we continued on paved roads. About 40 miles in, we turned onto a gravel road, The Big Sheep Creek Back Country Byway, where we almost immediately encountered a headwind. The road was decent, but it was a slog, slowly leading us through remote wilderness where we gained elevation for the next 25 miles. It didn’t help that this was the first hot day of the trip and there was no shade to be found. We pushed on, cursing the headwind and finally, after a short steep climb, we crested the Medicine Lodge – Big Sheep Creek Divide. We stopped for lunch and after talking to a hunter, began the descent. Having said some pretty awful things about the wind all day, we were forced to eat crow (in the best way possible) as the wind shifted and became a tailwind. We were now cruising, averaging well over 20mph for the next hour or so. The road followed down a narrow canyon with epic rock outcroppings. As the sun began to set, we could see the lights of Lima in the distance. We took a right turn onto a dirt frontage road and right into a slight headwind. The next hour was a slow grind and we eventually entered into town, found a cafe just before close, and chowed on delicious Bacon Cheeseburgers. We then rolled across the street and set up camp behind a motel. Sleep came pretty easy that night.
Day 12: Mormon Gulch to Beaver Dam Campground

December 4th, 2014

The sound of rain pattering against the tent woke us. Since we were warm and dry, we decided to sleep a little longer until it stopped. After getting up, we made instant oatmeal and chatted with a couple from Minnesota about the GDMBR. They had already ridden from Alaska and were on their way down to Patagonia- such an epic journey! Shortly after setting off, we found a decent stream to filter water from, but as we were filling our second bladder, the pump broke. We carried on and made our way to Butte, where we resupplied and ate lunch. We found an outdoor store and began looking for replacement water filters. The employee who was helping us took a look at our pump and went off with it to the back of the shop where he epoxied the intake valve back into place. We crossed our fingers that it would work and headed out of Butte. We slowly climbed and climbed, up to 7300 feet and reached the summit at prime golden hour. The light was magical and we stopped to admire the views and take some photos. We pressed on and began to descend down a steep, rutted and sandy road. Mt. Fleecer was a menacing sight off in the distance. We made it to the bottom of the climb just past sunset, turned our lights on and made our way to Beaver Dam campground. The road began to climb steeper and steeper as the night sky darkened. The few miles seemed to go on far too long, but finally we made it, and found an empty campsite away from the crowds.
Day 11: Helena to Mormon Gulch Campsite

November 15th, 2014

Today was tough. Much tougher than we expected. As soon as we began, it was all uphill. Our elevation began at 4200 feet and we didn’t stop climbing until 28 miles and 3100 feet later. By far, this was one of the hardest climbs we encountered up to this point on the route. The riding was bearable, the grade wasn’t too bad and there was even the first ever GDMBR Pinecone Homerun Derby. It wasn’t until the last 2 miles where things got tough. We turned off the main road and onto an atv section that was super rocky, rough and steep. We had to walk/push our bikes through most of it. It was very slow going and we lost a lot of time. Finally, we made it over the top and were met with an equally steep and rocky descent. Once we navigated our way down and made it to better roads, we chased the fading sun, just barely making it to a campsite before nightfall. We ate our food, drank whiskey, and crashed.