High Plains Drifter/FINISHED
 

Another Clint Eastwood adventure? Not

I have been planning this 1000 mile adventure for almost a year. My first one. Recently retired. The blog really is not all that much about the bike and physical things themselves as just the adventure. No pictures to post here as every pic is on my blog. It is tough to get out of Montana. Towns don't always come at 50 miles. Sometimes they don't come at all for a day or two. Mother Nature has been pretty good. Some food has not.

I want to thank all the folks who have posted here previously on Touring. I read most of the posts, took what data I thought I needed and really it has made it easier. Not easy living in Montana and trying to be part of the biking community.

Thanks,

Marlowe

Blog

Always interesting to read ride reports, thanks for sharing, I've bookmarked your blog on my phone browser.

Also interesting to learn of troubles in McLaughlin, SD. Did the Sheriff give any details on the problems there? I've got a random enough imagination and have seen enough movies to come up with all sorts of smaller town scenarios and possibilities, but it seems you made it through without obvious issues.

Have a good adventure. One nice thing about the internet is that a like-minded community is usually just a mouse click away even when you feel locally isolated.

Good blog! I've been enjoying the posts and have it on my reader.

To the OP: I was going to comment on the blog about that, but it appears that you are not allowing comments to be posted.

Thanks all for following along. I did not open the comments as I always didn't have good wifi along the route and frankly didn't want to spend to much time answering comments. I will be more than happy to respond to any comment at my email. I did arrive at my destination last night. A wonderful welcome committee was awaiting. It was my first trip and the mileage ended at 1060 miles. Took 22 days with a couple of rest/wx days in there. It was fun, hard and a life experience that I will not forget. I wish anybody who desires to do anything like this can do it.
Thanks,
Marlowe

Understood. With my blog all my comments are moderated, so I'll go through them a few times a week on tour when the wifi is good. The Wordpress app makes it pretty easy to take care of that stuff.

But all I really wanted to say on your blog was that I liked it! :)

The folks who work at 150 E. Pine Street in Missoula might disagree.

Finished the ride!
 

Well my first long distance ride ended last Wednesday. 1061 miles in all. Some notes about the trip.
1. no mech issues at all.
2. WX was excellent. I did not even break out a raincoat.
3. No fast moving/bicycles issues. I did have to drive into the grass shoulder 4 times as I chose to not be squeezed by semi's meeting.
thanks for helmet mirrors. A week before the trip a semi driver told me that at meetings of 2 vehicles and a bike makes the bike rider a loser every time.
4. No human/bike rider issues. i.e. , no words, I did have a sheriff wake me on one nite and say that a local called them and mentioned
that an older, tired, homeless and distressed looking fellow on a bicycle was hanging around a campground and he (the sheriff) was just checking on me
5. I did not pack a weapon other than a pocket knife for household use only
6. Really the biggest issue was always the roads and lack of good shoulders to ride on. Lots of miles in Montana and South Dakota it was a white line for the shoulder. And check out this pic. They built a new road and did this too the shoulder. That is gravel on the right. I was pissed.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=461407
And I had one 16 mile stretch of highway that instead of rumble strips on the side of the road, the whole road was a rumble strip. An asphalt grinder/leveler did this to the road.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=461408

Fun trip. Lost 20 lbs. Montana (home) took a long time to get out of. Got my first Century Ride in. Very happy with the trip.

Thanks,
Marlowe

That's effed up, unless they intend to come back and pave the shoulder portion. You might consider sending this photo to Adventure Cycling Association with a description of exactly where it is. They have been active in lobbying against just this sort of thing.

BTW...Just got back from 10 days of riding in the Black Hills.

This brings up a point, how does one avoid looking homeless while bike touring?
And "hanging around a campground? Uh, how does one camp without hanging around**********

Glad all went well for the most part.