June 25th – Day 4 Alaska Trip
This is either coincidence, or perhaps my offering to Satan in the woods last night was accepted, but the weather today was drop-dead gorgeous – Terrific riding weather!!!
We quickly got underway since the cheezo hotel where we were staying wasn’t offering complimentary breakfast. Fossil Butte National Monument situated in western Wyoming is rather obviously a barren landscape composed primarily of ancient formations of sediment covered by low scrub. Not pretty landscape at that, but merely the opening act to a dazzling show of “Nature at its Best” called the Bridger-Teton National Forest, located due south as the crow flies from the infamous Grand Teton Park. I actually liked it better… why, you ask? Well, I liked the combination of lesser crowds, curvy roads, stunning snow covered mountain tops and meadows greener than green. The scenery absofrickinlutely knocked me breathless! I had to keep forcing my eyes back to the road whizzing under and in front of me. OK, call me a tree hugger if you must, I can take a punch or two. …Which brings me to Smoot, Wyoming. Team America should chopper down and wipe Smoot off the Map and IMO the World would be a better place for all the rest of us! I’m not insensitive, it just seems a damn shame to plop down another little town smack dab in the middle of pristine perfection. Road trips involve food, this one is no exception – we had a nice picnic lunch at a roadside park overlooking the Snake River. Oh yeah, almost forgot completely about the miles of road construction. There was a thick layer of pea gravel covering the asphalt making it extremely dicey for motorbiking. I was as nervous as a long-tailed dog in a room full of rocking chairs! We got through the construction by picking a line along the shoulder which appeared a little less covered with gravelly stuff… pretty scary! Crossing over into Idaho, we skirted the Bitterroot Range marking the Continental Divide. As true today as it was back when the Nez Perce befriended Lewis and Clark, it remains a desolate country, no civilization – period, for 125 miles from Terreton to Salmon. All along the ride, Leroy was in touch with his buddy Rufus to have him overnite ship to us Leroy’s thermostat for his heated jacket liner, which inadvertently stayed at home. We should be able to pick it up tomorrow from UPS about 250 miles north of here as we head into Canada. Thanks, Rufus! Here were some snaps taken today of the Snake River, Largest Antler Archway in America, and the Tower of Steel in person – Leroy! Final destination tonight is Salmon, Idaho. Actual distance traveled today was 378 miles.
This is either coincidence, or perhaps my offering to Satan in the woods last night was accepted, but the weather today was drop-dead gorgeous – Terrific riding weather!!!
We quickly got underway since the cheezo hotel where we were staying wasn’t offering complimentary breakfast. Fossil Butte National Monument situated in western Wyoming is rather obviously a barren landscape composed primarily of ancient formations of sediment covered by low scrub. Not pretty landscape at that, but merely the opening act to a dazzling show of “Nature at its Best” called the Bridger-Teton National Forest, located due south as the crow flies from the infamous Grand Teton Park. I actually liked it better… why, you ask? Well, I liked the combination of lesser crowds, curvy roads, stunning snow covered mountain tops and meadows greener than green. The scenery absofrickinlutely knocked me breathless! I had to keep forcing my eyes back to the road whizzing under and in front of me. OK, call me a tree hugger if you must, I can take a punch or two. …Which brings me to Smoot, Wyoming. Team America should chopper down and wipe Smoot off the Map and IMO the World would be a better place for all the rest of us! I’m not insensitive, it just seems a damn shame to plop down another little town smack dab in the middle of pristine perfection. Road trips involve food, this one is no exception – we had a nice picnic lunch at a roadside park overlooking the Snake River. Oh yeah, almost forgot completely about the miles of road construction. There was a thick layer of pea gravel covering the asphalt making it extremely dicey for motorbiking. I was as nervous as a long-tailed dog in a room full of rocking chairs! We got through the construction by picking a line along the shoulder which appeared a little less covered with gravelly stuff… pretty scary! Crossing over into Idaho, we skirted the Bitterroot Range marking the Continental Divide. As true today as it was back when the Nez Perce befriended Lewis and Clark, it remains a desolate country, no civilization – period, for 125 miles from Terreton to Salmon. All along the ride, Leroy was in touch with his buddy Rufus to have him overnite ship to us Leroy’s thermostat for his heated jacket liner, which inadvertently stayed at home. We should be able to pick it up tomorrow from UPS about 250 miles north of here as we head into Canada. Thanks, Rufus! Here were some snaps taken today of the Snake River, Largest Antler Archway in America, and the Tower of Steel in person – Leroy! Final destination tonight is Salmon, Idaho. Actual distance traveled today was 378 miles.
