Slept really well and was up early to get packed. I wanted to ride down to the lake front to get a picture of the Tetons at sunrise. I was not disappointed. The water was perfectly still with the crystal clear reflection of the mountain peaks on the surface of the water. Breathtaking. After my adventure yesterday, I really didn’t have a set goal for today. I knew I had the climb up to the Continental Divide at Togwotee Pass at 9,500 feet, my highest pass so far, but other than that I should be able to ride most of the day at a good pace.
It was another bluebird day and the views on the ride from Colter Bay along Jackson Lake with the Tetons was beautiful mile after mile. The highway was busy with travelers going between Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Jackson Hole. Moran Junction is where all the roads meet for travelers heading in any direction. This was also the second checkpoint of the TransAm. I ran into a nice gas station convenience store to use the restroom and get a few more snacks. Another great stop. When I went to pay, I discovered I did not have my credit card from dinner last night. I had cash so all was fine. I satellite messaged Lori and she followed up and the restaurant had the card. I either had to pedal the 22 miles back or they would destroy it. I opted for the latter. I am pretty sure my card never came back before I left as there was no tip included in the charge and I would have left a nice tip.
While at this gas station, I noticed all the visitors were either Italian or French speaking. The young lady working at checkout had Google Translate going as well. Lots of internationals enjoying this part of the US. I guess the poorly performing dollar gives them more incentive. I headed up and started the Togwatee Pass Climb. It is a nice long climb, a little longer than Rabbit ears but pretty similar. Put in some tunes, find my rhythm and work my way up to the summit.
It was windy and very warm but the climb wasn’t bad. I reached the pass 9555 ft at around 1:30pm with 37 miles and 3372 feet of climbing. I stopped and had lunch sheltering from the wind behind the Bridger-Teton National Forest sign. A few more ups and downs and then some really nice long descents. Feels so good to just float along running 30-40 mph and just tucked into happiness. Dubois, Wyoming was where I was supposed to be end of Day 8 and that was not quite 70 miles from Colter Bay. On Saturday morning, I had decided I would box up my work stuff, tablet, keyboard and some other items and stop at the Ashton post office. But of course they aren’t open on Saturday’s. So today I was targeting the Post Office in Dubois for my lightening of the load.
I made great time after the climb to Dubois getting there just after 3:00pm. I knew the PO closed at 4:30. Since the pass I had covered nearly 30 miles and only climbed a couple hundred feet. I found the post office and got a large box and started to fill it. The PO was busy and I passed the time talking with the Sheriff. Really nice. He was formerly of Colorado Springs and knew Steamboat and the Clark area well having hunted here for many years. He told me about the new Military Vehicles museum that a billionaire that had just moved to town built. He said it was better than the Smithsonian.
I sent back about 3.5 pounds of stuff and was happy to see it go. I hopped back on and rode through the rest of Dubois. The eastern end of Dubois is the old west part of town. Historic and looked like a great place to visit. It was now after 4 and the saloon was rocking with live music and a big crowd. A few miles out of town was the Military Vehicles Museum. It had massive buildings, probably over 100,000 sq ft on acres and acres. I didn’t stop but it was incredible how big it was and all the hundreds of Military vehicles outside.
With my load lightened I started thinking more about where I was at and my ultimate goals. My winter training was so well designed by Coach Max and I have never felt stronger on a bike. However, getting back to hitting daily mileage targets for another 17 days or so was not getting me excited. I was still riding the TransAm route and could continue on towards Riverton and still be within reach of Rawlins. Lander would be where I would have to decide by. My plan today was just ride until dark, camp somewhere then make decisions in the morning.
I was riding on US Hwy 26 then south on 287 which went through several Indian Reservations. I was on the Sacajawea Trail and the Chief Washakie Trail. This was also the Mormon Trail and the Stagecoach Express. Lots of History along this old Highway. I stopped at an old gas station, convenience store, Post Office in Crowheart on the Crowheart reservation. The lady running it was very nice and we had a conversation about her son, a local high school star football player. An orange fanta and an ice cream sandwich and I was on my way. Pounding out the miles running my five and dime routine.
Lori was helping me see if there was any place along the way that I could camp at. Not too many options. I hit 100 miles at 7:00 pm with 4,179 feet of climbing. It was starting to get dark as I entered the Windy River Indian Reservation and the town of Ft. Washakie . There were the Wind River Trading Company and the Hines General Store but no lodging. I saw a sign for Sacajawea’s grave site but I didn’t go far enough to find it. That would have been cool. I circled around and found a sign that said Windy River Basin campground. So I headed that way. Turns out it was a AirBnB for camping in one of the TeePee’s on the property. There was a couple staying in one of the TeePee’s and they said it was all online. No one was around. They weren’t too happy with me showing up, but I said I was going to go over behind a shed and put my tent up there and they wouldn’t even know I was there. It was now dark and I had already ridden 129 miles for the day. I was tired and ready for bed.
I setup my tent as quietly as possible including not inflating my sleeping pad so that it wouldn’t squeak or be noisy. But the area has thick grass and it was fine. I had one more JJ’s Bakery Banana Cream pie and that was a great bedtime snack. There was a full moon and it was amazing with the TeePee’s, being on the Indian reservation and so near Sacajawea’s gravesite. I had plenty of spirit power and good karma to get me through the night and help me make the best decision going forward.
Sacajawea – “Amazing the things you find when you bother to search for them”
