Wow!

What more can be said?

In the last five days I have ridden the triumvirate of the Northern Rocky Mountains. If you love bare rock that dares to scrape the underbelly of the stratosphere there are few places in North America that can compare to the Icefields Parkway in Alberta, the Going to the Sun Road of Glacier and the highest paved pass in Montana and Wyoming, the Beartooth Pass at 10,947'. It has been epic!

This ride is considered by many to be the most scenic, or certainly top 5, rides in the U.S. It came as little surprise that I saw almost as many cyclists today as motorists. The ride surprised me, even with my pre-expectations, by its variety. We started just a few miles out of Red Lodge with small rock outcroppings along a straight stretch of highway; typical scenery for this area.

As the road began to climb in earnest so did the WOW level. 

Switchbacks? Check!

Waterfalls? Check!

Sky scraping mountain peaks? Check!

High mountain lakes? Check!

Snowpack in mid-July? Check!

The highest state line in the U.S? Check!

Rock formations? Check!

I wondered which would fail first, my camera or the electric starter. I could not even estimate how many times I pulled over and took pictures. It took me about 4 hours to go 68 miles, an average of 17 mph, that includes the first 14 miles at highway speeds.

I climbed in Montana, crossed into Wyoming, then crossed back into Montana. I ate lunch at a bistro in Cooke City 

and Silver Gate, two small historic towns that thrive on tourism (Cooke City) and lodging (Silver Gate). In the two miles or so between them I saw a fox trotting atop a dirt berm next to the road, at eye level, as if he was briefly shadowing me!

Within four miles I entered Yellowstone Park and Wyoming again. About 40 miles later I passed through Mammoth Hot Springs, then exited Yellowstone and Wyoming when I pulled in to Gardiner, Mt.

I am stopped for the evening in Livingston, Mt. Tomorrow I will backtrack over the route I rode two days ago, on I-90, until I find highway 2, which will point me toward a series of small highways that should make me a lot smarter. Details at 11!

Oh, did I forget the pictures? I took 105 pictures today and a couple of them are okay.

The straight approach from Red Lodge at the bottom of the valley

The road then wound back and forth up the (left) side of the valley to the Vista Point rest area. At this point we have gone only 19.7 miles!

...and the scenery looks like this:

We then climbed a little higher and crossed the highest state line in the U.S. and also the 45th parallel

It's easy to see the difference in road quality when you cross the line.

As we continue into Wyoming things get even better:

I really like the composition of this one:

The "high point" of my day

Island Lake

Then just down the road was the Top of the World Store:

The store has an eclectic variety of items from curios to cheerios

and motel:

I love the switchbacks

and the waterfalls

Then it was into Yellowstone N.P.

with its endless selection of bison

I have walked among the buffalo before and not really felt threatened but this guy was making me nervous. By the time I pulled past him and got the camera ready he was moving my way, so I put the camera away, pulled forward and tried again, but he was still coming my way.