Lander, Wyoming

A lot has happened since the last post in Twin Bridges, Montana. Since then we've entered a new state, toured Yellowstone on bikes, been in total awe of the Grand Tetons, spent a night in a bathroom, and biked our most miles in a day, which was the 85-mile stretch yesterday. We also climbed the second-highest pass of the trip two days ago.

Despite what we'd heard about bad RV traffic and inconsiderate tourists, traveling through Yellowstone was an awesome experience. We'd spent Saturday night in the yard of the West Yellowstone Catholic Church, and got up at the crack of dawn to beat the traffic into the park. Heidi and I both felt like we were biking into Jurassic Park as we approached the imposing customs-like gates at the west entrance to the park. It was misting and foggy, and very chilly.

We had a peaceful, hushed ride into the park, traveling a tree-lined road, and about an hour into our ride the fog lifted and the sun came out. We spent the day stopping at bubbling mud pits, geysers, and hot springs, and trying to keep as many cars between us and the bison and elk as possible.

At the end of our first day in the park, we had to cross the Continental Divide two times. During the first climb we saw the clouds gathering, and during the second the sky got very dark and it began thundering. We flagged down a pick-up from Oklahoma and just as we threw all our gear in the back and got in the back ourselves, it started hailing and raining on us. We both had our helmets on, at least, so no permanent damage was inflicted.

The second day in Yellowstone we had an uneventful ride out of the park, and into Grand Teton National Park which is only 7 miles down the road. The Tetons are incredible, and I think they are the most beautiful natural thing I have seen traveling the U.S. I could go on, but Heidi will post pictures that will capture it better than any words could.

In the Tetons our campground host informed us that they'd had lots of problem bears in the campground, and that they'd shot a problem bear a few weeks back in our part of the campground. Let's just say that Heidi and I have been Extremely Nervous about bears. Because there were no other women in the hiker/biker campsites, we set up house in the bathrooms and slept very comfortably, with the door closed and barricaded by the trash can. It doesn't help that we keep picking up literature about how to survive in "Grizzly Country" and books about bear attacks.

In the Tetons we also met two guys who are biking the Great Divide trail...It requires a mountain bike. They talked about biking through fresh grizzly scat and that seeing three cars in a day is a lot. I'm glad we're not doing that one!

After the Tetons we climbed Togwatee Pass, at over 9,500 feet and around 16 miles of noticeable climbing. That was a long day. Thankfully we had a comfy cabin to sleep in that night at a biker hostel on the other side of the pass. Dave and Joann have hosted many bicyclists, and it was really nice to have a warm shower and a gigantic spaghetti dinner, although I was completely wiped out by the day's riding.

Well, time's up. Wish I could say more. Heidi's posting pictures beside me, so that will give you another window into our journey.