No Country for Old Men

Joplin, MT to Havre, MT July 13, 2009 - We departed from the tiny town of Joplin and proceeded to Havre. This was a quick ride we had a good tail wind and a lot of flat terrain. As we proceeded down Highway 2 we stopped at a few small towns for drinks and eats. The best place I saw was Blackie's Bar but it was closed on Mondays. Art, Jon and I ended up stopping there for a rest and noted that there was a big rain storm approaching from the Bear's Paw Mountains. The rest of the day involved some great tailwinds from the storm and pedaling fast to beat the rain into Havre. We beat the rain but a recurring issue hit us again, Jon breaking spokes, it looks like he may need a new wheel. Once we got to the Northern Montana State University campus dorms Art's dorm room turned into a bike repair shop in an effort to get Jon's wheel repaired and trued. The dorm stay was nice, 10 dollars a night with Internet, showers, cooking and laundry available. Jon's wheel was repaired, tents dried from the night before, food at a local casino and a trip to Wal Mart ended the night.

Havre, MT to Harlem, MT July 14, 2009 - The day started with a lot of rain. Braden, Lynda, Don, Mary, Roger and I waited out the rain in Char's Restaurant in beautiful downtown Havre. Jim, Jon and Art stayed at the dormitory and left from there. Around 9 or so the rain subsided and it turned out to be a good Day for riding fast. We left Havre in a light drizzle, cool temps and proceeded to Harlem. With a nice west wind we were hitting 15-20 mph which is good for a loaded bike. The half way point of the ride was Chinook which we made in around an hour or so. After a rest and some food at a convenience store in Chinook we rolled into Harlem. Harlem was a small town with a good pizza place and Deb's Diner. Our camp site was next to the Harlem City Hall and we had access to the restrooms at city hall and the showers and swimming pool adjacent. The pool water was heated to around 90 degrees and quite relaxing. We had a lot of time for bike tune ups, naps, and relaxing in Harlem. Tomorrow on to a camp area east of the town of Malta, MT. We had been warned by previous westbound bikers about mosquitoes so it was decided for various reasons we stay inside somewhere, Sleeping Buffalo would be our destination. Good night from Harlem.

Harlem, MT to Sleeping Buffalo Campground west of Saco, MT July 15, 2009 -Got a good start around 8 a..m. for Sleeping Buffalo. Our route headed into the Fort Belknap Reservation toward the town of Malta. It was fairly long day, some wind and heat, rolling hills. The day ended with our stop at Sleeping Buffalo. We anticipated cabins but the sleeping accommodations were more like a bunch of double wides hooked together. The place also had a gift shop and hot springs pools. The place was rough, nothing was in good repair and the food selection was at the bar and consisted of frozen pizza. The two married couples shared a room and 4 of us "singles" shared the adjacent room. Jim from Detroit was presumed missing in action but turned up at a Motel in Malta, a good decision for him in terms of lodging. The water was undrinkable and when you showered the room filled with rotten egg smell from the shower water. The good side of things was that we were protected from mosquitoes by being inside otherwise I would not recommend the Sleeping Buffalo campground at all. The room did have a TV and we all watched Lethal Weapon 2.

Sleeping Buffalo Campground to Glascow, MT July 16, 2009 - We blasted out of Sleeping Buffalo and headed 15 mile down the road to Saco for breakfast. Saco was supposed to have the worst mosquito problem in the area but we didn't notice it so much. From Saco we continued east on Highway 2. The terrain was rolling hills and took us southeasterly through Hinsdale toward the town of Glascow. We camped for the night at an RV park that was very nice particularly in contrast to the previous night. The water was odor free and drinkable much to our delight. Somewhere in past two days we saw an historical marker that noted one of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid's train robberies. I believe they also had a third gang member Deaf Charlie. Speaking of trains the freight and passenger trains that go along Highway 2 are frequent and we are constantly hoping to find accommodations away from the noise of the railroad.

Glascow, MT to Wolfpoint, MT July 17, 2009 - Many locals have warned us of staying at Wolfpoint. They indicate that there are crime issues and that bikers would be vulnerable. Nonetheless we are staying in Wolfpoint and moteling for the night just be safe in case there is any validity to these warnings. The ride to Wolfpoint was tough for some reason heat and headwinds mostly. On our way we stopped for breakfast in Nashua. We had a great breakfast and the waitress challenged us to eat their big meal. Two 16 inch pancakes, 3 eggs, sausage and hash browns. We declined but the waitress did bring out the pan the pancakes fit on, it was like a large pizza pan and full 16 inches. According to the waitress no one has ever been able to eat the big cake meal under her watch. After Nashua things got tough, heat and head winds again. We took a back road that we thought would wind along the Missouri River. It did not. To make matters worse Jon and I had to fight off some nasty black dogs and we started to run out of water. We got of the back road through the little town of Frazer. A lot of the locals along the way have indicated the water is bad and needs to be treated. In Frazer we met a missionary who gave us a gallon of bottled water, it was a godsend. Jon and I got back on Highway 2 and proceeded into Wolfpoint. After cooling down, meeting up with the rest of our group we ate and proceeded to our motel for the night. I picked up some money from Western Union at the local Radio Shack and all was well again. Our motel was not bad and pretty cheap the 5 single guys all roomed together and most of us slept on the floor. All the negative things said about Wolfpoint proved to be false and we did not encounter any problems. As of July 17 we have completed 1342 miles.