day 5: Bozeman to Grangeville ID via Great Falls
OK, OK, I know this isn't the direct route. Not the point! The point was to explore, and I'd never been into this part of Montana, where the Butler map suggested there were a few decent motorcycling roads.
One road that was NOT highlighted on the map turned out to be more or less the finest of the day. MT 86 cuts thru the Bridger Range northeast of Bozeman, and from the map and tighter study on google maps looked to have all the requisites for good motorcycling: primarily curves and lack of population. But finding it proved a challenge. I hopped on I-90 eastbound, passsed a couple exits, realized I was beyond where the road should have cut north, and reversed at the next interchange. Back westbound, I went thru the same process... and eventually I discovered the road by 'dead-reckoning' my exit, then cutting across till I hit the desired highway. Turns out the route is obscure enough it doesn't even have an exit off the freeway... nor ( so far as i could see ) any marking...
Ah well, the ride itself was superb, if rather chilly under threatening skies. The first third lies thru a pleasant valley; then there's a great forested section; an finally you drop into expansive high-country ranchlands. All with zero traffic... and perfect pavement...
MT 86 northeast of Bozeman
IMG_6075 (1024x739) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
...into the forest
IMG_6079 (1024x768) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
... and out into the ranchlands
IMG_6087 (1024x744) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
There follows about 70 klicks north on US 89 to White Sulphur Springs, which, while 'boring' in a way, was also sorta engrossing in its expansivenss. North again, the highway climbs into the Lewis and Clark National Forest, and is quite delightful for close to a hundred kms. Unfortunately, the heavy skies unleashed some rain around Monarch, but this soon abated, and the main highway drone into Great Falls was dry. My brief visit to this city consisted of a fuel and lunch stop as a break from a dreary, uninteresting, seemingly never-ending traffic-choked traverse of what appeared to be one of the least stimulating pieces of middle America I'd had the misfortune to experience... but then, maybe I missed the good parts?
North of White Sulphur Springs
IMG_6091 (1024x755) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
Rainy road near Monarch MT
IMG_6100 (1024x768) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
I'll break off here and complete the day in a following post.