Harlem to Malta, MT
Sunday and an easy ride day. Remember Pam and Sean Kennedy from Dickey Lake and our rest day in Whitefish? These two are tenacious in their mission to assist Diane and her group of riders. They arrived last night after we were asleep and slept the night near our campsite in their Excursion. We found them there in the morning. They had brought breakfast goodies, so we ate well. They wanted to sag our gear for the next two days to Glasgow, MT, so after breakfast, we helped them load our BOBs and gear into the Excursion and then we six hit the road, unencumbered. Yippee!
Small thunderheads were dumping light rain around us. (In his blog, Tim asks: The result of Kevin’s fire dance the previous night?) We saw quite a few antelope today. They blend in so well with the dried grass that it takes a keen eye--and a knowledge that they are out there--to see most of them. We are nearing the prairie pothole section of North America and have begun to see a number of roadside wetlands and ponds. North of the Milk River and eastward to the state line along what is now called the "Hi Line," lie numerous prairie potholes. These depressional wetlands are especially important to migratory birds, providing a breeding ground for many species. They also provide a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes as we were to find out .
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| A blurry shot of the romantic Milk River behind the Dinosaur Museum |
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| Internet photo of prairie potholes |
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| Pam and Sean's Excursion covered with mosquito carcasses |
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| Maybe the state motto should be changed to "Big Mosquito Country" |
Tim reported that he loved the varied colors of the plants growing in the fields we passed and commented to all that they reminded him of being inside a French impressionist painting. Bill had a rear flat that Tim helped him change but that was about the only excitement of the ride--plenty for the day after yesterday's flats, fire, and festivities.
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| Noel Edmond, the guy who's been cutting out the metal signs along the route, displays several on a trailer in the parking lot opposite the CS we stopped at in Malta |
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| Undoubtedly one of Noel's creations |
Though the miles today were pretty, they were also pretty monotonous. Just outside of Malta, Kevin had stopped at a convenience store and whistled me down. There was a little sporting goods store there but the owner was out to lunch. I decided to wait to see if they had air mattresses or a Thermarest-type sleeping mat. My air mattress was deflating several times a night and causing me to lose sleep. Another man was waiting too, but we both gave up after a bit, and Diane and I rode on to Malta. We arrived in Malta before noon and checked into the Great Northern Hotel, a downtown two-story hotel that Pam and Sean had arranged for us. Believe it or not, they got all the rooms comped or at bargain prices.
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| Great Northern Hotel in downtown Malta, Montana |
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| Malta's grain elevators |
After checking in, we took showers, washed out our riding clothes, and then explored the town in search of a store that sold air mattresses . . . with no success. Then the group walked to the Great Plains Dinosaur Museum and Field Station on Rte. 2. This required us to duck through an underpass and walk over some tracks. Malta, like all of the towns we’ve ridden through in Montana, is right on the RR tracks.
Later that evening, we treated Pam and Sean to dinner as a thank-you for carrying our gear, and then all but I went to help Valley Drug celebrate its 25th year in business. I was ready for some time alone. Diane had gone to Mass and then went to the celebration with some of the churchgoers she had met. The drugstore had blocked off the street in front of the store and was serving roast beef sandwiches with potato salad and coleslaw. Most of the riders reported that they had fun at this celebration, eating a second dinner, enjoying 50’s and 60’s era music, and watching the young kids dance.
See you tomorrow.
