New tread for the path less traveled.

At nearly 9000 miles, I’ve worn out yet another rear tire. Given the long daily miles, heavily loaded bike and warm tarmac, my tires have expired faster than I anticipated. There is a motorcycle shop in Butte that I’m going to stop by before leaving town to see if they happen to have a 150/70R17 in stock.

As I’m checking out of the hotel, I begin reading about the history of the Finlen Hotel on a sign near the front desk. Once the woman at the desk senses that I’m interested, she swoops in to inform about the place. Apparently it was modeled after the Hotel Astor in NYC and was opened in 1924. There were few expenses spared in the finishes and the photos posted in the lobby suggest that it was the place to be in Butte’s heyday.

[Finlen Hotel, Butte, MT]

[Finlen Hotel lobby]

After a much appreciated history lesson on the Finlay, I head to Two Wheelz to see about a rear tire. I walk into the shop and I’m greated by the slightly frazzled shop owner named Matt. He takes one look at my riding suit and my bike parked outside and says: “you’ve been riding for a while, where you from?” I give him the rundown and he immediately springs into action. He tells me that he’s not sure if he has a tire that will fit and his mechanic is out with a broken arm due to a dirtbike accident over the weekend, but he will do what he can to get me back on the road.

Matt digs through his attic stock and finds a slightly used tire in like-new condition that will fit. He then slaps a hand-scrawled sign on the front door saying “will be right back” and puts on his shop apron to change the tire himself. He has the rear wheel off and the new tire on in about twenty minutes. He cuts me a great deal on the tire and excitedly asks me where I’m headed next. When I answer that I’m not sure yet, he immediately has a map out and makes me promise I won’t leave Montana without riding through Glacier National Park. As he gives me detailed turn-by-turn directions, he tells me: “if you really want to put that new rear tire to the test, head up this road” and scribbles over a road mapped in a different line type than the rest.

[another new rear tire]

I profusely thank Matt for his generosity and set out to follow the route he has planned for me to Glacier National Park.

The trek north leads me first through vast farmland where I hit another very vivid rain cloud. I get twenty minutes of rain and then I’m on the other side of it. I traverse Lolo National Forest, then Flathead National Forest. The roads are great and the pungent smell of pine trees is an amazing addition to the ride.

[yet another storm directly over my path]

[through the storm]

[clear skies]

[Lolo National Forest]

I momentarily pop out of the forest in Bigfork, MT and have an incredible lunch next to Flathead Lake. I’ve been living on a pretty strict diet of freeze dried camp food lately, so the delicious french dip sandwich and fench fries made with Idaho spuds and deep fried in duck fat both taste pretty outstanding.

[lunch from Great Northern Gourmet in Bigfork]

I eventually make it to Glacier National Park just as a storm is moving in. The ranger at the entry booth emphatically informs me that there is only one campsite with vacancy and that it’s “very primitive and extremely remote.” It’s funny that the road she traces with her finger on the park map is the same road Matt from the bike shop scribbled on earlier in the day. I guess it pretty clear where I’m headed.

[entering the park]

The pavement doesn’t last long and I find myself on a fairly rocky dirt road enroute to Bowman Lake, close to the Canadian border. The road progressively gets more rough and rocky and I start to become concerned that I’m risking popping a tire or rattling something loose on the bike. With all of my gear on the back, the bike is pretty heavily loaded for off-roading. When I carry more speed, the bumps smooth out but the rocks are harder to miss. I end up standing up on the footpegs and finding a rhythm of zigzagging between obstacles. Along the exhausting two hour ride in the dirt, I keep wondering if I was even going the right way and if I would end up stranded out here.

[the long road to Bowman Lake]

[the long road to Bowman Lake]

[the long road to Bowman Lake]

The angst quickly melts when I finally reach the lake. It’s extremely remote and incredibly gorgeous. The lake is hyper-pristine and the surrounding tree covered mountains are nearly perfect. I relax by the lake as the sun sets and reflect on the difficult but rewarding ride to the middle of nowhere Montana. The ride out in the morning will be fun.

[Bowman Lake – Glacier National Park]