A sea of wheat - 800 miles from Banff

The past several days have taken me through countless seemingly endless seas of wheat with a contrasting backdrop of jagged granite peaks both to the east and west. Yesterday I pitched camp within minutes of a huge thunderstorm that left a small river flowing through the campground and enough thunder and lightning to keep me on edge for the duration. Spending the rest of the day today kicking back, reading, and giving my left knee a bit of attention. Then the plan is to ride to West Yellowstone tomorrow.

Yesterday I passed the 800 mile mark since leaving Banff and I crunched the numbers and realized I only have 600 miles until I cross into Colorado! Plan to ride the Grand Loop through Yellowstone Park and then connect back up with the GDR further to the south. Will be coming up to the infamous stretch through the dry desolate Great Basin in only a few days.

This will certainly be a time when I will appreciate the virtual limitless storage capacity of the BOB trailer (I plan on carrying 5 gallons of water through this section). The BOB has certainly lived up to it's name (Beast Of Burden) thus far with the relentless beatings from the trail and not even a squeak from him. It's amazing how attached I've gotten to all my gear. The many hours of research prior to the trip really has paid off.

The past several days I've been riding solo. I split up with my buddy Liron in Helena as I needed to spend a day in Helena to get a few things done for my upcoming hospitalist gig in Santa Fe. A few thoughts on riding solo... I really enjoy the quiet solitude in the evenings after the ride. I also have noticed that I am more focused during the ride. At times I feel more vulnerable, for instance when I am crossing over an exposed pass with dark threatening thunderheads quickly descending overhead, although at the same time it is empowering and just an entirely different experience. I enjoy the introspective aspect to riding solo. The prolonged unbroken rhythm that riding provides is such an ideal venue for soul searching, letting your mind wander in any direction it wants, a rarity in the fast paced chaotic environment of everyday life. I do however miss the camaraderie and shared excitement as well as suffering of riding with someone else.

A quick video of the BOB negotiating a downed tree (just have to copy and paste this into your browser address bar)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF8epu4iwCk&feature=youtube_gdata_player