Glacier-Waterton: cycling Whitefish to Eureka

We woke up early to get an early start but still didn't leave until 7:15. It's more complicated than it seems to squeeze only the necessities for 9 days or cycling in packs and panniers on a bicycle. Yet, finally, we were off! It felt wonderful to be starting another Adventure Cycling tour.

We headed out of Whitefish on highway 93 but turned off within 5 miles onto quieter country roads. It was a perfect, cloudless day to ride. Unfortunately, we eventually had to get back on highway 93, with barely a shoulder, and cars, trucks and RVs passing us at what seemed much more than the posted 75 mph speed limit (and often with no space to give us, as there were cars coming from the opposite direction). There were a few scary moments by the time we reached our snack destination. And, then, it was another 20 miles on highway 93 to our lunch stop. Simply because of the amount of miles we spent on highway 93 today, I already cannot recommend this tour to anyone.

The lunch stop was at a tiny beach at Dickey Lake campground. There's also a busy, single dock boat launch. It was nice to sit in the shade and appreciate the stunning views. We were told that the campground had a water spigot but we didn't take the time to find it (a fact that we would regret later). 

Feeling ready to ride a few more anxiety inducing miles on highway 93, we set off again. Thankfully, it was only a short way to the turn off on a 35 mph country road, straight into a tiny town where church was just getting out. This stretch of country roads was a delight because of the slow posted speed limit and very little traffic (and what seemed to be a cumulative downhill instead of climbing). But, it was getting hot! Even though the roads were lined with coniferous trees, with a fragrant aroma, with the sun almost directly overhead, there was no shade. 

We finally had to turn back onto highway 93, although, now thirsty and hot, we were counting down the miles to our stop to pick up breakfast. Watson's grocery store was a welcoming oasis of air conditioning, a bakery/deli, fruit, and a variety of liquid refreshments. I bought a jug of lemonade to fill up my water bottles and a package of cherry tomatoes. Just enough to get us to the hotel where we discovered it was now 90 F. No wonder we were so thirsty!

While at Watson's, we met a woman hiking the Pacific Northwest Trail. She had started walking from East Glacier and was going to walk all the way to the west coast. Her aim was to eventually hike all 11 of the National Scenic Trails. The Pacific Northwest was her 9th. What an inspiring woman!