38th day - 245 miles

Delicious food, good company, a nice cabin on a roaring mountain river and a beautiful rainbow to top all that… life is great.
The day started out with a tire change performed by my pit crew at Big Sky Motorsports in Missoula. Once they got me on the way I headed west towards Garnet, a mining ghost town high up in the Montana Mountains. Garnet got its name from the semi-precious stones they mined there first. But soon after gold was found and the town took off. At its high time Garnet had 1,000 inhabitants and was known for its 13 saloons. The town was abandoned in 1918 after half the town burned down and the gold ran out as well.
Next stop was supposed to be Yellowstone National Park. But the weather didn’t play nice once again. And this time I got hit hard - by hail. Before I could dive into a road maintenance building in time I got nailed by a silver dollar size ice clump in my chest and got a nice bruise to show for.

After that little incident I turned into Cinnamon Lodge for a Mexican Fiesta and bed to sleep. That turned out to be one great decision. The meal was incredible, the company was great and the cabin is charming. And then the rainbow…

Hey that sounds like a great idea.

The view on the way up to Garnet.

Bear grass in bloom. (Locals told me..).

Locals had no name for the next two...and i don't have a caption...

But this one we identified as Witches Hair.

The ghost town of garnet.

One of the three saloons still standing.

The General Store...

...heated.

One of the hotel rooms. The first story in this hotel held the kitchen, the dinning room and a foyer with a staircase leading to the 2nd & 3rd floor. 8 hotel rooms on the second floor. For the miners that did not have the 1-3$ for a private room there was the third floor where they could stay on a 2 by 6 feet area to roll out their mattresses for free.

The back of the general store.

Hungry little fellow.

The road down from Garnet.

I shouldn't have taken this photo because soon after I got hit by something...

...like that.

My escape from the storm.

Lee is taking care of me...

...at the Cinnamon Lodge...

...and then came the rainbow.

Trust me, the intensity of the colours loses a bit in the photo.

37th day - 534 miles

My GPS played a trick on me to today. Last night while checking the condition of my bike I realized with horror that the Alaskan roads ate up my rear tire much sooner than I thought. Usually I get more than 10,000 miles out of one rear tire. This one is past its lifespan after only 7,000. Way past! So when I asked my GPS where the next BMW dealer is it kindly provided an address in Missoula, Montana. It also showed 332 miles for distance. After calling and arranging a tire change at about 4:00pm that day, I started my day relieved of the worries that tire issue caused me. But as I started following the route the GPS provided, the distance seemed to be getting longer and longer. To make a long story short, I arrived in Missoula at 9:00pm after 534 miles and a back tire that’s just hanging on a thread. The initial distance the GPS was indicating, was as the crow flies. So now I was cheated out of a scenic ride through the mountains and have to wait until tomorrow for service.

Weather was another issue today. As I entered Montana from Canada past the usual kind border control (this time I got finger printed - again!!), dark, mysterious clouds started to develop. Half an hour later as I climbed up the top of a small bluff it blew me almost off my bike when I reached the top. I quickly turned around and rushed back to the small gas station I just passed by. Branches started to come down from trees and the fresh cut hay started to take off from the field and blew by me. Believe me - the open garage door of the service station looked like the friendliest place ever in that moment. Without thinking twice, I rode right into the station as the owner quickly closed the door behind me. Thanks for the hospitality!
After checking into my hotel and taking a shower, it started all over again. This time with pigeon egg sized hail - lots of it. Fortunately, the front desk offered to let me park my bike under the front door canopy roof.
I guess after all I had a pretty lucky day.

 

Mountain on the way out of Banff.

This is the scenery just 20 minutes later. If you think riding through Iowa & Nebraska is boring... try Alberta & Montana.

Montana grasslands with clouds organizing into a storm.

Those colours are the ones you see just before a tornado...

Shall I go or shall I stay...

Just after the storm passed... it is 4:30pm.

After the rain.

Endless seaming roads in Montana.

Getting back into the mountains on my way to Missoula.

The sun peaks through the clouds providing some weird lighting.

A double rainbow on the horizon.

Dry brush with cattle in West Montana.

5 minutes after the hail started.

36th day - 569 miles

Does it ever happen to you that you think you just experienced the most beautiful thing ever and then turn the corner just to stumble upon something that seems to be even more beautiful? Well, it happened to me today - again!
The day started out with a nice ride towards Prince George, an economic hub in the center of British Columbia (80,000 pop.). The scenery along the way reminded me of Wisconsin. Farms dotted the rolling hills with woodland in the background, nothing spectacular, but pretty. As soon as I passed Prince George the scenery changed again. The farms disappeared, the forest moved back towards the road and snow covered mountains starting to rise. But that was only the beginning. As I got closer to Jasper,the road suddenly took a sharp turn and Mount Robson, the highest mountain in the Northern Rockies, suddenly appeared out of nowhere right in front of me. From here on for the next 200 miles it seemed to me that I was riding my bike on a different planet. I have never seen mountains rise that steep, that high and with such beauty right in front of me. The “Icefield Parkway”, which connects Jasper with Banff and passes through Jasper and Banff National Parks as well as famous Lake Louise, has to be one of, if not the most beautiful road in this world. If you like mountain scenery and make it to Canada, don’t pass this one up. It is spectacular!

Where can i get one of those?

Mountains appearing once again.

Found those in another ditch next to the road. I know - you're thinking - what is this guy doing in ditches? Well, you can't be seen from the road when you have to...

Happy little community.

On the way to McBride.

Mount Robson (3,954 m -12,972 ft). Check those tiny cars for scale!

Getting into Jasper National Park.

 

Pretty in Pink.

These mountains look like huge plates curled up.

Glacier river coming from the Columbia Icefield.

Good weather seems to follow me.

Athabasca Glacier in the Columbia Icefields.

High mountain meadow.

Glacier formed valley on the way to Banff. The cliff in the back is gigantic. My neck still hurts from looking way up while riding this road.

Big horns on that sheep. Oh! - Big Horn Sheep.

A face only a mother can love...

Rain storm moving into the mountains turning visibility to almost zero.

This happened within minutes. But 15 minutes later it was all over.

I'm running out of words...

The colour of this lake was absolutely amazing.

Glaciers everywhere.

The evening light provides for some stunning reflection in the water.

Tiny alpine flowers.

Glacier reflection.

Just one of many waterfalls in the park...

Lake Louise.

For Bob. How are You?

It's getting darker as I exit the parkway.

Lake in front of Banff.