Hellloooo readers!
Today I greet you from beautiful, Missoula, MT! Last time I wrote we were in Idaho, but we have crossed the border and made it to the beautiful state of Montana. It feels great to be back! I can't wait to spend another on Flathead Lake. However, we still have a few more days of biking to go!
Today I greet you from beautiful, Missoula, MT! Last time I wrote we were in Idaho, but we have crossed the border and made it to the beautiful state of Montana. It feels great to be back! I can't wait to spend another on Flathead Lake. However, we still have a few more days of biking to go!
Before we made it to Montana, we had quite the summit. I didn't think anything would be as bad as the Galena summit, but this was worse. It was the summit in the Bitterroot Mountains and as soon as we reached the top, we had made it into Montana. It was not an enjoyable experience as we gained over 3,500 ft in elevation. Plus, it was SCORCHING hot. Dad and I had to stop every 2.5 km to find some shade and drink water. I thought I was going to pass out a million times. It was so steep and so long that my legs were burning and I thought I was going to pass out. Of course, I start to cry and continue to do so until we finally reached the top. I never thought it was going to happen and I had never been so happy to be in Montana. I certainly enjoyed the ride down, that's for sure!
About 1/4 of the way up the summit |
Hating life as the climb gets steeper |
Finally made it to the top! You can't tell from the picture, but I was bawling my eyes out. |
We spent the night in Hamilton and I enjoyed a lovely blizzard from DQ. It was glorious and the highlight of my day. The next day was a great day of riding. Most of it was downhill so that was a nice treat for us. We did have about 10 km with no shoulder which was a little scary, but Dad and I had system set up so that we made sure we didn't get hit by anyone. There was also the beautiful Montana scenery to look at as we rode along the river!
We had lunch at A&W and then Dad and I had a two hour nap at our hotel in Hamilton. Who are we? Serious cyclists, obviously. We were tempted to just stay in for the rest of the day, but we fought the urge and went another 40 km. I was exhausted by the end of the day and was looking forward to making it to Missoula soon enough!
Yesterday we made it to Missoula by 11:00 in the morning and my heart was full! I really love this city. We planned on going hard until 2:00 so we could get some mileage in, but enjoy the afternoon. We ended up going 88 km and even though there were some uphill climbs (as per usual), it was still a good day. We then got to our hotel, I had a glorious shower, blow dried my hair for the first time in 3 weeks and went out for coffee with a friend. No offence to my parents (we know I love them to bits), but it was nice to converse with someone other than them. :)
That night, the big event was our music video. I know, I know. You've all been waiting for this. The following video is a parody of One Direction's song "One Thing". For those of you who don't know the awesomeness of this band, you should acquaint yourselves with their greatness. This boy band's songs have been my go to pump up music for the trip, and I felt it necessary to honour their greatness by doing a video. Enjoy...
I just love the fact that my Mom and Dad participate in these silly things with me. I don't understand how they put up with my ridiculousness, but they do and I love it. I usually watch these videos back afterwards and can't get over how absurd they are. I think it's the situation where I think it's hilarious but nobody else does. My Dad doesn't even understand why we do these, but he does it anyway. What a trooper!
After the video session, we went to bed and I enjoyed the most wonderful rest day ever. Firstly, I forgot how AWESOME it feels to sleep in. Then, we had a great breakfast and Mumsie and I headed over to Ross Dress for Less. I mean, were we really going to go anywhere else? Of course, Target was an option, but we had already been to a few of those on this trip and I wanted to "save" another trip for when we get to Kalispell. The morning was great and I got two new pairs of divalicious shoes so I was happy. I have spent most of the day trying to get things organized for cruise ship applications, but there is so much to do that I have not finished everything yet! I am not sure what I'm doing after the summer, but it is exciting to think about the possibilities! I really want to get everything done by the time I get to camp, so here's hoping. I didn't go out for dinner with my parents tonight because I met up with a friend for coffee which was sooo great. I was mad when I got home, though, because I found out they went to "Famous Daves" which is LITERALLY one of my favourite restaurants. We don't have it in Canada so I always try to make a trip there when I can.
Tomorrow we head off to Polson. We are about 33 miles away and only have about 100 km left for the trip. In one way I can't believe that the trip is coming to an end, but in another sense, I am exhausted and ready to not have to wake up everyday and cycle for 6 hours. We're heading into the final stretch and will keep you all updated! Thanks for reading!
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Oh my goodness. Tears and cackling. I sat in my office and cackled during that video. The beginning was awesome, Dad's bass was awesome, and Annika's lyrics were awesome. Also, two of my favourite parts:
ReplyDelete1) When mom goes "sshhh" to Annika - I laughed so hard
2) When dad was singing his bass line, and Annika is "conducting" him
LOVE.
HILARIOUS VIDEO!!!
ReplyDeleteFavorite Keith Odegard quote: "I guess that makes me a...hustla..." Do you remember the day we explained to you what a hustla was? I love this song so much, but this parody may surpass my love for the song. WELCOME TO MONTANA!! Happy you finally made it!!!