July 27 - I am sitting in a chilly, rainy campsite in Hancock MI. With the tarp making for a fairly cozy 'home', the rain implores me to sit, be still and catch up on the blog. So I am writing these next entries well after the fact... something about enduring trials makes me less enthusiastic about telling the story. Not that anything actually bad happened to me, just the regular adversities of the road and too much time on my hands to contemplate them. Recently a good friend, when hearing my struggles, empathized that "it takes time and the road is your tool to isolate". Isolate being from the usual ways we distract ourselves from... well, our Selves. So here is the next thousand or so miles in full colour, both the pleasurable and the not.
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Day 17 - July 15 - Nelson Reservoir Recreation Area (MT) to Lewis & Clark State Park (ND)
The isolation of the Recreation Area spooks me at times. It is incredibly beautiful and peaceful, yet there are numerous travel trailers setup on a semi-permanent basis, some surprisingly well equipped with generators and such, some missing doors and to my surprise some occupied by reclusive neighbours. I manage to make a hot meal and enjoy the lakeside view before being chased into my tent by gnat swarms well before sundown. I am quite enjoying my tiny tent and sleeping without the fly in full view of the sunset, moon rise and stars is an upside of my isolated camp.
The isolation and the bugs has me up and on the road early. I am also hoping an early start will provide respite from the strong winds I encountered yesterday. My first stop, recommended by the local band members I had chatted with the previous day, is Sleeping Buffalo just a few minutes down the road. Darren had told me how sacred these stones are to his people and I am filled with sadness to read the story of how they had been moved from their wild places in the prairie to this road side 'heritage site' for benefit of tourists (yes, like me). The placard reads...
A nearby wind-swept ridge overlooking the Cree Crossing on the Milk River was the original resting place of this ancient weather-worn effigy. There the boulder sat as the leader of a herd of reclining buffalo envisioned in an outcrop of granite. Incised markings made in the distant past define its horns, eyes, backbone, and ribs. Since late prehistoric times, native peoples of the Northern Plains have revered the Sleeping Buffalo’s spiritual power. Oral traditions reveal that is was well known to the Cree, Chippewa, Sioux, Assiniboine, and Gros Ventre as well as the more distant Blackfeet, Crow, and Northern Cheyenne. Stories passed from generation to generation tell how the “herd” fooled more than one buffalo-hunting party. While each tribe has its own culture and beliefs, native peoples share a worldview intertwining the sacred and secular. A Chippewa-Cree elder explained, “These rocks are sacred, just like our old people.” In 1932, the Sleeping Buffalo was separated from its ridgetop companions. Relocated to the City Park in Malta, the Sleeping Buffalo was said to have been restless; stories are told of its changing position and nighttime bellowing. Moved to this site in 1967 from old Highway 2, the Sleeping Buffalo was later rejoined by the larger “Medicine Rock” in 1987, also collected near Cree Crossing. These timeless objects continue to figure prominently in traditional ceremonies. They provide a link to ancestral peoples of the high plains and the long ago time when, as one elder put it, “The power of the prairie was the buffalo.”
The 'rib' markings on his back and recent tobacco offerings.
Some of the carvings and offerings on the Medicine Rock...
Sleeping Buffalo Rock - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The remainder of the day has me scanning ridge lines and hilltops for members of Sleeping Buffalo's herd.
Heading east on Highway 2, I track a storm to the south. Tall, dark and massive, the thunderhead looms several miles to my right, lightening capturing my awe. It appears my due east track will miss the storm, until the straight as an arrow highway veers south putting us on a collision course, the occasional rain drop indicating it's approach. The tripometer reading 164 km (10 less than 2 days ago!) as, to my dismay, I am forced to switch to reserve fuel... not awesome. The strong headwinds of the previous day have taken a surprising toll on my fuel economy. The threatening, possibly dangerous storm and potential of running out of gas fans my sense of adventure as I nurse the bike and warily watch the storm the last few miles into Glasgow, MT.
Victorious! I roll under the cover of a gas station just as the rain and hail began to pummel the town. My reward? Upon inquiring about breakfast recommendations, I am invited to follow a classic ol' cowboy Terry and his daughter Pearl to a local breakfast spot. Outwardly it may seem like a simple act of prairie / cowboy hospitality, but to me, even after only a few days alone on the road, sharing a meal and real conversation with kind people is like a soft resting place and a warm blanket.
(I really need to get better at taking pics with the generous people I meet... Thanks for breakfast Terry!! and if I'm back through this way and want a Montana ranch experience I know who I'lll call :)
Nourished and mostly dry, I rejoin Highway 2 to sunnier skies and buffeting wind rekindled by the storm. Terry has offered some sage advice on a couple towns to not linger in, one of which is Williston, North Dakota. As I leave the rolling, wide open Montana behind and enter North Dakota the look of the land is similar yet the 'feel' of the place changes significantly.
North Dakota is in the midst of a real live 'gold rush', only the rush is for oil. Everywhere there is road construction to accommodate the growing number of oil derricks and seemingly endless heavy truck traffic that accompanies such a boom. Williston's growth (3x in the past year) is punctuated by (my estimation) a third of the city traffic being heavy truck and trailer, the countless 'atco lodges' trailer compounds and new industrial developments, pickup and RV sales lots abounding. All in an effort to provide the machinery, labour, accomodation and services needed to convert oil to money. The town reeks of boom time greed.
I need to make one stop at Walmart for a set of smaller cooking pots, after leaving my large one behind in Calgary. Another stop at a gas station for a ND highways map and my third stop, for wifi, is abandoned. I can't get out of town fast enough. The roads, with heavy trucks being driven like cars, are a hazardous place for me to be. Thank goodness for the GPS providing the quickest route out!
The frustration with trucks and wind continues as Highway 2 turns from a two lane highway in Montana to a higher speed 4 lane divided freeway in North Dakota. Within 15 miles, I pull over in a small town, snack, pee and with the newly acquired ND map, contemplate where the heck I'm going to sleep tonight.
This turns out to be one of the things that trips me up the most... where am I going to sleep? If I were not alone, I would be more than happy to pull over and wild camp where ever we ended up. But being solo and a woman (although I hate to admit to the vulnerability), I don't feel safe enough to take that kind of liberty. I try to pull over late in the afternoon (before I'm too hungry) and consult maps (wifi if I can get it) for options. Sometimes it works out with ease, sometimes it doesn't.
Today it does.. mostly. I find a State Park, full services, only a short 25 miles away. I backtrack on the freeway to the State Park sign and head south. The road quickly turns to gravel which is not a problem. What does become a problem though is a complete absence of further signage, the highway map with insufficient detail and my GPS being set on 'wild goose chase' yet again. Apparently, I learn after the fact, there is one road, "119 Street" that goes straight south to the park.... I don't find it. I meander amongst gravel ranch roads going straight one way then the other and to add confusion, the new oil road construction and traffic. This time the heavy truck drivers (amused or bewildered by my presence) pull over to let me pass as I guess my way south. I can't imagine how many extra miles I put on, but eventually I end up where I am supposed to be.... Lewis and Clark State Park and it is an oasis given the long day I've had.
Day 18 - July 16 - L&CSP - day 2
I wake up tired and uninspired about travel, so I don't ! It is a gift to my self to allow for rest, walking on the beach and admiring the afternoon thunderstorm from the comfort of my tent. Given the mixed weather and no shelter at my campsite, I pack up my cooking supplies and digital devices and spend a leisurely evening in the group shelter; cooking, listening to music and relaxing.
I have also downloaded Bill Plotkin's new book "Wild Mind" which I am LOVING. I travelled to Utah/Colorado early June for a Vision Quest based on his work. It was a transformative 12 days in the Utah wilderness, reacquainting with my Wild Self. "Wild Mind" is serving to reconnect me to the energy and awareness of that experience. Just what I need for a day off the road, grounding my Self.
My rendition of the seven elements of Self....
Day 19 - July 17 - L&CSP (ND) to Carrington Town Park (ND)
My low energy continues to the next morning and I again allow the luxury of moving at the pace that feels right. It is ironic that on an extended trip like this, slowness is a 'luxury'. The luxury being more of state of mind than about time or speed. Letting go of the ingrained accomplishment, schedule driven mentality is a near constant challenge.
Thanks to North Dakota for clearly marking 'scenic byways' on their state map, by 10sih I have chosen a winding route south and east that hopefully will have me clear of the oil industry traffic. My scenic byway detours, you guessed it, for oil road construction. There is still some heavy truck traffic and construction but the delays are short and the intensity less that it was the previous day. Even the gusting wind is kinder as the road twists east then south then east, shifting the winds direction for a less tiring variety.
I wander toward a likely State Park enjoying the slower pace of Highway 200. Arriving at the State Park around 3:30p. I ponder and ultimately indulge the impulse to 'push on'....
Blog post - a path beyond the road: Pushing On
Day 20 - July 18 - Carrington Town Park (ND) to Itasca State Park (MN)
After a restless night, I am on the road by 6:30a; something about not wanting to 'be found' sleeping in the park...
East, straight, straight, east. I titled this post "The Flatlands" as that is what people call 'the prairies'.. 'they're so flat!'.
I don't entirely agree. They are more straight than flat. My experience of the secondary roads in Montana and North Dakota is that they undulate through river valleys and even the occasional bluff. What is eventually mind-numbing about them is the unending straightness of the road. As if the straight stretch goes on farther than they eye can see, gently rolling and occasionally making matching 90 degree turns - one left, one right - around some feature, only to return to it's 'straight' trajectory on a new latitude.
Where I stopped to write the "Pushing On" post. I enjoy the freedom to stop where I like, especially when a story is percolating....
I had high hopes for Minnesota after the countless straight miles behind me. Being on secondary roads, the only heralding of a new state was a faded highway # sign....
I was told by an old timer at breakfast that the approach to Itasca State Park was a pretty one.. and rightly so..
Arriving at Itasca, I discover, unexpectedly the Mississippi River! Apparently, this mighty river's headwaters trace back to NW Minnesota...
It has been a very hot riding day and after a swim in Lake Itasca, I scout campgrounds. The IH Hostel in the park is basically the same price as camping ($24 / $22, plus $5 vehicle park pass), but alas there is no room "at the Inn" so I am tenting on this hot, windless evening.
Even the DR looks hot, with smelly socks dangling from the handle bars...
And so there ends the Flatland riding! Next Minnesota....
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