Huckleberry Pass, Tour Divide Riders and a Big Black Bear
Cooper's Lake to Lincoln MT
Mileage - 25.43
We climb out of our tent early in the morning. Shawnee and Carlos are already making cowboy coffee and invite us to join them. We sit and chat with them for a bit, and enjoy their hospitality. Then it's time for oatmeal prepared on our camp stove. Finally it is time to break camp and load up our bikes. This is our first time camping out, and the whole process takes us awhile, so of course we get a late start. What a surprise! We are further delayed by some workmen who have come to fix up the campground, and we stop to chat with them. This is a beautiful, small campground, and is usually pretty quiet. Most of the land around the lake is privately owned, and we are glad that this little section is open to people like us.
Riding up to get to the campground means riding down to leave, but that doesn't last long. Soon we enter the Helena National Forest and start a 6.4 mile climb up to Huckleberry Pass. This is the first significant climbing we've had to do, and Kitty is a little anxious. We are starting out at about 4200 feet elevation, and Huckleberry Pass is over 6000 feet, so it is quite a climb, all on gravel roads. We take our time, and it isn't too bad. Much of the time we are able to keep going by "paperboying" - that is, switchbacking from side to side on the gravel roads where there is very little traffic. When that doesn't work we use an approach which we decide to call RPR/Repeat. Ride, Push, Rest - Repeat. As always, the views along the way make it all worth it.
Along the way today we keep meeting tour divide riders. First we meet Dylan, who has a picture of his sweetheart to motivate him. Then we meed Catherine from New Zealand, who is a very happy person and seems to be really enjoying her adventure. Later we meet George from Germany and then Mike. All of the riders take time to stop for a few minutes and chat. They are very friendly and seem to be impressed that a couple of old folks like us are riding the Great Divide MBR. We start to call ourselves "Gramps and Granny of the Great Divide".
We make it to the crest of the pass and stop for lunch. There is snow here, but not so much that it is a problem to ride through. Still, it is chilly and we are thankful for our warm clothes. We enjoy our lunch - PBJ burritos of course. Then we start the ride down to Lincoln where we plan to spend the night. The ride down is not too hard, but some of the gravel is a little tricky. When we are almost to the paved road that goes to Lincoln, a big black bear crosses the road in front of us. He stops on his way up the hill on the other side and looks back. This is probably the biggest black bear we've ever seen, with a beautiful, thick, shiny black coat. When he pauses CC yells to Kitty to take a picture. But the bear turns and continues up the hill before she can get her camera out. CC is disappointed, but Kitty is relieved that the bear didn't find us that interesting.
We ride into Lincoln in good time and decide to stay at the Three Bears Motel, which turns out to be a fantastic choice. They have a sign out welcoming GD Riders, so we know we can't go too wrong. The owners, Kevin and Louanne, recommend the Montana Steak House for dinner, and that's where we eat a very satisfying dinner. Back at the hotel we chat with the owners, who are very friendly and helpful. The rooms are clean and comfortable and the price is right. It is cold and rainy out, so we are glad to be in a warm, comfortable bed.
Along the way today we keep meeting tour divide riders. First we meet Dylan, who has a picture of his sweetheart to motivate him. Then we meed Catherine from New Zealand, who is a very happy person and seems to be really enjoying her adventure. Later we meet George from Germany and then Mike. All of the riders take time to stop for a few minutes and chat. They are very friendly and seem to be impressed that a couple of old folks like us are riding the Great Divide MBR. We start to call ourselves "Gramps and Granny of the Great Divide".
We make it to the crest of the pass and stop for lunch. There is snow here, but not so much that it is a problem to ride through. Still, it is chilly and we are thankful for our warm clothes. We enjoy our lunch - PBJ burritos of course. Then we start the ride down to Lincoln where we plan to spend the night. The ride down is not too hard, but some of the gravel is a little tricky. When we are almost to the paved road that goes to Lincoln, a big black bear crosses the road in front of us. He stops on his way up the hill on the other side and looks back. This is probably the biggest black bear we've ever seen, with a beautiful, thick, shiny black coat. When he pauses CC yells to Kitty to take a picture. But the bear turns and continues up the hill before she can get her camera out. CC is disappointed, but Kitty is relieved that the bear didn't find us that interesting.
We ride into Lincoln in good time and decide to stay at the Three Bears Motel, which turns out to be a fantastic choice. They have a sign out welcoming GD Riders, so we know we can't go too wrong. The owners, Kevin and Louanne, recommend the Montana Steak House for dinner, and that's where we eat a very satisfying dinner. Back at the hotel we chat with the owners, who are very friendly and helpful. The rooms are clean and comfortable and the price is right. It is cold and rainy out, so we are glad to be in a warm, comfortable bed.
