Day 12!

Townsend, MT to Harlowton, MT - 103.4 miles, 8:39

Leaving the lovely town of Townsend this morning, riding through the streets deserted of cars, a local yelled at us, "Get out of the road!"

After riding along the high plains for awhile, we entered Deep Creek Canyon. It was so pretty!
The only town between Townsend and Harlowton is White Sulphur Springs. We were there just as the town 4th of July parade was going on. Small town fun!
The most interesting "float" was a truck blazoned with Confederate flags. I figured it was a group of local rednecks, but there was a young black woman in the back of the truck, holding a flag. Very strange and disturbing.
At the Checkerboard Bar, a wide spot in the road, I stopped for a cold root beer. The owner of the bar said that 40 folks live in that area in the winter, but a few more live there in the summer. The land around there is so beautiful. It's open range land, so of course I had "Home on the Range" running through my head during that part of the ride.
As we got closer to Harlowton, the landscape changed again. It became drier, with sagebrush where it's not irrigated. There was a thunderstorm in the distance, and we (Janet, Sam, Darrell from Spokane, and Patty H. from Puyallup) were all trying to get to camp before it hit us. I felt a few sprinkles, and the wind was really blowing, but those behind us weren't so fortunate. They got hailed on.

Barb got to Harlowton early and had the great idea to get a motel room, so Liz, Janet, and I are staying with her. It's so nice to be in a quiet, air-conditioned room with a bathroom! (Left to right: Liz, Barb, Janet)
Today was so hot (until the thunderstorms came and cooled things down), that I was thinking, "I should've signed up for the Big Ride Across Antarctica." Some day I may get used to the heat, but it hasn't happened yet, and it makes this ride really difficult sometimes. It's so hard, but I will finish.