Today we rode from Buffalo Campground, Idaho, US to Colter Bay, Wyoming, US. Sunny weather with little clouds, thunderstorms (no rain) end of afternoon. Road conditions included some paved roads, gravel roads, jeep track, and some single track. Highlights of the day include riding the Yellowstone Branch Line Trail, getting towards and into the Tetons.
Riding statistics: on Thursday August 18, 2022, the 18th day on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route route, it took 11:36h (08:36h moving time), between 07:18 and 18:54, to cover 144 km (90 miles), including 1367 m (4485 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 17 km/h (10 mph). During today's ride the average temperature was 28 °C (86 °F) with a minimum of 12 °C (54 °F) and a maximum of 47 °C (124 °F).
Totals: So far, it took 5 days, 3 hours, 43 minutes and 58 seconds of cycling time to cover 1792 km (1114 miles), including 21269 m (69784 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 14.8 km/h (9.2 mph).
Leaving the Buffalo Campground
As usual we have set our alarms to 6am so that we could leave around 7am. I slept not well last night. The busy road close by the campground just caused too much noise from passing trucks. Nice to know that it is the same road we used in 2019 to go from West Yellowstone to Jackson because the roads from Yellowstone to Teton Nation Park was not open in May because of the snow conditions. After a quick breakfast and gearing up the bikes we left. We immediately got on gravel / a rough dirt road through a beautiful area, pine forests, meadows, cows, and power lines. I also tried to call the family ‘at home’ because they were already at the airport for their holiday to Mallorca. Unfortunately I only had a data signal and could not get a voice call setup. No problem, we chatted and I wished them a good flight.
The Yellowstone Branch Line Trail
After about 15km into the ride, we turned onto a formal trail. This was the Yellowstone Branch Line Trail. It used to be a railroad for trains in the very past. The people that have taken the train back then had magnificent views (I assume it was quite similar to what we have seen today). First it went through meadows and grasland. Then it changed and we went into a canyon. We were still pretty high, and a fast streaming river deep below. Gradually we went deeper and deeper until we were at the same level as the river. Near the end we also saw a (closed) tunnel where the train must have gone through. We had to go around, and over, quite a narrow edge. Nothing to worry about, but someone who is afraid of heights had to breathe deeply. Fortunately that was not true for both of us. The trail ended at the Warm River Campground, which looked absolutely great. If we had known we would have cycled a bit more yesterday to sleep here instead of the Buffalo campground.
Getting to the Tetons
When we passed the Warm River campground we immediately had a steep climb and we were back at a higher elevation. It was a paved road which we followed for a few kilometers. Then we turned of again on a gravel road. This gravel road was very long. Essential it brought it right into the Tetons, just before Teton National park. However, that took several hours. Again the scenery changed as we gradually climbed and climbed. First we saw the Tetons from far away. But as we neared we got better looks on them and more beautiful views. All the climbing was because we had to climb a pass to get into the Teton range. We passed different lakes, some of them were completely overgrown with water plants and you could not see any water. Great for the animals though. At the end of the gravel road we went through a forest for several kilometers where all trees were dead. Seems from a fire a long time ago. New trees were growing, but they were still very small. At 4:30pm we arrived at the Flag Ranch. This is a intersection of roads between Yellowstone National Park and Teton National Park. Our road also ended on that intersection. We bought snacks and drinks and took a short break. The restaurant would not open before 5:30pm. We called the campground in Colter Bay (25km further) to check availability. They had showers, laundry and a restaurant. So we decided to move on to Colter Bay. The road was paved, and I did most of it in 2019 when I visited the Tetons with the family. There was a climb before getting into the park, but we knew and we moved on. Took some pictures (at the National Park sign, and at the lake, just as in 2019, but now in summer conditions and not with lots of snow and ice). The level of Jackson Lake (the main lake in the Teton National Park) was way lower than we have seen in spring 2019, much lower. Eventually we arrived at the Colter Bay campground checked-in for a hiker/biker campsite where we were allowed to pitch two tents. After setting up the tents we went for showers, groceries, restaurant, and laundry (the order was determined by closure times).
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