Today we rode from Helena, Montana, US to Basin, Montana, US. Sunny weather with clouds, a few drops, and thunderstorms surrounding us at the end of the day. Road conditions were brutal (gravel, lots of difficult jeep tracks). Highlights of the day include the scenery, the difficult tracks, and concurring the 3rd pass of this day.

Riding statistics: on Friday, August 12, 2022, day 12 on the route, it took 09:30h (06:40h moving time), between 10:37 and 20:08, to cover 69 km (43 miles), including 1672 m (5486 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 10 km/h (6 mph), while reaching a maximum speed of 49 km/h (30 mph). During this ride the average temperature was 31 °C (88 °F) with a minimum of 21 °C (70 °F) and a maximum of 44 °C (111 °F).

Totals: So far, it took 3 days, 10 hours, 38 minutes, and 17 seconds of cycling time to cover 1138 km (707 miles), including 14670 m (48132 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 14.0 km/h (8.7 mph).

Today we planned to go to Basin. Which is only a 60km (37 miles) long bike ride and the elevation profile did not look too difficult. Therefor we decided to sleep in, take a slow morning, and get some breakfast (crepes) in a local restaurant. After getting back to the motel and having our bikes ready, we first stopped at the grocery store for food. It was around 11am when finally cycled out of town.

The road out of town was already going uphill and we immediately had to work hard. Just out of town we turned of onto a gravel road. The road surface was quite OK, although there was some washboarding in some areas. We rode through beautiful forests and valleys. There were some though and steeper sections but all rideable. We were also regularly passed by cars, most towed small boats, or had Stand Up paddle boards on the roof. The first pass went well, and we had enjoyed a beautiful scenery.

About 10km (6 miles) later, we could start the climb of the second pass. The road conditions quickly became worse, and we had to work quite a bit harder to get uphill. We started to feel our legs from yesterday’s ride, and with the heat, it started to become a challenge. After a while we saw a lake, down in the distance. This is probably where all cars went. Not much later we arrived at the top of the second climb. On the downhill we also had to be more careful. Some sections were very technical and rough. At one moment, the back of my bike started to slide and my whole bike went sideways. We some good technique, and some luck, I was able to correct it. Knowing that the weight on my bike is mostly at the front, Anna had her panniers at the back. She even had to be more careful. During the downhill we had a slightly longer stop to eat, drink and sit for a moment. It was next to the rough path, forest trees, and a river. Could be worse.

It was again about 10km (6 miles) to the climb of pass number three for today. Pass three had a distance of about 13km (8 miles) and an elevation gain of over 600m (1969 ft). Honestly, we both got more-and-more tire and started to wonder if we would make it to Basin. Afterwards we both confessed we had been thinking about just pitching the tent next to the trail. However, we continued. Step-by-step, because it was so steep and rough in sections, that we had to hike-a-bike (probably over 1km in total). Meanwhile, clouds got darker and darker, and thunderstorms were developing all around us. Fortunately, we only got a few drops of rain, and the thunderstorms did not get into the valley we were cycling in. After arrive at the top of the third pass we could not believe that we just did that. From the top there was a long downhill straight into the town of Basin. The downhill was doable, but since we were tired and the sun was gone, we did slow down to be careful. Most of the downhill was in a narrow canyon where there was only room for a river and the road. There had been washouts recently. The road was repaired but you could still see it clearly.

After finishing the downhill, we arrived at the town of Basin. We had read about a lady that provided accommodations for hikes/bikers, so Anna gave her a call. No answer. We decided to ride to the building that we thought it should be. When stopping in front of the building, an old lady came towards us and asked if we were the ones she had spoken earlier. We were not, it turned out that were Tom and Becky, who were now at the Basin Community Center (next door) and planned to stay the night there. While talking to the lady they came outside, and we agreed to meet in the Silver Saddle Bar & Cafe. We decided to get the lady’s apartment for the night, so that we had a cozy room, and our own toilet and shower.

After putting our bikes and gear in the room, we went to the local bar (two buildings away). There we met Tom and Becky in person for the first time and we also met three other bikers (Jim, Jake, and Stew) who had started this morning in Helena. They are riding the GDMBR in sections. After having some drinks and conversations we all decided around 9:30pm that it was time to get a good night of sleep. The others went to the Basin Community Center. We went to our apartment, cleanup up a bit, prepared for the morning, and went to sleep.

Today we expected it to be an easy day. However, especially the road surfaces made it way more challenging than expected. We made it, tired but satisfied. If we would have known, we would have started the day earlier.

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