Today we rode from Upper Red Rock Lake Campground, Montana, US to Buffalo Campground, Idaho, US. Sunny weather with little clouds. Road conditions included great gravel roads and very little paved roads. Highlights of the day include single track riding in Idaho.

Riding statistics: on Wednesday, August 17, 2022, day 17 on the route, it took 07:04h (04:15h moving time), between 09:31 and 16:36, to cover 69 km (43 miles), including 437 m (1434 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 16 km/h (10 mph), while reaching a maximum speed of 53 km/h (33 mph). During this ride the average temperature was 30 °C (86 °F) with a minimum of 16 °C (61 °F) and a maximum of 39 °C (102 °F).

Totals: So far, it took 4 days, 20 hours, 21 minutes, and 1 seconds of cycling time to cover 1665 km (1035 miles), including 20108 m (65974 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 14.5 km/h (9.0 mph).

For this morning we already decided that we would not set our alarm clocks. We just waited until we both feel like getting up and moving on. After a good night of rest, it as 7:16am when we both got out of our tents, got ready for the day, and ate something for breakfast. We were slow going because we liked the scenery and the beautiful morning in the sun. Despite the mountains surrounding us, we woke up in sunlight. We also needed fresh water for the day. Meric, Jake, and Stephanie had told us about a spring very close by. Fresh mountain water is coming out of a pipe. We filtered the water (which really did not seem necessary, but we were cautious) and filled all our bottles and bladders. Jake joined us, he just used the water unfiltered, while having a big smile.

Meric and Jake left the campground before we did, but we still had a nice chat with Stephanie before we left as well round 9:30am.

After leaving the campground we continued the gravel road that we used yesterday as well, all the way to the other end of the valley which we entered yesterday right after leaving Lima. After about 30 minutes we had to get up some steep hills to get out of the valley. During the ride up we passed Meric and Jake. When we got on top, it was a big surprise that we already left Montana and entered Idaho.

Gradually, the scenery changed back is we have known it a couple days ago. More mountains, all covered in beautiful forests. We enjoyed a stunning downhill from up the pass after which we turned on a paved road that we had to follow for about 2km (1.5 miles). Next, there was again a turnoff onto a gravel road. The road changed from a decent gravel road into double track. Then we ran into a closed gate, but fortunately hikers and bikers could bypass it. After the gate, the road changed into a single track which was lots of fun to ride on. A beautiful trail on a hilly section traversing between the pine trees. We enjoyed it a lot because of the scenery, combined with again the excellent weather. After about 5km (3 miles) we had to pass a similar gate and we were on a gravel road again. It did not take long before we got into a paved road in a more urban environment. We could see that we were nearing Big Springs.

When we arrived at Big Springs, we decided to go to the local Subway for a late breakfast / early lunch. While having a looooong break, Meric and Jake also hopped in to order some food. They quickly moved on because to decided to make it a long day. After our break we went to a small grocery shop across the street. We needed some more food and drinks for the coming days. We also decided that we would have a short day, meaning that we would only continue to the Buffalo Campground at Island Park. This way we get some more time to relax because we plan on riding longer in coming days.

The distance from Big Springs to Island Park is a short one (when using a busy road). However, our route took us through the back country. Making it a longer and more spectacular ride on gravel / sandy trails. After about an hour we were back on a paved rod an arrived at Island Park . It wasn’t more than a gas station and a restaurant (which did not open today). The Buffalo Campground was only a few minutes further down the (busy!) road. We got ourselves a single camp spot on which we both setup our tents. There wasn’t a shower, but next to the campground was a wide river which we used for bathing ourselves and washing our clothes. We had dinner at the picnic table on our camp spot.

Unfortunately, the campground was close to the busy road, which meant there was noise from traffic throughout the night.

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