Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Dubois, Wyoming -- 93 miles

We woke at 4:45 am and began biking by 6:15 am. The weather was perfect - cool and overcast. We took a side route and saw a herd of buffalo plus a few antelope. Got back on route in Moran Junction and ate lunch at a service station, where we spoke to Dave and Terra Bowles. Dave invited us for dinner tomorrow night at his home in Lander. We started up Togwotee Pass at 11:30 am; the climb ranged from a 2-7% grade. Lenny was getting sleepy, but Lorraine kept prodding him on. 

We met two east-to-west cyclists; Elmer Watts invited us to stay at his house when we get to Virginia. We took a photo of him with his rig. Rain began about 4 miles from top, but ended when we got to the peak. We stopped at the Pinnacle Lodge to camp, and were told that they didn’t recommend camping because of the rocks. We continued downhill to Dubois (locally pronounced as “Do Boys”), finishing our fastest 20 miles ever - in 1 hour. We stayed at the Black Bear Inn, and had a great dinner at the Wild Bunch Cafe.

Jenny Lake, Wyoming, to Jackson Hole, Wyoming -- 28 miles

We woke at 5:20 am and began biking at 6:45 am. We biked down Antelope Flats Road and saw several bison and antelope. Lenny rescued a thrasher bird with a broken leg - he put it in his handlebar bag and brought it to the Park Headquarters in Moose Village. One of the rangers who was an ornithologist agreed to take the bird home and nurse it back to health. We set up camp at the Wagon Wheel Campground in town. We walked around on foot, used the phone, looked in a few shops and took photos, just like all the other tourists! We ate dinner at the Teton Steakhouse, saw “Artificial Intelligence” at the movies, had hot fudge sundaes at Dairy Queen, bought groceries, showered and went to bed.

Flagg Ranch, Wyoming, to Jenny Lake, Wyoming -- 37 miles

We woke at 7:30 am, later than usual, and began biking at 9:45 am. As we entered Grand Teton Park, we met up with a few of the Adventure Cycling group who we had been riding with for a number of weeks. As we rode into the park, we could see the Teton Range in all its magnificence reaching for the sky. 

We stopped at Colter Bay Village to have lunch. As we continued biking, we met Willem from Netherlands who was heading east-to-west. We camped at Jenny Lake because of Willem’s recommendation. We took a boat ride across the lake and hiked up to see Hidden Falls. The crystal clear water, supplied by the Teton glaciers, fell about 150 feet in a majestic rush. 

We then walked 2.5 miles back to camp. Lorraine rushed to cook lentil stew, because of threatening thunderstorms. Fortunately, they passed us with no rain at all. We camped and talked with a retired electrical engineer from Jupiter, Florida, who had biked here and was taking photographs of moose and bear.

Madison, Wyoming, to Flagg Ranch, Wyoming -- 66 miles

We woke at 3 am, to start biking by 4:30 am, but one of our flashlights was not working. By the time we packed up camp, we were on the road at 5 am. As we were riding in the twilight, we saw a female elk on the left side of the road - we looked at her and she stopped grazing to stare back at us. We heard a cracking sound, like something big stepping on a dry branch; we looked to our right and saw a second female elk. She gazed at us and then crossed the road to be with the other elk. We heard a hauntingly eerie howling sound in the distance - it caused an instinctive visceral reaction of fear, and the hairs on the back of our necks stood up. A few moments later, we realized it was a pack of coyotes. While we were riding down the road looking for animals in the early morning, we could see steam rising in the distance. We were approaching the geysers. As we came closer, Lorraine spotted a bison walking across the geyser field. He slowly moved across the field as the steam rose from the ground, then he disappeared into the distance. 

There were many signs warning people not to walk in the geyser fields. We found out later that as many as 20 people had been scalded to death when the thin crust gave way and they were exposed to the intense and caustic effects of the water and minerals it contained. There were many types of geysers, some bubbling mud, some gurgling water, some shooting intermittent spurts of water and others sending up almost continuous sprays. One such geyser sprayed us as we walked along the wooden elevated walkway. There were bacteria living in and around the geysers that created an array of pastel colors. 

We took our time touring the geysers, taking photos, and stopping to watch Old Faithful erupt. We rode across the Continental Divide three times in the space of a couple hours as we rode out of the park. We ate lunch/dinner at the Grant Village Grill. Met a few more bike tourers on the road - Pat & Tracy, who are traveling from Missouri to Seattle, and Alejandro, who has been on the road for 1 year, 4 months traveling from Argentina to Alaska. We got one of the last campsites at Flagg Ranch. No fireworks for the 4th of July! Stayed up until 10:30 pm taking care of cooking, showering, and laundry.

Hebgen Dam, Montana, to Madison, Wyoming -- 38 miles

  

 We had intended to get up early, but slept in until 6 am, and got on the road by 7:30 am. Today was a short day because our choices for camping were 38 miles or 75 miles. Lorraine was dreaming of omlettes and biscuits, so Lenny promised to take her out to breakfast. We rode beside Hebgen Lake for about 16 miles, then followed the road for another 8 miles to the town of West Yellowstone.

We had breakfast at the Silver Spur Cafe, and it lived up to Lorraine’s dreams! We ran errands, including stopping at the drugstore, grocery store, visitor’s center and post office. We entered Yellowstone Park, with another 14 miles to go for the day. We took our time, stopping to dip our feet in the Madison River. About 1/4 mile before the campground, traffic started backing up. We passed some of the cars, and saw the tourist attraction - a giant bull elk grazing by the side of the road. Lenny was afraid to get too close, so we crossed to the other side of the road and took pictures. We had the rest of the afternoon to relax. Lorraine made veggies and rice, with tortillas, for dinner.

Virginia City, Montana, to Hebgen Dam, Montana -- 64 miles

We packed up camp and started biking at 6 am. We had a 2.5-mile climb, and as we started climbing, we noticed that the air in Lorraine’s tire was very low. Lenny inflated it, without patching it, just to get to the top of the hill. When he checked the tire pressure at the top, it seemed to be fine, so we continued riding. We descended rapidly along the twisty, 9-mile road, and views of the entire valley unfolded in front of us as the air rushed past our faces. It was an exhilarating ride as we passed green fields dotted with ranches and brown rock outcroppings. We stopped in Ennis to pick up groceries for dinner, then again in Cameron for Lenny to mail home 3 lbs. of stuff we weren’t using. We found a shady spot to eat lunch, right next to the Madison River. Lorraine’s tire seemed to be holding air with no more problems.

We met John and Donna Van Ackeren, who are biking part of the Great Divide Trail, and spoke to them about chiropractic. We stopped at the Quake Lake Visitors Center, and watched a video about the 1959 earthquake that shifted the land, which dammed the river and led to the creation of the lake. 28 people were killed by the force of the earthquake and 100 mph winds generated by the falling mountainside that swept people into the river. One family of 5 that was camping by the river lost 3 family members - only the mother and eldest son survived. Another woman noticed the rumbling, went outside her house, and jumped over a 5-foot crevice to safety just as her home plunged into the river. We camped at Campfire Lodge - Lenny did laundry while Lorraine cooked parmesan noodles, chicken, and mushrooms for dinner.

Dillon, Montana, to Virginia City, Montana -- 58 miles

We slept in later than usual, and chatted with bikers Jim and Ed as we packed to leave. We started riding at 8 am - the route was mostly flat with some rolling hills. By 10:30 am, we had ridden 28 miles and stopped in Twin Bridges to eat our lunch. We chatted with Ron Schend, a landscaper, and his wife about vertebral subluxation and bike touring and the terrain ahead. In Sheridan, we bought groceries for dinner. Lenny spoke to Eric Johnson about vertebral subluxation and gave him a brochure. He shared some watermelon with us! Lenny also spoke to Jerry Braach about chiropractic. We formed a paceline to try and cover the last 20 miles as quickly as possible. It was getting hot, and the scenery of ranches and mountains had turned to sagebrush and sand. Plus, because we had left later, we were riding during the hottest part of the day - and the heat always makes us cranky and argumentative. We passed the ghost town of Nevada City and ended the day at the Virginia City Campground. We enjoyed falafel gyros for dinner, despite the flies at our campsite nearly driving us insane.