Darby to Missoula, Montana

What a beautiful morning for our final day of cycling! It was so warm out that I didn’t even start the day with leg warmers on. Nor did I carry them nor rain paints nor a rain jacket. We were going to cycle straight north at an overall gradual descent.

Even better, starting at mile 13, there was a paved, off the road hike and bike trail! We had a few miles of carefree cycling until we arrived in the town of Hamilton, where the “trail” turned into cycling on the sidewalks. By the edge of town, we were back on the paved Bitterroot Trail. What a luxury!

At our lunch stop, we were relaxed, taking our time. By now, I’d perfected my recovery drink of choice, asking one of the tour guides to pour dill pickle juice into my water bottle. The salty pickle juice mixed with the sweet energy drink powder was refreshing!

Cycling on a hike and bike trail allowed us to cycle two across and chat. Now, this was my idea of bike touring! If only their were entire week long tours on paved hike and bike trails where you could spend the time catching up with friends.

Today’s attraction was Glen’s Cafe, a little diner in Florence, Montana. It is known for its pies and milkshakes. Previous cyclists had eaten all the pie by the time we arrived. However, there was still delicious huckleberry ice cream remaining. It was a cool treat for the increasingly warm day.

After Glen’s, we road the trail all the way back into Missoula and then took trails within Missoula all the way to our hotel. Missoula really is a cyclists’ paradise. We had to pick up our luggage from the truck; and, I had to say good-bye to my fancy rental bicycle.

And, that was the end. All that remained was increasingly painful sunburnt legs from my failure to put sunblock on today, a suitcase of stinky, sweaty cycling clothes, and new definition in my arms from braking down all the hills. We’ve already started talking about what tour we should do next year.