Day 13: West Yellowstone to Virginia City MT- 84 miles

I had a very slow morning breaking camp, and like yesterday there was low lying fog that dampened everything. However, once I got going I quickly made up lost time – it’s all downhill following the Madison River.

Early in the day I passed Hebgen Lake and Quake Lake, the site of the 1959 magnitude 7.5 earthquake and landslide which killed 28 people and created the lake. Seeing the remnants of the destruction like the landslide scar and the ghost trees sticking up out of the newly formed lake makes earthquake damage that much more tangible and the plight of Nepal that much more immediate.

The 40 miles between the lakes and Ennis were fast and uneventful: for the first time on this trip I spent prolonged time in my big chainring and got my average speed up to 16mph!

The vitesse was short-lived, because awaiting me in Ennis was a 3000 foot, 10-mile climb with >8% grades and a massive headwind. I hit a new low speed of 3.7mph – I didn’t know I could go that slow without tipping over! After walking a couple sections I finally made it to the top, and had a speedy descent down the back to Virginia City. I met my friend’s “aunt” at her job at one of the museums and she gave me directions to her cabin which is absolutely delightful. We went back in to town and, just missing the closing time at the ice cream shop, had pastys at the local watering hole.

After working my knee a little to hard today and having arrived at such comfortable accommodations in such a historic town with an Irish festival going on this weekend, I’ve decided to take a rest day and stay here tomorrow… But mostly just so I can go to what has been vouched as the best ice creamery in the country. I didn’t realize that it’s only been 5 riding days since my last rest day, but they’ve been long and challenging ones. Milages for the upcoming week all look a little more friendly!