Day 11 – Ovando to Helena, Montana

A funny thing happened today: I put on a second layer. I haven’t done that in weeks, or even thought about it. But today, at the top of the MacDonald Pass, 6,325 feet above sea level, it seemed sensible to put on a thin gilet, and I’m glad I did. What followed was 15 miles of continuous descent at speed, in windy conditions, under threatening clouds. According to Strava I was above 30 mph for 5 miles and I touched 39mph. The road was wide, the views were long and it was quite exhilarating. After that, I found my motel in downtown Helena, Montana’s small state capital, just as the heavens opened and the sky rang with thunder. I haven’t seen rain for weeks either.

These were the highlights of a day that began slowly with a long breakfast in the Straybullet Cafe in Ovando. That was followed by 43 miles of sunny but much cooler cycling through wide open grassland, with mountains never too far away, until I reached the next diminutive settlement, Avon, at the junction with my old friend route 12, as well as some railway tracks. It was all enjoyable, but also about 3.5 hours of not much new to mention.

I did encounter another cyclist who crossed over to chat. He was pulling a trailer in which sat a dog, Mona, wearing ski goggles. They are riding the Continental Divide bike route that, apparently, also passes through Ovando, which explains the bike sculpture outside the cafe. I was told that Mona has to walk up the hills and is usually quicker.

I also paused for refreshment by the side of a reservoir at one point and was surprised to see large numbers of cormorants and pelicans. We are a long way inland. But it broke the pleasant monotony of big skies, ranches, trees and hills.

Avon provided a family run cafe, and I knew better than to ride past. This was lunch, albeit a little late. I had Hobo soup. Even the waiter didn’t know what was in it; but we agreed that it contained pork and I enjoyed it. Better still was the blueberry pie and ice cream that followed. It was an odd clientele. One man at an adjacent table offered to tow me up MacDonald Pass. He also said I was going over “the easy way” and now I know what he meant. My whole day started and finished at about the same altitude: roughly 4,000 feet, but I built up to the pass over most of the day heading east, and then went all the way back down again in 15 miles. It was still a slog getting up to the top though.

MacDonald Pass, but the way, has nothing to do with fast food restaurants. Indeed the summit was bare. Alexander “Red” MacDonald was hired to manage the toll road in 1870 and the pass took his name. Also near here, in 1911, Cromwell Dixon, the “Bird Boy”, won a prize of $10,000 for becoming the first American aviator to fly over the Continental Divide. Sadly he never enjoyed it. He died two days later when his bi-plane crashed at the Inland Empire Fair in Spokane!

When the rain stopped I ventured out into downtown Helena. It seems like an interesting little city with a few nice bars and cafes and a pedestrian friendly centre. I’ll see a bit more of it in the morning when I find some breakfast before I head on across the empty spaces of this vast state.