Cooke City to Cody
Day: 25
Route: Cooke City, MT to Cody, MT
Distance: 77 miles
Date: August 26
Elevation: Approx. 7200'
The Morning Decision
I woke this morning buried under the warm blankets of a Cooke City motel. After 25 days on the road, I was still having trouble figuring out where I was when I woke up in the morning. I got in last evening around 6 PM, riding the last 15 miles in a cold driving rain that tested my rain gear. Under those conditions, it's never good enough, unfortunately. I could feel the eyes of the people driving by. The thought of rain camping again and my wet tent from the night before helped me decide on a motel in Cooke City. That is why I brought a credit card, after all.
I soon found that the motel owner wasn't in a haggling mood. The law of supply and demand governs the Yellowstone area during the summer. I got into my room, set the heat on high, and opened my gear up to dry as I dined at the Beartooth Café. Dinner was especially earned that night – the prime rib was memorable. Oh, what luxury!
Onto the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway
Even though it was still dark when I woke up, I could see that there was no snow on the ground and it wasn't raining. The Weather Channel still said rain today, though. It was decision time. Should I just hang out in Cooke City today and let the weather pass or take my chances? The thought of 80 miles of cold rain was not appealing, but sitting in a motel room and watching TV wasn't very attractive either. Well, I decided to take my chances - at least my tent was dry now. It was sure cold when I started, but at least it wasn't raining yet.
The Chief Joseph Scenic Highway turned out really great. The Wyoming Bicycle Coordinator recommended this road to me. The views were fantastic and there was a challenging climb up Dead Indian Pass. I made it over the pass but was very cognizant of rain clouds forming around me. I sailed down the other side and set a new land speed record of 47 mph. The winding downhill was exhilarating, but it was also scary going that fast for so long.
Arrival in Cody
As I pedalled the last 16 miles into Cody, I could see the big jet-black rain clouds behind me in my rearview mirror. I made it into Cody without rain and “celebrated” with my first Whopper of the trip. Fast food actually tasted pretty good tonight - shame on me. It began raining right after I set up my tent. The biking gods smiled on me today as I dodged rain all day and even got a little sun. Two thumbs up for Chief Joseph Highway!