{"id":15683,"date":"2015-07-11T18:42:39","date_gmt":"2015-07-11T22:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=15683"},"modified":"2015-07-13T13:51:14","modified_gmt":"2015-07-13T17:51:14","slug":"day-1-saturday-july-11-missoula-to-ovando-montana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=15683","title":{"rendered":"Day 1. Saturday, July 11 – Missoula to Ovando, Montana"},"content":{"rendered":"

Go West<\/em>; they said, It will be warm and dry compared to last year’s ride<\/em>. Well, not exactly. \u00a0We stepped out to a steady drizzle and 60\u00b0, but we were prepared from our UK experience. \"IMG_0012\"<\/a> It was actually a beautiful morning, the hills were covered in clouds\"DSCN3116\"<\/a> and the rain and cool temps kept us from getting overheated,\u00a0as we began our\u00a0climb through Hell’s Gate. \u00a0\"DSCN3117\"<\/a>We pedaled up\u00a0the crystal clear Blackfoot River;\"IMG_0020\"<\/a>where yesterday we had planned to take a dip to cool off, certainly not necessary today. \u00a0It was a continuous wet climb,\"IMG_0013\"<\/a> the clouds concealing the highest of the Rocky mountains from our view. \u00a0The scenery remained stellar,\"DSCN3135\"<\/a>the luscious smell of the Tamarack pine (hemlock) filled the air and the cloudy mist added a\u00a0mystery to the hills,\"DSCN3136\"<\/a> not often seen in the summer. \u00a0We rode along the Lewis and Clark Trail through the Potomac Valley,\"DSCN3151\"<\/a> steadily climbing.\"DSCN3158\"<\/a>About 30 miles in, we had an unexpected and much appreciated downhill. \u00a0Not a mind-blowing down, but a couple miles of leg rest before the climb kicked in again.<\/p>\n

Sage brush, reminiscent\u00a0of the dessert, seemed out of place on this cold afternoon.\"DSCN3162\"<\/a>Scenery continued to delight\"DSCN3164\"<\/a> and surprise\"DSCN3181\"<\/a> as we slowly pedaled along; the trees became more sparse on the hills that rose beside us. \"DSCN3167\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0At 40 miles, we found a rest and fuel stop. \u00a0It was what we needed to manage the climb of our remaining miles. \"DSCN3193\"<\/a>\u00a0Just shy of 54 miles, we reached our stop for the night.\"DSCN3190\"<\/a>It had been a very tough first day. \u00a0Though the grade was gradual, the climb had been continuous (with the exception of the two miles of down). \u00a0Never before have we had a single day of a 50+ mile solid climb. \u00a0We are looking forward to our legs springing back to shape before our long ride tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Dinner was not remarkable, but on our (half mile) walk back to our lodging, the clouds were leaving and Montana gave us a taste of “the Big Sky country”.\"DSCN3197\"<\/a>Still waiting for our legs to feel better!<\/p>\n\n\t\t