Today’s (Mon., 7-1) weather was topsy-turvy. When I woke up in Whitefish, it was quite foggy, but that quickly burned off and the day turned clear and sunny–for a while. But then it rained, and then it was sunny, and then it rained again. At sundown, it was sunny all over again.

My 25-mile ride today took me west from Whitefish through Olney, MT to a lodge three to four miles west of there. Here are a couple views of Spencer Lake west of Whitefish that show how nice the weather started out.

My route coming out of Whitefish, and later on in the day, was on Hwy 93, a busy highway with a speed limit of 65 mph, but my Adventure Cycling map provided a 10-mile stretch that was quite beautiful, with much less traffic and speed limits of 35 and 45 mph. It was nice to relax a bit over those miles. I didn’t know this at the time I was on Hwy 93 today, but later found a news article from 1999 indicating that the speed limit on this highway had been reduced to 65 mph from 70 mph, the speed limit for all other two-lane roads in the state, because of its heavy traffic and because it had the highest accident rate of any of Montana’s two-lane roads.

Here was a field I saw on the quieter stretch of today’s route, planted with some kind of yellow flower–maybe sunflowers? I wasn’t able to get a close look.

I stopped for breakfast at a Cenex Station convenience store as I was heading out of Whitefish. While eating, another cyclist pulled up, also heading west. Here is Michael, from a city in Germany near Munich. He started his trip in May in Portland, Maine, and his destination is Portland Oregon. Michael is traveling much more quickly than I am. He bikes every day of the week and has had several 100-mile days. His normal daily distance is in the 60-70-mile range.

Michael talked about the challenge of finding places to stay and was impressed that my Chief Navigator Trudi has been able to help me find lodging each day. He wondered whether his wife might be able to do that from Germany.

I left the Cenex Station before Michael and caught this view of him on Hwy 93.

Part of the more peaceful route I took was on a road called the Farm to Market Road, where I noticed this sign advertising organic foods, including pizza “doug.” (I assume the sign is intended to refer to pizza dough and that the sign-maker simply didn’t have enough room for the “h.”)

It was on this quieter part of my route that the weather started to change, beginning with a few clouds that suggested I might get a little wet.

The sky turned increasingly ominous, however, and soon I was getting doused. I’m told that generally things are pretty dry in Montana in July. People (including me) have complained some about the rain, but the rainier weather may help reduce the risk of forest fires as the summer progresses.

Olney is a tiny town, with a population of only 26. I was hoping to find a lunch stop there, but the only commercial establishments I saw were a post office, a volunteer fire department, and a bait shop advertising “worms, maggots, and more!”

Fortunately, I was able to get a BLT back on Hwy 93 at Northwestern Montana Adventures, which in addition to renting ATVs, also sells food and has a lunch counter. I got out of the rain when I arrived there, and then it turned sunny, but then it started raining again as I headed four miles further west for my stop at the Dog Creek Lodge tonight. It cleared up again early this evening, when I took this photo.

Here is Brett, the General Manager of the Dog Creek Lodge. Even though the restaurant was closed tonight, my Chief Navigator Trudi somehow convinced him to agree to have a staff member make me dinner. Thanks, Brett! Brett and his wife once rode a tandem bike (in one month) from Boston to Whitefish, so I think he has a soft spot for long-distance cyclists. Brett is a painter and has a degree in Arts Administration from Boston University.

Since I was staying at the Dog Creek Lodge, it only made sense for me to have a Laughing Dog Brewing Company Dogfather Imperial Stout, which was on draft, with my cheeseburger.

Shortly after I finished eating around 7 p.m., two other cyclists showed up and we chatted for a while about our trips. Here are Mark and Kevin, friends who now live in New Jersey and South Carolina, respectively. They used to ride together some years back and recently resumed doing so. They started their trip in Seattle, heading east, but only have a six-week timeframe for their journey. After crossing the Continental Divide on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, they will be taking a train to Buffalo as they head back to their homes.

I’m hoping for drier weather tomorrow as I ride about 32 miles to Eureka, MT (pop. 1,037).