Sandpoint, ID to Missoula, MT

Blue skies and temperature in the low 70’s by the time we leave. Todays ride was on ID/MT 200, the Pend Oreille (pronounced “pon-der-ay”) Scenic Byway, a scenic route along the Clark Fork river through valleys gradually opening up into large vistas. Nothing technical, just gentle hills and turns – all the while enjoying the scenery. I know, this is starting to sound repetitive, but hey that’s what we are doing ;-).True to our plan for this tour, we pulled into a side road to the Noxon dam stopping at the overlook. We were the only ones there to marvel at the well maintained green area, pavilion and picnic area. Too weird, to have this in the middle of nowhere. A fun little stop.

When we entered Montana there was a sign pointing out that all the white crosses along the roadway, denoting road fatalities, were maintained by some voluntary organization. Not a mile after that the speed limit went up from 60mph to 70mph …on a two lane road. Hmm. Any correlation? Not sure, but it seemed somewhat odd. We stayed between 60-65mph since that felt about right for the type of road we were riding.

Diane really enjoyed this ride 🙂 … that is until we were about 30 miles outside of Missoula where you could see ‘stimulus’ funded construction – close to 15 miles of it. Paved road alternating with packed dirt and gravel, uneven pavement, sharp lane changes, the works. Not a good thing this late after a full day of riding. Although now, Diane is fully ‘gravel certified’ – no more excuses ;-).

The KOA is at the edge of town – or at least what used to be the edge. It’s all developed now with big box stores and restaurants. With electricity and water at the site as well as free WiFi this campground, at $30 a night, is the most expensive so far, though still quite a bit cheaper than a hotel.

Tomorrow is our appointment at the BMW dealership to have the 6k miles valve check done on Diane’s bike and hopefully get the leaking transmission seal fixed under warranty on mine.

Todays route.