Yellowstone and the propulsion of generosity – Day 17

Date: Monday 23rd August 

Route: Madison, Wyoming – Flagg Ranch, Wyoming

Distance: 59 miles

Total climb: 3184ft

Net climb: -40ft

Just to test our resilience again, this morning we had another trip to a bike shop for wheel repairs.  Team Heagney took us back to the magnet that is West Yellowstone, where we found Freeheel and Wheel short of a mechanic and the other bike shop in town unmanned (having sat on the doorstep there for over an hour, in hope).  Therefore, we had to make a 150-mile round trip to Big Sky in Montana for help.

The bike shop, Gallatin Alpine Sports, was very cool and would be recommended to anyone in the area for bike hire, maintenance, skiing or climbing kit or a good coffee.  Tom, who ran the workshop, spent a couple of hours looking at the bikes and teaching us more about maintenance.  This was incredibly valuable, but was surpassed by his riding home to fetch some tools for removing the cassette to lend us for the journey – we’ll pop them in the post when we find replacements or if we finish the ride.  Tom then said all his work was for free, on the basis that our ride was for charity, which came unexpected and as a massive boost to very low morale. A huge thank you to Tom, whose generosity and patience provided a marked change in determination after some frustrating days.

An RV charge back to Madison left us with 59 miles to ride through Yellowstone Park from 5pm. The race was on.

We fired through the first few miles uphill, frustrated somewhat by the volume of traffic touring the park. It is fair to say that whilst the place is stunning and well worth a visit, the traffic inevitably takes something away from the magic.

A quick stop at Old Faithful for some photos and supplies prepared us for the climb ahead.  Sadly, we did not get to see the geyser blow, but had greater sites ahead.

We raced up to another continental divide at 8,391 feet, before the descent began in earnest.  The sun was setting quickly and the temperature dropping noticeably – extra layers required. It was at this point that I noted we would be riding about 20 miles in the dark, under a full moon, through a park that prided itself on its population of wolves, bears and other wildlife.

The scenery was incredible to take in as the traffic reduced and we saw the sun setting over the mountains and the lakes of the park.  However, fewer vehicles meant fewer escape routes in case of danger. We rolled on downhill, passing some deer crossing the road – verification that the wildlife was not put away in pens for the night. After about ten miles, I heard a more dramatic noise in the trees at the side of the road… and it was following us.

I shouted to Jay before accelerating rapidly, but the animal continued after us.  I could see its outline and it looked very big, possibly the size of a small van.  It was running very quickly and sounded like it was knocking down large branches in its path as it charged.  I hoped it was a startled animal, but the fact that it was still chasing after about 50 metres led me to think it was rather hungry for two cyclists – possibly a large grizzly bear.

I shouted back to Jay, who seemed not to be too focused on accelerating (I hadn’t realised, but he couldn’t hear me through his ear warmers on his hat, so he wondered what was going on and thought I was acting a little strange while he rolled at a casual pace).

Eventually, the beast seemed to come to a halt once Jay had sped up and we had raced for nearly a quarter of a mile, hearts pounding. The remaining mileage to the edge of the park was very tense, with Jay listening more intently each time I heard a significant rustle in the trees.

The road seemed to go on forever, so Jay raised a concern that we may have taken a wrong turn and could actually be heading into the middle of the park on the loop road, rather than towards the exit at the southern gate. We therefore tried to flag down the few cars that passed in either direction, but none seemed willing to help – possibly concerned that we were a little crazy to be out on bikes at that time.

In the pitch black, we made it to the end of the park and whooped like crazy, euphoric at going in the right direction and avoiding any major issues with the wildlife. A final two miles got us to the RV and a deserved beer.

With hindsight, it was probably a bison that was chasing us, rather than a bear.  This is not altogether a great situation, since they don’t have a clean record for being friendly to those who confront them on foot.  However, it provided some amusement, given my eagerness to see Il Bisonte in the flesh – I can now claim to have beaten Italy’s finest ever uncapped striker for pace!

Some bullet points to finish:

• I’d like to see Yellowstone again sometime, with a little more daylight
• We were both delighted that the bikes did not come unstuck in the final 20 miles, which would have been a little unnerving.   The idea of changing a tire with a bison supervising is not wholly appealing
• If I happen to see cyclists fully laden with panniers riding in the dark when I’m driving, I’ll be sure to slow down and at least ask them if they are ok.  All we wanted was clarity of direction, which is not a great deal to ask for.

FP