Condon, Montana

Condon will be missed if you blink. It was a necessity stop due to the weather. It is in the beautiful Swan River Valley. It turned out to be a good choice. The Super 8 Motel (which was sold the week we were there, so is no longer a Super 8) was very nice. There is a place called The Stage Stop with gas & limited groceries. The Trading Post -with gas.
BETH writes of June 17th - Rain, Rain and more Rain is how the day started. Thunderstorms rolled through Big Fork all morning and by noon Jean and I had decided we had enough. We decided to do half of the day we had planned and stop in Swan Lake. Mom and Ann would take half our gear and drive ahead to the Super 8 where we could dry our gear from all the rain. Soggy and cold Jean and I started the 6 mile climb up into the Mission Mountains. we would only reach 5,000 feet today but the climb never seemed to end. The day ended up better weather wise. We had drizzle for most of the climb and then the sun actually came out. The valley was beautiful to look at from the top with the green and the three layers of clouds. We rode through several sections of old growth Spruce, Cedar, and Larch - wow were those tall trees, some were over 200ft tall. Larch is a decidious conifer with the softest needles. We had a crazy 10 mile decent through old growth and old clear cuts. At the bottom Jean was in front of me and all of a sudden she started going ouh, ouh, ouh . . . around the corner was a juvenile Black Bear and I had left my camera dry with my mother! He kind of looked at us and took his time meandering down the path and into the woods. Yes, we had seen our bear and Jean had seen her first bear! Hopefully that was the only one we would see - nope bear number two crossed the road just before the Super 8. The Super 8 was the other excitement for the day. After 24 miles, Jean and I turned onto the highway to ride to Swan Lake only to find out the Super 8 was 22 miles in the other direction. Luckily, Mom and Ann had already figured that out and were out looking for us. When they found us we had some good burgers and haddock sandwiches in the local bar called Swan Lake Bar and Grill - good food and a hopping place. Our room at the Super 8 looks like a hurricane hit it. Tents and clothes drying everywhere! Hopefully, tomorrow will be a dryer day as we ride to Cold Creek.
BETH about June 18th - Today we started in the sun and it stayed with us all day. The sky threatened storms, but I think we were chasing them. Today was an easier 35.5 miles from Swan lake to just north of Condon. After the first mile we were passed by some of the craziest bikers out there. The Great Divide racers. Essentially these riders race the same route I am doing in less than 20 days. They average 140 miles per day and ride for 12+ hours a day - yes in the dark too! They started yesterday and caught us this am so they rode 172+ miles in 24 hours. They carry very little gear and do not even have a tent. We saw four of the 8 racers. All were men ranging from their late 20's to mid 40's from Arizona, UK, North Carolina and Washington. Best of luck to all of them!! They all win in my book! It was nice to see more riders and chat for a few minutes as they took a break or we chased them for a few feet to get some information from them. We rode in the Mission Mountains again today. We saw our first snakes and may beautiful wildflowers. Jean and I have started a list of the smells of Montana. The last 6 days your nose is always filled with the smell of wild Lupins or Spruce - both are wonderful smells. 212.5 miles in six days!
JAN writes of June 18th - After a lot of rain the last couple of days, it was a joy to wake up today to sunny skies. We have spent way too much time drying wet tents and clothes in motels! The forecast is for seven more days of rain, so tonight we aren't taking any chances and we're all staying in a motel again! Montana had virtually no snow this winter, so they are thrilled to death with all this rain. It reduces the fire danger tremendously. After the girls headed out today on their bikes, Ann and I decided to take part of the forest road they rode yesterday where they saw a black bear. No bear today, unfortunately. We backtracked a bit and took another forest road they were never on. The picture, which reminded us of Robert Frost's poem about the road less traveled, was lovely. We spent several hours out on back fire roads, but were rewarded only by seeing views, wildflowers, butterflies, a weasel that was probably a Pine Martin, deer, and lots of pot holes! A tough life, but someone's got to do it! The Jeep got quite a workout! The girls got to the motel 35 miles of riding later - actually dry!!! The rains came after they got back. Tomorrow we will be back to camping - at Seeley Lake. We have had no cell phone coverage for days. Hope the world is still there!