Day 22: Richardton to Bismarck, N.D.

This morning we enjoyed an excellent, filling breakfast with the monks at the abbey. It was a “silent” breakfast, though Odo shared that there is an ancient rule that once there are fewer than 5 monks left, they are allowed to whisper to each other for sanity’s sake.

Our rolling hills continued through the day. We spent most of our riding on a scenic byway which followed the old highway 10 which we’d been riding on, and county road 139. A few miles out of Richardton, we met a westbound cyclist who had spent the night camping in the park in Hebron. Many of the small communities on this route allow cyclists to camp in their city parks. On the maps, it often advises to check in with the police and county clerk to let them know you are camping, and possibly to get the keys to the bathroom, or advice on where to camp so the sprinklers don’t wake you up in the morning. This cyclist was the first we’d met who is doing the exact same route as us in reverse: Washington D.C. to Washington state. He’d had an unfortunate night of camping, as there was a rodeo in Hebron, and he had some rabble rousers making noise through the night. He also made us feel better about our accelerated rate, as he is trying to make it to Leavenworth before a family reunion on August 4. He’s been riding, and plans to continue riding, 120+ mile days to make it there. We exchanged some information and advised on the route. He foretold that the C&O route in Maryland might be challenging, but he was riding a road cycle with very thin tires, which was a confidence boost to our plans.

Roads continued to be rolling hills through agriculture today, without a lot of change. There was another stretch of the route on I-94, with an alternate on the county road we were riding on, which turned to dirt. We opted for the interstate, which had been relatively pleasant so far on the route. Unfortunately, today, rather than wide shoulder with low traffic, we found wide shoulder with inexplicably massive rumble strips, leaving just two feet of smooth pavement at the edge. We rode 12 miles on the interstate before turning back to our county road, grateful to be away from the heavy traffic. We started out the day with a good tailwind, but as the afternoon wore on, it began to shift to a slight cross-wind. The last 30 miles from New Salem were challenging, with a cross-wind, and our rolling hills continued. As we rolled into Mandan, we adjusted back to “city” riding, and navigated to a great bike path that took us to our hotel in Bismarck.

The route comes just south of the capital here in North Dakota, so we are staying near a mall and a little bit outside of the city center. We were nevertheless able to find some great dinner and breweries nearby, and are enjoying the comfort and convenience of being back in the big city.

Tomorrow we will head to Napoleon, N.D., where we’ll watch the wind as we plan the next few days across the state to Fargo.

By the numbers:
Miles traveled: 84
Hours gained: 1
Total climbing: 1883 ft.
State capitals entered: 1
Average pace: 14.4 mph
Average temperature: 78F
Pre-made Italian deli sandwiches consumed: 2
Miles on the interstate: 12.5

At the brewery in Bismarck.

 A laughing son at Laughing Sun Brewing.

 Bronze Reagan statue at the mall here in Bismarck. Can you feel the economics... trickling down??

 Leaving the abbey this morning.

Somewhere along CR 139

 Crossing the Missouri between Mandan and Bismarck.

 “Salem Sue” in New Salem, N.D.

What much of the day looked like today.