Rain is predicted as far west as Tokyo. Yet, the weather channel has been "crying wolf" for more than two days and there's blue sky in the parking lot here at the North Country Inn in Mandan. Those thoughts are why I didn't suit up with rain gear before striking out on today's ride -- destination Glasgow, Montana. Ten miles later I was looking for an I-94 off-ramp and safe spot to correct that mistake. The increasingly dark sky and exploding rain drops with every click of the odometer were clues that it was time to stop and batten down the hatches, even though there are no hatches to batten on an open-faced helmet.
The accompanying videos show little rain and perhaps will prompt the reader to think .... "What's he sniveling about? That's nothing." One has to keep in mind the video is a mere glimpse of a few miles of rain. In reality there was at least 60 miles of rain, an approximate hour of trying to see without windshield wipers, not to mention struggled to breath with water running up my nose. I was being "water-boarded" right there in the saddle. That's "torture" according to some folks. To put up with it for another 300 miles was unthinkable.
I intended to put an end to the torture when I got to the next town, if there ever was one. I didn't care if I'd only been on the road a couple of hours, I was going to check into the next motel and wait out the storm, like I did in Alabama where parking lots can turn to lakes in five minutes. I watched it happen more than once .... from a motel window. And forget my fanciful notion to resume two-lane travel via the Glasgow route across Montana. My new route is the most direct route home, which means my new destination is Billings.
Meanwhile, I intended to seek refuge in Dickinson but when I got there I could see bright blotches in clouds ahead. If I just pressed on, toward the light, maybe there'd be an end to the rain. If not, I'd be far west of town, swimming to the next. I decided to go for it and glad I did. I was soon looking at dry sunshine and back to the mile-melting speed of 75 toward Billings. That speed, plus occasional strong wind, wasn't helping my gas mileage and, though not desperate, I figured I'd pull off at Medora and refuel. Had to drop south of the freeway a couple of miles to find it.
Medora appears to be an Old-West-Themed-Tourist-Town. I'd call it a one horse town but I saw two. If not for my rain-drenched mood I might have lingered and enjoyed the ambiance but I wanted to stay ahead of the storm. It was following me. There was only one gas pump in town and several motorists were waiting in line to use it. I rode on, stopping for fuel near the Montana line. The storm was getting closer. I hurried on.
In Montana the terrain started to change. The hills were getting bigger and some even began to sprout trees. It's called scenery. Less scenic was the dark cloud on the horizon, literally --- a big one off to the left. Sometimes the highway angled toward it, then away from it. This game of "cloud dodge" continued all the way to Billings where, although the sun was shining bright and there was dry road ahead, I was ready to call it quits. 410 miles is enough.
P.S. .... It rained all night.
Video: Part Two
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| Dark Sky Ahead |
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| Rain |
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| Entering Billings, Montana |
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| Mandan, ND to Billings, MT 410 Miles |
2 comments:
Once again,I enjoyed traveling with you. Tim Sewards
Thanks for riding along, Tim :)
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