Work trip to Minnesota

[roadwarrior]

42 minutes ago, keithu said:

I'll have to research this more. I was thinking of just taking US-2 all the way to Spokane and then B-line down to Oregon.

I live just outside of Duluth.  My wife and I were just on US-2 today on the bike to go visit friends at their cabin.

I'd buy you a burger on your way out of town but will be camping next week.

Sounds like a great combo platter of work and fun.  Enjoy!

[keithu]

I'm on my way back west. But first I took a detour north on MN-65 and I-35 to Duluth for a visit to Aerostich. It's well worth the trip!

Duluth is a port city on Lake Superior, the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area. Here ships are loaded with ore and taconite from Minnesota's vast Iron Range.

I then headed west on US-2 through Minnesota's north woods. I was so happy to see that the Big Fish Inn still exists. When I was a kid (40+ years ago) sighting the Big Fish meant we were almost to the family cabin on Leech Lake.

I continued west through Grand Forks and Devil's Lake. This land is dotted with ghost towns and abandoned homesteads marking the decline of family farming.

Rugby claims to be the geographic center of North America. I'm not sure how such a thing is measured, but this place is pretty far from any ocean.

I'm stopped for the night in Minot where there is nothing of interest to report. I rode about 630 miles today with only 75 miles of interstate.

Tomorrow's objective is to continue west on US-2 across North Dakota and Montana, seeing Glacier NP on the way to Kalispell. The FJ-09 continues to run flawlessly, although my hydration system is down due to a broken o-ring.

[keithu]

Today's route.

[piotrek]

6 minutes ago, keithu said:

Duluth is a port city on Lake Superior, the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area.

I have fond memories of Duluth from my Lake Superior loop. Happening place.

Enjoy your trip home.

[keithu]

Today was one of those days I will recall from my rocking chair 40 years from now, if I'm fortunate enough to remember anything at all.

I left Minot a little after 6:30am. North Dakota is not the most exciting state to ride across, but it's in the way so I had no choice. Sunrise on the prairie was serene.

I continued across Montana on US-2, the "Hi-line" as locals call it because it runs along the northern edge of the USA, close to the Canadian border. It was a good afternoon for cruise control and Montana speed limits.

I was hoping to ride through Glacier NP on the Going to the Sun Road, but a sign past Cut Bank read, "All Glacier East Entrances Closed."

Heartbroken, I continued around the south edge of Glacier on US-2, but when I got to West Glacier it was only 4:30pm so I figured, "To heck with it!" and I entered the park anyway. The fee station was closed so I didn't even have to pay the $30 entry.

"Breathtaking" is such an inadequate word. I rode up to Logan Pass and then back down again.

Glacier isn't a place to rush. There's a lot of traffic. On the way back down I got stuck behind a kid on a bicycle. This may sound bad but he was railing down the mountain at 25-30mph (the speed limit) and at one point he had to swerve around a brown bear that caused me and the cars to stop. The guts! I could have passed him many times, but what a shame that would have been. I followed him for 10 miles and gave him a honk and thumbs up when he finally pulled off at the bottom.

I rolled into Kalispell with 760 more miles on the clock. What a day.

[keithu]

Today's route.

[betoney]

@keithu - Very beautiful photos.  I have wanted to ride Going to the Sun Rd. to Logan Pass for years.  Glad you were able to make it happen.

[dazzler24]

@keithu - Once again I'm appreciative of all the stunning photos and varying landscapes.  Nothing like a virtual holiday given the current state of affairs!

Thanks.

[betoney]

7 hours ago, dazzler24 said:

Nothing like a virtual holiday given the current state of affairs!

No kidding!  I'm missing out but at least I get to see it on my computer screen. 👍

[supersport]

I've been reading your thread with interest because I was thinking of riding from Pocatello to Duluth and back. I'm from Duluth and have family and friends there. I was gonna take highway 200 east a more southerly back-roads route back. Now you've got me interested in hwy 2. What's with the road closures east of Glacier? Rock-slides not cleaned up yet?

 

[keithu]

1 hour ago, supersport said:

I've been reading your thread with interest because I was thinking of riding from Pocatello to Duluth and back. I'm from Duluth and have family and friends there. I was gonna take highway 200 east a more southerly back-roads route back. Now you've got me interested in hwy 2. What's with the road closures east of Glacier? Rock-slides not cleaned up yet?

 

I never did find out why the east entrances were closed. They were open when I checked online two weeks ago.

US-2 is nice, but so is MT-200. US-2 is four lane divided all the way across NoDak. It's signed at 70mph across Montana and NoDak, so you can make good progress. It's an obvious choice to Duluth since US-2 goes straight there.

So I think you have two choices: US-2, or MT-200 and I-94. I wouldn't say one is obviously better than the other. Yes, interstates are boring but in North Dakota I don't think that makes any difference. US-2 isn't exactly a thrill ride either.

[keithu]

BTW, I'm on the forum instead of riding right now because I got a flat tire 25 miles out of Kalispell. Miraculously I got a plug to hold, so now I'm sitting in a dealership waiting for a new tire to be mounted. The whole town has exactly one tire in 180/55-17, a Metzeler of some sort, so that's what I'm getting.

[betoney]

4 minutes ago, keithu said:

BTW, I'm on the forum instead of riding right now because I got a flat tire 25 miles out of Kalispell. Miraculously I got a plug to hold, so now I'm sitting in a dealership waiting for a new tire to be mounted. The whole town has exactly one tire in 180/55-17, a Metzeler of some sort, so that's what I'm getting.

Sorry to hear of the bad luck, on the bright side there was a tire available and a dealer able to mount it. 👍

[keithu]

Not how I planned the morning to go.

[supersport]

That sucks. I'll bet you're one to have axle wrenches with. Hope you're back on the road and enjoying the best part of hwy 2.