FJR Adventures: Another Overnighter in the Bighorn Mountains

August 4, 2026

(Note, some dashcan videos to be added in a day or so.)

The heat wave has passed, at least for a few days so it looked like a good time to head for the mountains. I talked to Keith and Bill about an overnight in the Bighorns and they were in so we set the departure day for today. Tuesday works great for me because I don’t have any conflict after I get my 7-1/2 run in the morning, which I did.

Note, some of the images here are in black and white. That's because I brought along my Minolta film camera and a roll of Kentmere 100 film. The goal is to shoot the roll of film and develop it in the campsite. I brought along 8-ounces each of X-tol developer and film fixer. I also brought along a film developing tank and reel.

I packed up stuff yesterday afternoon and only had to load the bike today. We set a departure time for 11am and that is exactly when we left. We wove through the city to get to South Billings Blvd. and then out of town toward Pryor.

The weather was great, about 70 degrees and no wind. The ride to Pryor was uneventful and when arrived we did see the accumulation of garbage that was recently mentioned in the local news. For whatever reason it isn’t being hauled away and is stacking up at the old school.

We rode Hwy 91 the 45 miles to St. Xavier. The road is rough in spots, especially one spot where it is loose gravel for couple hundred feet. Hitting that at 50+ MPH was something.

We took a break in St. Xavier.

From there we took Good Luck Road for about 20 miles to Lodge Grass Creek Road. This is a gorgorgeous ride through some open range and, yes, we did encounter cattle on the road.

We passed through Lodge Grass and headed south on Hwy 451, which runs parallel to I-90 and goes past Wyola, Aberdeen, and Parkman before we turn off on Hwy 343 which is a shortcut to Dayton.

Dayton is a gas stop before we head into the mountains.

Now it was riding up on Hwy 14, a great road with lots of twists and turns. Perfect road, perfect weather, and lots of fun.

When we got to Burgess Junction I pulled over so we could discuss the route. This is where 14A splits off and goes more or less west over the mountains. It's a shorter route to the campground but it's still early and I proposed that we that Hwy 14 as we'd be able to stop and see Shell Falls. They agreed and and off we went.

The road was great but the temperature had dropped to upper-50s, still fine for riding. When we arrived at Shell Falls we were disappointed that the place was closed for construction. We continued on and pulled over a bit down the road.

We continued down through Shell Canyon and past the village of Shell. Then it was a long ride to Greybull and a longer ride to Lovell. It's what riding in much of Wyoming is like and made tolerable by being on a motorcycle, having cruise control, and good tunes playing in the helmet.

When we got to Lovell we stopped to top up our tanks before heading east on Hwy 14A. It's about 25 miles to the campground, Five Springs. About 15 miles or so out I looked in my mirror and saw a semi-truck approaching behind Bill and it was traveling with it's flashers on. Before long it passed us, fast, and we were doing 65 MPH or so. It had a flatbed trailer and was loaded with stuff. A few miles later it started slowing down. Its flashers were now off and it kept crossing the fog line onto the shoulder. I don't know what its issue was but when I came up behind it, I took a chance and passed, keeping a careful eye on it as I dod. Keith and Bill followed and we left it far behind.\

We took the turnoff for the campground and rode the two miles of a narrow and twisty road to the lower campground. When we arrived, we walked up the road to check its condition which was passable and also checked out the group site. It's pretty large and has lots of room to set up three tents. We walked back down the hill and I filled out the registration. Just as I finished, Keith spotted a bear on the hillside next to us.

Next, it was time to head up the hill.

We got our tents and such set up. Bill didn't want to haul his stuff across the bridge so he brought his bike a bit closer.

We sat down and had some refreshments and then Keith and hiked up to the lower waterfall.

Someday I'd like to get up to the upper one but I think the route is beyond my technical skills. The lower one is small but still worth getting to.

Some views of the hike back down.

It was time for dinner so we each did our own thing. I had Pad Thai which is one of my favorites from Backpacker's Pantry.

Afterwards, it was time for marshmallows. I have not had one in over 40 years as they are not vegetarian, lower, the Trader Joe's brand is and I had picked some up last month on my trip to Washington and Oregon. I found a stick, speared one, and roasted over Bill's fire. It was just like I remembered it.