Winter Arrives and Enforces a Break from Riding

December 28, 2021

As much as I hoped I could get in a few more rides before the weather conditions prevented them, that isn’t going to happen.  It’s definitely winter now and so the FJR has been put away until things warm up.

It gets to spend some quality time with my 1983 Volvo 245 in my extra garage.  Since it’s not heated I pulled the battery out of the Volvo but will use a battery tender on the FJR.  I also plan to go over there (it’s just across the street) and start it up and let it run every week or so.  Last year we saw temps go to -20F.  And, yes, I have a cover for it.

This morning it’s -9F which my weather app says feels like -34F.

We had heavy fog yesterday so a hoar frost covered everything.  Quite beautiful.

 

An Early December Ride to Red Lodge, MT

December 2, 2021

In the busy days post-Thanksgiving and the wrap up of a school semester, I forgot to write up this ride, which I am pretty sure is my last one of 2021.  The weather looked great, supposed to be about 60, so I donned my riding gear, loaded my film camera with a fresh roll, and headed west out of town.  I headed down 32nd Street West and when I came to a stop at Gabel Road I glanced at the ground and spied some loose change.  When out for a run, one never bypasses money so why should motorcycling be any different?  I pulled over to the curb and walked back and picked up $1.42.

I had not ridden on the interstate in a while and thought it would be good practice so I hopped on I-90, set the cruise control to 65, and traveled the 8-10 miles to the off-ramp for Highway 212 in Laurel.  I crossed the Yellowstone River and instead of continuing on directly to Red Lodge, I turned left on Thiel Road and headed back east for a mile.  

This is the Sundance Lodge Recreation Area, a BLM site, that sits between the Yellowstone River and the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone.  This a great site, almost 400 acres, with a nice path around its perimeter that is a bit over 4-miles long.  One end of the park is heavily wooded while the other is flat and grassy like the properties that adjoin it. The river on its south edge has lots of twists and turns and is quite scenic.  On the far west end of the park is the site of an old barn and this is where I am heading.  

The barn evidently came with property when it was acquired by the BLM, the Nature Conservancy, and the Yellowstone Chapter of Pheasants Forever in 1997.  It has a newer metal roof and the wooden structure is in pretty good shape so it does present itself as a worthy subject for some photography.  Inside it has a dirt floor, a couple different rooms, and a few stalls, all in reasonably good shape.  I have a photography project I am working on and have made a couple stops here to take photos for inspiration and am still not quite where I want them to be with it yet.  A few more visits under differing lighting conditions might get me there.

I walked the mile back to the parking lot where I’d left the bike and got my gear back on and headed back to Highway 212 and on to Red Lodge.  The weather was great and there was no wind, making it uneventful, just the way I like it.  Being a Thursday, traffic was non-existent and it felt great to be out, just cruising.

I didn’t ride beyond the first few blocks into town because my goal was lunch at Mas Taco. It was pretty quiet there with only one table occupied inside and one outside.  I was able to park almost in front of the place.

I ordered the Rajas Burrito, wet, and a Bent Nail IPA and decided to sit outside.  After all, it’s the 2nd of December in Red Lodge so one has to take advantage of it.  I sat on the patio and when they brought out my food I snapped a couple photos.  I could enjoy the burrito and see my bike in the background.

The ride back to Billings was as pleasant as the ride to Red Lodge, after all, it’s a relatively warm day, no wind, no traffic, and the bike just feels great.  

On Thursdays I have a standing meetup with a friend for a couple beers at Canyon Creek Brewing at 2pm.  Since I was on this impromptu adventure today, I’d texted him and said I’d be there at 3pm and I pulled into the parking area right on time.  Of course, with that sky, it made a great photo opportunity to wind up the day.

127 miles.

To Pompey’s Pillar and Bundy Bridge

November 14, 2021

The weather has been pretty nice recently but I’ve been busy with school assignments and other stuff that keeps interfering with my desire to get out and log some miles on the bike before winter sets in.  I cleared by schedule and after finishing up some research in art history I got geared up and did a 90-mile ride.

It had rained in the morning and the air temperature was about 60 degrees so I got out my Sedici jacket and pants and inserted their insulated liners.  I pulled on a sweatshirt over my long sleeved t-shirts and figured I’d be warm enough. I got out my cold-weather, insulated and water proof gloves and I was ready. I check the air pressure in the tires, added a little, fired up the engine and was happy to see I had 3/4-tank of gas.  I headed out.

I wanted to do about 90-miles, about all I’d have time for before it started getting dark, and I wanted to check out an old bridge next to Pompey’s Pillar.  I rode out through Billings Heights and took Highway 312 northeast.  I was 10 miles into the ride when I figured out that the cold weather gloves and the sweatshirt were overkill and I’d need to switch them out when I got to my turnaround point.

There was very little traffic on the highway and I cruised just below the speed limit, enjoying the ride and reflecting back on all the miles I rode last August.

I went past Pompey’s and noticed a few cars parked at the entry gate.  The place is closed for the season but they still allow pedestrian access to the Pillar should one want to do the walk in.  I turned around and went back a bit to Bundy Road and followed that to the Bundy Bridge.  The original bridge is a steel and riveted affair with several concrete footings set in the Yellowstone River.  At some point, a new bridge was constructed which has all the character of every other Department of Transportation bridge in this state.  At least the original bridge is still standing alongside the new one.

The scenery is great with high rimrocks bordering the river on its north bank.

And from here, I get a view of the west side of Pompey’s Pillar.

Of course, motorcycle pictures must be included.

I checked out the adjacent fishing access site and took that opportunity to shed the sweatshirt and got my mesh gloves out.

The no-character bridge.

I headed across the interstate and took Fly Creek Road because it is curvy for a few miles.  I rode that until the pavement ended and turned around.

The ride back to Billings was via East I Road past Ballantine and then onto 312 in Worden, following that back to Billings the way I had come.  The sun broke through the clouds and was a bit of a nuisance, creating a bit of glare on my visor but I arrived home safely.

91 miles.

A Ride to Molt and Laurel

October 17, 2021

The weather today looked fantastic.  A great day to take off on a long ride BUT, I have an art history assignment that is going to take some time to finish up, have to pick my wife up from the airport, and then attend a Run Turkey Run planning meeting.  I have to take advantage of the weather but which toy gets to go?

I decide on the motorcycle and got it out from where it’s been sitting awaiting the snow to clear and the weather to improve.  It had gas and the tire pressures were good so I headed west on Rimrocks Road and headed out of town.  

Going up the big hill after leaving Echo Canyon was pretty windy but it seemed to calm down a little once I was on the road straight in to Molt.  I stopped at the end of the pavement for a few photos.

I turned around and headed back east a few miles and turned on Buffalo Trail Road and headed south.  Just a mile or two along the way I pulled over for another couple pictures.

Buffalo Trail is a nice curvy road that descends through a broad canyon (or is it a valley) past some ranchettes.  

After it exits the rimrocks it continues south to the city of Laurel.  Just as it gets to town it goes past the Yellowstone National Cemetery.  I pulled in for a look.  I’d been here once before but I remember it was in the pouring rain so this time I took my time to look around.  It’s small but really well-done.  I suppose I could end up here, collecting my final veterans benefit, but I’m not sure that I want to spend eternity in Montana. 

I continued south and went through Laurel and turned east on Thiel Road and followed it to Duck Creek.  I am more than familiar with this road as it is the location of the State Games’ 5K, 10K, and half-marathon race courses.  My wife and I mark the mile splits on the road every year before the race so I know every turn and bump along the way.  I headed north and caught Shilo Road back home.

It was a 63-mile ride.

Oil change

October 8, 2021

After last Tuesday’s ride the odometer clicked over 12,000-miles meaning it was time for my next oil change. My last change was 3,400-miles ago when I was in Pittsburgh, PA.

I’d ordered oil and filters online so I had them ready.  I took the bike out for a short ride to warm it up and then drained the crankcase.  While that takes its time I undo one end of the lower fairing so I can wrap it in aluminum foil.  This keeps oil from spilling on it when I remove the filter.  The foil is then easily discarded and the cleanup is negligible.  

The bike takes 4.23 quarts of oil.  I use Yamalube because that is what the manufacturer recommends and as long as the bike is in warranty, I’ll stick to that.

The Hysham, Forsyth, Roundup Loop

October 5, 2021

Another Tuesday means another 7 miles run in the morning.  It was Jerry, Shelley, and me this time doing the Myers trail loop.  It’s pretty dark at 6:30am and this is our last morning doing this as we’ll switch to afternoons next week.  I felt pretty good considering I got my Covid booster shot yesterday and we finished the 7.29-mile loop in 1 hour, 41 minutes.

The weather today is looking great, in the upper-80s but coming up is a drop in temperature and a possibility of snow in a week so I want to get in another ride while I have a chance.  I decided to grab two more courthouse photos, hitting both Treasure and Rosebud counties and then riding Hwy 12 from Forsyth to Roundup, a route I haven’t been on before in any vehicle.

I gassed up the bike and headed out a little after 11am, taking Hwy 312 out of Billings, through the east end of Yellowstone County.  It’s a nice, 2-line ride through farmland with very little traffic.  I stopped just outside the Pompey’s Pillar National Monument for this photo, framing the rock between the two signs.

Here’s looking the other way.

From here I take the frontage road for 25 miles to Custer, MT where I turn north and cross the Yellowstone River on Musselshell Trail Road.  Just a half mile up that road I turn right onto Pease Bottom Road.  The last time I rode this, a few months ago, it had some serious potholes but it appears that they’ve been working on getting most of them patched.  The road winds through more farmland and past, or through, the occasional rimrocks.

Fall colors are making an appearance.

It is a really nice ride.

I pulled into Hysham and found the courthouse.  Very utilitarian.

I shot a few more photos as I headed out of town.

I turned onto Hwy 311 and headed east to Forsyth, MT, the seat of Rosebud county.  It’s a 55-mile ride an a good 2-lane road through flat farmland.  The courthouse is worth the drive.

I didn’t stick around long and went back through town to catch Hwy 12 which would take me to Roundup.  This is US 12 which goes all the way to the Pacific Coast, ending somewhere in Washington.  From the looks of the map, much of its route looks more interesting that the next 100 miles I will be riding on.  

Here, the road is flat, with the occasional hill, and its treeless view shows the expanse and remoteness of this part of the state.  One upside is that it follows the route of the now-defunct Milwaukee Road railroad which can be seen just to the south of the highway.  The rails and ties are gone but the earth work that supported them is still there.

I made stop just outside Ingomar for a drink and a few photos.  There isn’t much to the town and I didn’t want to ride down the quarter-mile of loose gravel to see it.  The sign pretty much explains it.

A ways up the rode I passed the village of Melstone and from there it was on to Roundup.  I needed gas and stopped for a fill up and a snack.  I didn’t want to eat and drink at the station and remembered there was a city park at the Mussellshell River where I’d run a 5K race years ago so I rode there, parked, got out my stool, and took a break.

After the break it was back to Billings, a ride I’ve done quite a few times in the past 3-4 months.  

It was a good ride.  The weather was great, mid- to upper-80s and no wind.  277 miles total.