Viva La Vagabond: 1000 MILES AND MANY LIVES, ID/MT

Hello from Missoula Montana, our long lost friends! We have had a few days with no service and quite a bit of riding as well as excitement to fill our days. We have made it to our third state. Let's see where we last left off...In Riggins we stayed in an awesome campground right on the side of the Salmon River with a clear view of Rita's Ragin' Rapid. The next morning, we finally did not have to start our day with an elevation gain, but we had a thirty mile warm up for a pretty big one. We found a neat fruit market along the way where we tried many things and realized we left a pair of shorts along with a certain "wallet" back at the campsite. Don't worry, it was recovered after a certain someone put a few extra miles on their trip for the day. From there we made it to White Bird where we fueled up before making the journey up White Bird Hill. I am not exactly sure why they deemed this a "hill" at an elevation of 4,245 ft but hey, whatever works. A long hill with a head wind made this quite a tough climb. The locals let us know that bikers' favored the old highway. It was longer, yet less steep with almost no cars, but it did have cows. Some of us felt a little threatened by the snorting, unfenced animals. On the other hand, Jordan may have found his calling. A cycling cattle herder. It is the newest up and coming profession. Once we finally made it up Mt. Everest..I mean White Bird Hill, we had a few miles into the biggest town we had seen in at least a week, Grangeville. At this point, a population near 10,000 is getting to be a pretty big deal. We camped for free under a pavilion in the city park. We awoke, bundled in our fleeces, to kids swimming in the steaming outdoor pool. Don't worry, they reassured us that the pool was heated to a blazing 79 degrees. We instantly felt demoralized. Before leaving, we loaded up at the grocery store oasis. We never knew we could get the feeling of a kid in a candy store just by walking into a regular-sized grocery store. We took off on a beautiful, fast descent along a river. Before getting too far, we got a little distracted. We were almost stopped at the site of a barn because of that one little enticing word.."Saloon" on the side of it. We were not completely sold though...until we came a round the corner and noticed the giant slip n' slide they had running into the river. Anderson and Cassandra explained that they just got it yesterday and no one had used it yet. It was our responsibility to christen it and we over achieved. A morning in tights and fleeces turned quickly into an afternoon of beer and slip n' sliding. If ever in the area we highly suggest checking out River Clan Saloon. After our fun we made our way to Kooskia for two reasons. 1. Lunch and 2. To find the legendary Bouncin' Bobby whom Anderson and Cassandra warned us about. He is apparently a to-himself town character who has been known to snap and stab people with broken pool sticks if they push the wrong button. He is also known for frequently doing rain dances in a thong at the local airport. Lunch was accomplished but sadly we did not succeed in a Bouncin' Bobby siting. We trucked on into Lowell to stay for the night. We didn't have a lot of options but the big sign at Three Rivers Outfitters that read "HOT TUB & COLD BEER" made the decision easier. We are glad we stopped because this is where we met up with what would be our family of fellow cyclist for the next few days. Danny, Matt, Jace, JC and Lars made up the Prime Time Riders from the L.A. area and they had adopted Nick, from San Francisco, a couple of days prior. They also had Katherine...that story may just be too long for explanation. We meshed instantly and were happy to find that we had the same destination the next night. That day was an incredibly scenic, gentle incline up the highway. We crashed at Lochsa Lodge with another cyclist we attempted to bring into our family along the way named Sara. She is from the San Fran area as well and has a pretty neat magazine called Actually People. Sharing our experiences with each other made for a pleasant night and reminded us why spending time in the outdoors is such a fulfilling and special thing for people to do. The next day was our last day in Idaho! We all were destined for Missoula with only the Lolo Pass standing in our way. The ride was not too bad and the last mile was definitely one to remember to say the least. As the old Native American saying goes, "We were among many full moons.." or uhhh...something like that. If you have to ask, you can't afford it. We cooled of at the Lolo Pass Visitor's Center for a little while with free hot chocolate before making our decent into Missoula. It was very exciting to finally make it to the home of Adventure Cycling Association. We luckily found last minute warm shower hosts that were willing to take in all 8 of us and even provide delicious meals. I don't have to say anymore than that to convince you guys that they are amazing people. Mike and Joanne took wonderful care of us all and had many stories of their own to share. Prime Time Riders set off on their journey the next morning and we chose to hang around Missoula. We checked out the bikeway system and went to a popular wave on the river that Mike suggested to see local kayakers. We had another wonderful dinner at Joanne and Mike's then went out for Jazz and Martini night #classy. Today is another day in Missoula. We promise to update a little more often because no one wants to sit down and read a novel. We have just had sooo many adventures! More updates and pictures are soon to come!