Swaying Bridges and Forest Fires

It is often the surprises that make a trip memorable. I started with a peaceful and enjoyable morning ride. Then surprise I saw a sign that said Konami falls swaying bridge. It meant getting off my bike and hiking an extra mile. I was rewarded with a beautiful and fun experience crossing the bridge. The answer is yes it does sway enough to be fun and still feel safe.

The afternoon I spent riding on a little used road through a national forest. It had been a challenging day for my body biking. A long distance. I was looking for a place to camp in the national forest. I then noticed some smoke rising up in the distance. Next I noticed 6-10 helicopters overhead. Then comes the realization that I am biking about .5 mile from a majorforest fire. With our changing climate forest fires are much more common and I was fully prepared to have to alter my plans, due to forest fire smoke. What I never even considered though was the possibility of biking into a forest fire. I was in the middle of the action. There were helicopters dropping water and Forest service fire vehicles driving by me. Luckily, I was never closer than a 1/2 a mile from the fire itself. And that was too close for me to even consider stopping and Camping.I now had no choice but to continue riding to get out of the action.

Choosing a campsite now had extra considerations. Hopefully away from the smoke,far enough away so that the fire wouldn’t reach me,And the normal considerations of a tent site and close to water. I did find such a spot.And after checking in with the garmin, sos feature, I determined that my site was not in any danger. It ended up being a very wonderful campsite, I had a great night’s sleep, and there was no smoke or fire in the morning. Good job forest service firefighters.

Next I will limp into whitefish Montana and have a much needed rest day. Then a 2 day rainy trip to missoula.

Donate to the climate organizations at:

https://support.climateride.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=12923

the next day I spent the first half of the day on this same lovely deserted road. The second half was on a busy road with little shoulder. I was reported with arriving at my host’s house for the night and a rest day.