Wednesday was a scene straight out of Billy Crystal’s comedy “City Slickers”. As I raced away from an early morning rainstorm near Wisdom, a town known for winter temps that drop to 40 below, I came upon a legit cattle drive. I stayed stationary on the roadside to avoid spooking the cows being led by “wranglers” in baseball hats. Everything was black: the cows, the clouds, the horses being ridden by these modern day cowboys. The only thing missing was Jack Palance’s surly character “Curly” in his trademark, black cowboy hat. Just minutes after this surreal experience, I crossed upon a young hiker traveling the entire Continental Divide solo from north to south. He is a former army vet who served in Guam and has now adopted the moniker “Ginger Pony”. All I could do was marvel at his adventure and wish him well as he headed INTO the storm. Giddeeuppp! The rest of the day took me past national park land that is a mix of stunning beauty and burnt out forest, something I suspect will be par for the course as I reach Idaho and Oregon. The morning was capped off with a jaw-dropping, seven-mile mountain descent where the winding road causes vehicles to slow to 25 MPH in spots. This dropped me down over 3k feet of elevation and plopped me right into the beautiful Bitteroot Valley, home of my late father Duane. More on that when I arrive Thursday at their home to see my stepmother Sue.
