The Divide Ride

Stage II

Summer 1998

**WORKING DRAFT**

This itinerary assumes that the ACA route will be deviated from once we arrive in Tetons.
Week III is planned to be a loop up through Yellowstone and back to Jackson Hole (airport).

Comments are drawn from information found in various Chamber of Commerce brochures; Adventure Cycling articles and "Along the Great Divide" newsletter; Montana Handbook (Moon Travelbooks); MT State Travel Planning pamphlets, (and more???). Mileages and altitude gains are approximate.

Day

To / From

Miles

~Alt. Gain

Camping

Services

Comments

0

Sat/Sun

7/11 & 7/12

Dillon

-

-

Dillon KOA

Super 8 Motel
550 N. Montana St
Dillon, MT 59725
406-683-4288

Jolene has rooms, group rate for us. I "reserved" a block of 11 non-smoking rooms.

1 per/1 bed = $43.10 plus tax;

2 people = $52.30 plus tax.

I booked my own room and guaranteed it for both the 11th and 12th. They have us blocked as the Divide Ride Dogs, so if you call, tell them that you are part of the "blocked room" group, the DRDs.

They will hold these rooms until June 25th, at which time they will release them.

Dillon: all services.

BUY FOOD in Dillon.

Served by Rimrock Bus (800-255-7655) service from Butte - $12 one way w/o bike.

 

First of all: NO reservations. First come/first served.

Leave Butte:10:45 am or 7:00pm

Arrive Dillon: 11:55am or 8:05pm

Patagonia Outlet Store.. (open Sundays).

 

Fly into Butte and either pedal or take the Rimrock Bus to Dillon.

 

1

Mon.

7/13

Dillon -> Bannack State Park

 

31

2,000'

(Over Badger Pass)

Bannack State Park (1/2mi. off route)

None

Highway to Bannack.

Bannack , Montana's first territorial capitol, is a ghost town maintained by the state.

Note: Comments in an AC Mag. article indicates that some tourers cycled from Bannack to "Medicine Lodge Valley Ranch [which I cannot find on any map] and then into Dell the following night.

2

Tues. 7/14

Bannack -> Hildreth Livestock Ranch

40

2,000'

Hildreth Livestock Guest Ranch (private fishing lake).

 

BUY FOOD on way through Grant.

Dinner /camping/breakfast at Hildreth Guest Ranch. Breakfast, $3; Lunch $11; Dinner $11. Guest house(s): Average cost for 10 = $16.25/person/night (excluding state sales tax). Continental breakfast included in room rate.

Medicine Lodge-Big Sheep Byway: "remote 50 mi. route tracing teh historic Bannack Rd. through circuitious canyons and lofty, wind-whipped grasslands."

(Phone: 406.681.3111) (Trudy, Henry, Donna Hildreth, owners.) Their web page: http://www.insandouts.com

3

Wed. 7/15

Hildreth Ranch -> Dell

35.5

1,000'

Possibily camping at city park

Some

Food at Yesterday Calf-A in Dell (infamous place). Dell is off-route 1.5 miles. (Dell pop. fluctuates between 7-19 people.)

 

Cattle are run on some of the roads we will be on.

4

Thur, 7/16

Dell ->Lima-> Lima Reservoir

41.2

1,800'

Campground

Lima: "All services." (Probably no bike shop - need to check on this.)

BUY FOOD in Dell or Lima.

Note: The same group that went from Bannack to Dell in 2 days went from Dell to Upper Red Rock Lake campground the next day.

5

Fri. 7/17

Lima Reservoir-> Upper Lake campground

25

500'

Campground

None

Red Rocks National Wildlife Refuge - reputed to be one of the most scenic in the U.S.

Formed in 1935 as a breeding refuge for (formerly?) endangered Trumpeter Swan (they mate for life).

Much wildlife.

Note: This Same Group then left the published route and swung up over Targhee Pass and into West Yellowstone for departure back to Canada border.

6

Sat. 7/18

Day off

--

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5 mi. N on Elk Lake is restaurant/bar.

--

7

Sun. 7/19

Upper Lake c.g. -> Sawtelle Resort

29

1,000

Or camping at Big Spring (swimming). Campsites are "reservable."

Sawtelle Mt. Resort. Hwy. 20 & mile 395. (Across from condos and golf course.) According to Stacey: $12/2 people in tent; $2.50 person beyond that. Plenty of tent/RV sites (~90). No need to reserve. Market(s) nearby. Laundry, showers, hot tubs. 208-558-9366 or 800-574-0404.

Mack's Inn Resort. Mack's Inn. $10/tent. Canoe rental, Market is 5 miles North (on way there), showers, laundry, no need to reserve. 208-558-7272.

All services?

BUY FOOD in Sawtelle or Mack's and/or Warm Springs

÷ Crossing #6 (1st on this trip).

Welcome to Idaho! Did you know that CA is second only to ID for Whitewater River miles? (Maine is third.)

Store/RV park at mile 174.

Big Springs is headwaters of the Henrys Fork of the Snake River (bring your fly rods). Water is 52degF year 'round (which makes for great fishing).

Playmill Dinner Theater. Hwy. 20 & Big Springs Rd. Dinner @ 7pm. Theater @ 7:45pm. $16.50/$15.50 (srs.). 208-588-7871 or 406-646-7757.

We ride 74 miles in ID, highlighted by 31 mi. rail-trail following the old Union Pacific Shortline that delivered tourists to Yellowstone Park. Rail/trail is multi-use with motorized vehicles.

Rail/Trail ends with a 1/4mi zip througha tunnel.

8

Mon. 7/20

Sawtell -> Big Springs ->Warm River NFS c.g.

35

Minimal

At mile 201.7 (AC map), "cross Warm River." Pole Bridge (alt. 6300') campground is very close with 20 sites (if necessary to stop sooner than planned); water; fishing.

Warm River c.g. ACA says "Nicest FS c.g. on DR. route." Alt. 5,200'. Swimming, boating, fishing. 23 sites.

Alternatively: Three Rivers Ranch. $2480/week/person, (double occup.) includes fishing guide.

Groceries at Warm River c.g. No showers.

After Big Springs, cross Lucky Dog Creek.

Island Park: Area is a giant caldera. Nasty snowmobiling area in the winter...air is blue.

 

 

Warm River: pop. 11. "The state's smallest incorporated city."

Mesa Fall Scenic Byway: "Two of the last undisturbed waterfalls in the West."

9

Tues. 7/21

Warm River detour to ->Ashton, ID (6 mi. off route if necessary). ->North Boone Creek or Campsite #8, #7 or #6 on ACA map.

28 or more

2,500'

Guerilla camping if at N. Boone Creek.

Many small lakes past Squirrel Meadow.

Developed sites futher on (in Teton Wilderness). May or may not be too far.

Big Jud's Country Diner, Ashton.

Ashton: pop. 1200. World's largest seed potato production area with 11,000 acres planted in potatoes.

 

10

Wed. 7/22

N. Boone Creek (for instance) -> Flagg Ranch

--

--

Flagg Ranch (tenative)

Many. (Store, gas, motel, c.g.)

Grassy Lake Road "dips and winds amid rugged granite littered landscape at the north end of the Teton Range." Popular winter snowboarding area.

Grassy Lake Res. - 52mi. east of Ashton. fishing. (Point of interest on the FS map.)

Border of Grand Teton National Park.

GTNP/YP Entry Fee:

11

Thur. 7/23

Flagg Ranch -> Teton camping (either: Jackson Lake/Jenny Lake/Colter Bay)

 

--

--

--

BUY FOOD at Flagg Ranch/Colter Bay/etc.

Otto Bros. Brewery: Teton Ale, Old Faithful Ale, Moose Juice Stout.

Jackson Hole Pub & Brewery: Snake River Zonker Stout.

 

Much to see and do in this spectacular area, said to be rivaled only by the Swiss Alps in beauty.

Hiking, canoing, biking, mt. climbing school, etc.

12

Fri. 7/24

Day off

--

--

--

--

Jackson:

Balloon flights.

Two find bookstores.

13

Sat. 7/25

Day off

--

--

Bunkhouse Hostel? 307.733.3668

The Hostel (Teton Village)? 307.733.3415

Motel 6

Mad Dog Ranch?

 

--

Maybe catch a ride into/back from Jackson Hole for the evening? (Carl, I'm sure you can get some nice stranger to help us out....)

Jackson Rodeo. 8 pm. $7. 307.733.2805

Jackson Hole Playhouse: "Unsinkable Molly Brown." $12.50/person. (Dark Sundays)

Teton Music Festival: Teton Village.

14

Sun. 7/26

GTNP -> Flagg Ranch

The rest of the itinerary is very flexible depending on weather and how many miles we want to pedal each day. What follows is merely a suggestion.

 

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--

--

Say goodbye to two week people who can fly out of Jackson airport. (Airport is ~8 miles north of Jackson Hole [the city], rather close to where we will be hanging out.)

Airport Shuttles: - Two companies. ~$10/person from Jackson. (1997 info.)

Taxi:- `$16/person from airport to Jackson. (1997 info.)

Buses: - They carry bikes, but do NOT go to the airport. (1997 info.)

Begin pedaling north to Yellowstone.

15

Mon. 7/7

Flagg Ranch ->Grant Village

--

--

--

 

--

--

16

Tues. 7/28

Grant Village -> Old Faithful

23

--

--

--

Must splurge and have dinner at the Old Faithful Lodge. Incredible enormous stone fireplace. Large famous log structure.

17

Wed. 7/29

Old Faithful -> Canyon-> Lake

~30

--

--

--

--

18

Thur. 7/30

Lake -> Grant Village -> Lewis Lake c.g

~35

--

--

Food, showers at Grant Village

--

19

Fri. 7/31

Lewis Lake -> Jackson Lake area

--

--

--

--

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20

Sat. 8/1

Tetons/Jackson area

--

--

--

--

End of trip dinner. Jackson? Or at Jackson Lake Lodge (Built by Rockefeller. Tetons are framed in the expansive glass floor-ceiling windows of the lodge.)

 

21

Sun. 8/2

Trip Ends.

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Bold = City (or food option)

Bold/Italic - Item of interest

Updated: July 2 1998