June 29, 2023
72 miles
1,038 miles so far
Today we rode from Whitehall, MT to Bozeman, MT. This was our longest ride so far, clocking in at 72 miles. The route took us along the Jefferson River for most of the day, was incredibly scenic, and consisted mostly of rolling hills. About 8 miles east of Whitehall we came to the Cardwell General Store & Campground. It was charming - full of Daniel Boone fur hats and such. In retrospect we wished we had continued on past Whitehall and stayed at the adjacent campground in Cardwell which was quite bucolic.
In any case, we stopped for a break - can’t resist a country general store these days!
About halfway through our day, we arrived at the town of Three Forks which is historically considered the birthplace of the Missouri River. Sharon had scoped it out for lunch and found the Iron Horse Cafe and Pie Shop which has great reviews AND serves gluten free pies! We finished with the gluten free Bourbon Pecan Pie a la mode. You can’t be in a hurry, as they warn you that each meal is made to order. Highly recommended!! So, about an hour and a half later, we got back on our bikes.
One of the scenic highlights on the ride was the view of the Lewis & Clark Caverns which we could see above us on our left. We also had many beautiful views of the river.
As we approached Bozeman, around rush hour, things got busy and we had to ride on HW 191 for a few miles. While it’s not the main highway running into Bozeman, it was still a busy four lane highway. Thankfully it did have a wide shoulder.
We were so ready to be done for the day when we rolled into our Airbnb. As we had been riding for six days, we decided to take a rest day in Bozeman. We had dinner at a nice Italian restaurant called Cafe Fresco.
Views of Jefferson River
The prairies on our way to Bozeman
Necessary stop at the Cardwell Campground & General Store
Award-winning Iron Horse & Pie Shop in Three Forks
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