2015 TD

[M Harris]

Well I thought it was about time to say HI, I have my plane tickets, shuttle reservation to Banff, and best of all the wife is finally supporting this little bike ride of mine.  So its on!!

[bpeschka]

Last year in June it was hopping/carrying over huge debris piles in avalanche chutes on the Whitefish Divide and a 5 mile HAB through the snow at Red Meadow Lakes, the red paint and ghost ski tracks were still visible in the snow from helicopter skiing pickup sites at Red Meadow Lakes. Flathead Pass that time of year could also be a really hairy affair, in June it's an ice cold river running down the trail, I think I counted 17 fords before I stopped counting.

Last year, and the year before, on Whitefish Divide and Red Meadow Lakes trail (Tour Divide) I noticed somewhat faint blotches in the snow.  The very first time I saw this stuff, I thought maybe it was diluted blood.  Didn't see any other matching remains, but did start seeing more and more which ruled out blood.  Then thought it was something organic like pollen or something.  Now, it seems like it's come kink of paint used to mark trails for xc skiing? 

BTW, does anyone know if the avalanches over the Whitefish Divide in 2014 melted off and were they able to clear the trail?  There were a lot of feet of snow plus trees, trees, trees.  I kind of thought it all wouldn't go away before the fall/winter and a new load.  Guess I'll see in June, again.

[sfuller]

BTW, does anyone know if the avalanches over the Whitefish Divide in 2014 melted off and were they able to clear the trail?  There were a lot of feet of snow plus trees, trees, trees.  I kind of thought it all wouldn't go away before the fall/winter and a new load.  Guess I'll see in June, again.

Whitefish was rideable when I rode through there the last week of July in 2014. From what the locals said, it was only opened about a week before we rode through there. Based on the fresh sawdust and the smell of trees, they probably weren't feeding us a line of BS. I have some photos from the top of the pass at https://www.flickr.com/photos/zenbiking/sets/72157645778032240/

[Dillon]

The red in the spring snow is an algae that starts growing as the days get longer.  It can give a red tint to large areas. 
If Rocky Mountain Oysters eat it it makes them taste funny.

[kato]

If Rocky Mountain Oysters eat it it makes them taste funny.

Ha!  I thought they tasted funny all the time.

Chlamydomonas nivalis - aka watermelon snow.  Better than yellow snow.

[SlowRide]

The red in the spring snow is an algae that starts growing as the days get longer.  It can give a red tint to large areas.

Interesting, I saw the ski lines coming off the ridge and no discernible skin track going up and figured that the skiers were most likely marking landing zones for heli pickups(most of the red patches were right at the bottom of the ghost ski lines, or so it seemed). You learn something new every day. 

[bpeschka]

The red in the spring snow is an algae that starts growing as the days get longer.  It can give a red tint to large areas.  
If Rocky Mountain Oysters eat it it makes them taste funny.

Thanks! Obviously, I'm a flatlander.

[bpeschka]

Drove by Separ the other week ... it's still there.

[SlowRide]

Same car still at the gas station The road to Separ was a very memorable section of TD for me and gave me a real appreciation for the beauty of the desert, riding past the yucca looking like bizarre little people just after dawn on the last day, thanks for the memories!

[bpeschka]

Drove by Separ the other week ... it's still there.

fwiw, before I forget.  Separ is only open until about 8 pm in the summer.  No gas pumps, so not a lot of traffic after dark.  There is a water spigot at the NW corner of the building if you arrive after hours and need to stock up on water.  I'll be over that way again before June and will test the spigot again.  Let it run a while before drinking, as I'm not sure how much use it gets, normally.

[bpeschka]

Whitefish was rideable when I rode through there the last week of July in 2014. From what the locals said, it was only opened about a week before we rode through there. Based on the fresh sawdust and the smell of trees, they probably weren't feeding us a line of BS. I have some photos from the top of the pass at https://www.flickr.com/photos/zenbiking/sets/72157645778032240/

When I passed through/over that stuff in Mid-June, I never would have thought it would be cleared by end of July.  Thanks for sharing.

[ewoklake]

Yikes, I hope this bill requiring cyclist to wear reflective neon doesn't pass in Wyoming. It would go into effect July 1!

http://www.adventure-journal.com/2015/02/wyoming-moves-to-require-cyclists-to-wear-reflective-neon-carry-id/

[sfuller]

Interesting... Will definitely have to keep an eye on this. Although, as a SOBO GD rider,  I really hope that I'm out of Wyoming before July 1.

[kato]

Looks like the bill didn't pass.  NoBo racers can wear whatever they like.
http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2015/02/07/opinion/staff_editorials/column29.txt#.VN1KtYY76rU

[ewoklake]

Feel free to just "nudge" me in the right direction but where do you go to get(free or paid) consistent maps for garmin basecamp of all the states and Canada sections included in the route? I just got an etrex 30 and am still getting to know the unit and I have a GPX track, I just need the maps now. Thanks in advance for any help or links.

Disclaimer: I plan on buying the paper Adventure Cycling maps too.

[gotchile]

I downloaded http://topofusion.com/divide/gps.php onto my etrex 30 as well.

[sfuller]

EwokLake - If you want free streetmaps for the Etrex, you can look at something called Open Street Maps (OSM). I've downloaded one of the pre-compiled versions and put it on my Dakota 20 and it works fine. This is streets/roads/towns only, and not topographical maps. I've zoomed down in and the fire roads that I road on the North half of the Montana portion of the GDMBR are all on there.

General info is at - http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OSM_Map_On_Garmin/Download

The site I downloaded my copy of the maps from is at - http://www.openmapchest.org/maps/united-states

[Beatty]

Well, I'm Anthony and I just got my tickets to Calgary! Where do you reserve a seat to Banff from the airport? Also, the Y is all booked up, any other suggestions for a cheap hotel. For those who are shipping their bikes, are you shipping them to the hotel? Sorry for the basic questions but after reading this whole thread, I didn't find any info on those. Thanks for all the great info, been compiling a great list.

[simon cross]

Hey there everyone , Have been lurking in the background...and thanks for the conversation, info....
Wondering about Spot 2 generation trackers... no real interest in spending the $180 usa dollars on a new bit of kit and the extra SPOT activation fees (plus getting buried on aussie dollar exchange) ... Though I do like the ability to use re-chargeable batteries..yep and a few other upgrades.

The question is has anyone used the Spot 2 tracker with a re-chargeable battery? I have tried alkaline, that is fine , though the battery life gets sucked in about 20 hours (this is live tracking during the day (off overnight) and then an ok message sent once per day.)

Sent an email to Spot and they said with spot 2 it is lithium only. Is there a technical issue with using a re-chargeable lithium or will it blow the device!

Cheers
Simon

10 cents worth - avid brakes mechanical when touring and bikepacking (rec and racing) simple reliable easy to tune. though do i ever have problem with a hydraulic brake on other mtb ?- nope , though i don't wish to have to fix a Hydraulic brake on the move / whilst racing

[BobM]

Well, I'm Anthony and I just got my tickets to Calgary! Where do you reserve a seat to Banff from the airport? Also, the Y is all booked up, any other suggestions for a cheap hotel. For those who are shipping their bikes, are you shipping them to the hotel? Sorry for the basic questions but after reading this whole thread, I didn't find any info on those. Thanks for all the great info, been compiling a great list.

Hi Anthony,

Welcome!  Did you call the Y?  The dorm rooms do not appear on reservation website(s) like booking.com, etc.

Transport to Banff:  http://www.banffairporter.com/

If you can bring your bike on the plane, do so.  A few years back someone shipped theirs and it didn't clear Customs until the day of the race, so they were several hours late starting.