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« on: June 11, 2007, 04:51:07 pm »
My wife and I have used most of Adventure Cyclings maps since I retired in 1998, and in the process have used many routes cobbled together from AC route segments and various homebrew connectors. Here are three of our favorites, which we hope will be of use to some of you:
1. On our first east-west Transam ride in 1998, we were eager to find a faster way to the coast from Missoula. We used the following connector to the Northern Tier suggested by Greg Siple: I-80 from Missoula to St. Regis; MT 135 along the beautiful Clark Fork River to MT 200 near Paradise; MT/ID 200 (still along the Clark Fork) to Sand Point, ID. We used lodging at St. Regis, Thompson Falls & Noxxon MT. Traffic was pretty light when we did it, except along I-80, which had the wide shoulder of course. (We also saved a few miles by riding from Twin Bridges over Pipestone Pass to Butte, then I-80 to Missoula, but we missed a lot of beautiful territory in the process.)
2. In an east-west Northern Tier ride in 2000, we avoided the traffic of Glacier Park and vicinity (liked it better by CAR) by heading SW from Havre, MT on US 87 to Fort Benton. One can use Lewis & Clark route or alternates to get to Missoula or other points from Fort Benton. Enroute to Fort Benton, we found lodging at Big Sandy. Traffic was light when we did it, but wouldnt recommend US 87 into Great Falls use the current L&C route instead.
3. Eastbound on the Lewis & Clark main route in 2005, we didnt favor the 90+ mile no-service ride from Jordan to Fort Peck, MT. Instead, we rode from Jordan to Circle. From Circle, one can choose from three routes; MT 13 to Wolf Point, MT 200 to Sidney, or MT 200s to Glendive. We chose the latter, consisting of an easy 15 mile climb over the Big Sheep Mountains, then a 30 mile downhill to Glendive. Adventure Cycling now uses one of these alternates, I believe, although Im not sure which one.
Ralph Emmons
Dearborn, Michigan
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