The Two Tandems West Gang crosses into Montana! Rachel is holding up the international known sign for only three states left in our journey!

Great People we've met along the way...

Gildford, MT has some GREAT people living there!

Michelle, her daughter Sarah and son Matthew own and run the Gildford Merch in Gildford, MT. They were wonderful hosts to the Two Tandems West Gang as we bought supplies and made breakfast at their store. Everyone was so nice and made sure we had the best pit stop on our way from Havre to Chester!

Thanks you guys! You are the greatest!!

(Good luck in 5th grade this year, Sarah and Matthew, continue to help your Mom mind the store!)

Left: The Stobbs family, traveling west to east, is the only other family (Mom, Dad & two daughters) we've met on our journey. Pictured L to R are Katherine, Martha, Carrie, Dick, Rachel, Lili and Brian. The Stobbs are raising money to help find a cure for Lukemia and Lymphomia. When we met them in Montana, they had already raised over $94,000! If you would like to find out more about their ride check out their website at: www.questforacure.info

Right: Mary and Danny (wearing the blue jerseys), traveling east to west, are newlyweds that are riding across the country on their honeymoon. Both of them are epidemiologists with the CDC and took two months off to make the journey.  If you look on the back of their trailer & bike you'll even find a "Just Married" sign! These two had heard about us in North Dakota and were so kind to us when we met them in Havre. We were able to ride with them for a little while before they sped ahead. They will be taking a little longer route through Glacier National Park and we hope to meet up with them before we cross into Idaho.

Pictures from the Montana Road....

Carrie and her American Girl Doll, Josefina, along the Lewis & Clark Trail. You probably remember that Carrie found the flag along side the road in Pennsylvania and Josefina has been carrying it (on sunny days) ever since.  After our trip is over, Carrie is going to write an article for American Girl Magazine documenting their adventures crossing America.  Do you think Josefina is the first American Girl to make the trek on the back of a tandem?

Nap Time

The Two Tandems West Gang takes a little snooze after lunch in Dodson, MT. The wind was really fierce that day and we still had over thirty miles to go after this break!

Going Over the Rockies!

Glacier National Park

One of the highlights of the trip was our journey through Glacier National Park. We spent the night at Johnson's Campground in St Mary (thanks Brad for the GREAT suggestion!) and headed into the park the next morning. It took about three hours to make the climb to the summit of Logan Pass and the Continental Divide. What a fantastic view!  Shortly after these pictures were taken, we mounted the bikes and headed down the west side of the pass. Just minutes later, it began to get cold and rain hard. The rain made it difficult to use the standard cycling brakes (bad news during a 15 mile descent!) so we relied heavily on the drag brakes we'd had installed especially for the trip! By the time we got to the bottom, the weather had cleared and we were able to ride (and use the brakes) for the rest of the day.

The Westward Ho Gang rides again!

One of the best parts of the trip have been the great people we have met along the way. Earlier, I told you about Dan, the cyclist we met in MN (traveling to San Fransisco and points south) and the newlyweds, Mary and Danny, we met in Montana. They all took the longer route into Canada and we weren't sure if we'd see them again. Well, after a morning ride last week, we saw these three adventurers along side the road enjoying a fantastic view, some lunch and friendly conversation. What a treat to see them again!  We stopped and shared some stories of our adventures since we had last seen each other. We all camped together that night in Libby and told more stories around the campfire while Carrie and Rachel kept us busy eating roasted marshmallows!

Pictured together again near Libby Dam in Montana are Standing: Leanne, Rachel & Carrie

Seated: Dan (from MN), Mary & Danny (from Atlanta, GA)

Kootenai Falls near Troy, MT

The Two Tandems West Gang takes time out from riding to enjoy a short hike to Kootenai Falls. What a beautiful sight!