Soldiering On To Fort Benton

Great Falls, MT to Fort Benton, MT
53 miles
1,653 feet ascent
1,657 feet descent
1,788 calories

Into The Great Wide Open

Two days of rest was just what the doctor ordered and alleviated most of the back pain, so I "soldiered on" today to Fort Benton, MT.  There were no trees in sight for most of the ride until reaching the Missouri River again in Fort Benton.  In hindsight, it might have been just as easy to grab a raft in Great Falls, throw my bike onboard, and just float down the river.

Just a few miles after turning north onto Highwood Road from Hwy 87 east of Great Falls, a non-descript, white van looking like an autonomous vehicle came towards me from the opposite direction.  As it passed, I saw "Apple Maps" written on the side of the van, so maybe I will be one of those people with obscured faces on Apple Maps in the near future!

There wasn't much between Great Falls and Fort Benton but farmland.
Still, it is very scenic.

Farmland East of Great Falls

Also, I came across the first west bound riders I've seen in a week or so.  Ericka and Ken were from Brooklyn, left from there June 1st, and are headed to Seattle as their final destination.

West Bound Riders Ericka & Ken

Tonight I am staying in the Pioneer Lodge Hotel.  Originally built in 1916 as a two story mercantile, it closed years later.  In 1986 it was remodeled into a hotel by Marvin and Sunny Appleby, and is run today by their daughter Susie.

Pioneer Lodge Hotel

In it's heyday Fort Benton was a large commercial junction between riverboats that came up the Missouri and traders and trappers that came from the west.  With the advent of rail travel though, fewer riverboats came, and today Fort Benton is a sleepy river town of about one thousand residents.

Missouri River, Fort Benton, MT

George Montgomery Statue in Fort Benton

While it seems like a very low stress environment, apparently some of the locals prefer to go shoot their guns in a more stressful surrounding!

"Extreme Stress Shooting" Gun Range