Short Day, Service, and Showers
Our hotel did not include breakfast, so we walked a couple of blocks to a bakery and coffee shop. The shop has eclectic decor. The coffee, scones, and baklava were excellent.
Since we knew this was going to be a short day, we took our time getting ourselves together and on the road. I did some banking, and Beth filed her quarterly tax return. Some facets of normal life cannot be ignored on vacation.
US-12 from White Sulfur Springs to Helena winds downhill all the way. It’s a beautiful route. We were behind a slow-moving truck and couldn’t pass, so we enjoyed the scenery.
Lunch was at a rest stop on I-90.
When we got to Missoula, we headed straight to the Harley dealer. Beth’s bike has 99,545 miles on it and it was time for an oil change. They took us right in did a great job.
There were plenty of new bikes to look at, but we had coffee and sat in the lounge.
The dealership is only a few miles from the KOA where we are staying tonight. We got set up and then the rain came in fits and spurts over the next three hours. It’s sunny in the west and dark in the south and east.
Beth fixed dinner in the camper, which consisted of salad and spicy chicken sausages. We used the Jet Boil to heat the sausages.
This is the first campground we can remember that has free breakfast for registered campers! I guess that makes up for last night’s hotel.
Statistics:
Miles – 202, Time – Just Enough.
Hi Tim.
I’m in Missoula for another night. I’m near you so maybe we can do lunch? Around brooks rd? Were you on 200? I went to great falls yesterday, but recommend the river routes.. very industrial built for POWER conversions.
Tim, where was that great coffee shop? Always looking for coffee stops along the way! Our route in September is generally similar to yours, but a few differences. We spend a night in Harlowton at a nice mom and pop motel. We choose Harlowton because of a great restaurant there, Mussellshell Steakhouse. Our route to Missoula is a bit more circuitous. Hwy. 12 west to 89 north to Great Falls (lunch stop) then 200 west into Missoula. About 320 miles. We try to keep the daily mileage down around 300 or less, so we have plenty of time to stop and smell the roses.
Wildoatsbaking.com is their website. We generally do 300 miles a day, but it varies 200-400. We go farther on an interstate when we just need to eat up some miles.