Biking with Bill

“ PURPLE MOUNTAIN MAJESTY “


It was 47 degrees this morning at 7:10 am as we rode out of Jackson Hole, WY. American flags lined the streets of this rustic Old West town on the 4th of July.

We were riding 88 miles to Dubois (pronounced Du Boy by the locals). We immediately entered a National Elk Refuge at the edge of town–and did in fact see several elk grazing at a distance. We watched 2 colorful hot air balloons rise in the morning thermals against a back drop of the majestic snow capped Teton Mountains.

It was a National Geographic morning as we cycled along on a road parallel to the peaks. We all took plenty of pictures. I must have heard the words “Wow”, and “look at that!” a hundred times on today’s ride. It was spectacular scenery against a bright blue sky. Eventually we passed a cut-off road to Yellowstone N P located about 60 miles north of our location. We passed a sign that said: “Be Bear Aware”. We happened to be on the same route where a bear attacked an off road hiker a few days ago.

We had a medium grade (6% max) uphill climb for 15 miles beginning at the 42 mile mark. Finally, at the 57 mile mark we reached the summit of Tagwotee Pass–elevation 9658 feet. At that point we had also reached the CONTINENTAL DIVIDE. We saw several road signs during the sweaty climb that read; “Point of Interest” with an arrow pointing in one direction. Joyce (MA) made the comment: “ The only interesting point I want to see is the SUMMIT. Amen.

We saw many beautiful wild flowers all day long today–in pastures and along the road. They were identified as: Lupine, Red Cardinal, Rose Marrow, Columbine and Indian Brush among others. We also spotted The Sleeping Indian rock formation high on a cliff. It is a tourist attraction in the area.

We had a cooling and quick downhill to a small log cabin café where 10 of us had lunch while watching OLN and the Tour de France.

Unfortunately, our German friends, Eberhard and Anja, raced all day to get into the hotel by the 1:00 pm start time for the World Cup match between Germany and Italy. They were disappointed when I saw them at dinner.

The last 20 miles into Dubois (pop 982) could have been one delicious descent if not for a serious patch of road construction mid-way. We sailed into town with a breeze behind us. It felt great.

On arrival in town, we were surprised to be the tail end of the July 4th parade in this very Western town. The main street is right out of the set of “Gunsmoke”. Horses, cowboys, saloons (yes, we did join them) are the common denominator in Dubois. Fireworks are planned for sunset.


We saw America the Beautiful in its full mountainous glory today. What a ride!

Bill