[Day 5] Camping in grizzly bear territory inspired paranoia about what to do with food, how to fend of bears, etc.  I resorted to a "mark your spot" strategy someone in Grant, MT advised me about.

Tour Divide Mileage Log

Here’s a table summarizing my progress during the 2008 Tour Divide mountain bike race, including miles and hours ridden per day, along with where I started and stopped.

On a typical day I’d start riding at 6:36 a.m. and stop riding at 9:13 pm—for a ride time of about 14.6 hours/day. On average, I rode 99 miles/day (96 on-course + 3 off-course, the latter due to getting lost or having to re-supply).

Remember that this was well before GPS and smartphones became ubiquitous. With either of those two technologies, navigation would have been so much easier.

Day Date From To On-course Miles Off-course Miles Start Time Finish Time Hours Ridden Notes
1 6/13/08 (Fri) Banff, AB Tobermory BC Forest Service Recreation Site 71 4 10:00 22:14 12.2  
2 6/14/08 (Sat) Tobermory BC Forest Service Recreation Site Baynes Lake, BC 117 2 6:00 21:45 15.8  
3 6/15/08 (Sun) Baynes Lake, BC Red Meadow Lake, MT 99 1 6:00 21:45 15.8  
4 6/16/08 (Mon) Red Meadow Lake, MT Between Swan Lake & Condon, MT at Fatty Creek Rd. informal campsite 103 4 4:50 21:50 17.0  
5 6/17/08 (Tue) Between Swan Lake & Condon, MT at Fatty Creek Rd. informal campsite Lolo National Forest, MT miles past Morrell Rd. summit 57 8 6:30 22:00 15.5 past the “death trap” snow section on Richmond Peak
6 6/18/08 (Wed) Lolo National Forest, MT miles past Morrell Rd. summit 22 miles past Lincoln (Grady Ranches informal camping #2) 97 1 6:30 22:00 15.5  
7 6/19/08 (Thu) 22 miles past Lincoln (Grady Ranches informal camping #2) Basin, MT (Merry Widow rental unit) 79 2 7:00 19:00 12.0  
8 6/20/08 (Fri) Basin, MT (Merry Widow rental unit) 4.6 miles from Elkhorn Hot Springs, MT (Price Creek Campground) 109 1 8:15 23:00 14.8  
9 6/21/08 (Sat) 4.6 miles from Elkhorn Hot Springs, MT (Price Creek Campground) 14 miles past Lima, MT (stealth camp before Lima Reservoir) 123 1 7:00 21:40 14.7  
10 6/22/08 (Sun) 14 miles past Lima, MT (stealth camp before Lima Reservoir) Caribou-Targhee National Forest, ID (Squirrel Creek Elk Ranch) 118 6 6:30 21:45 15.3  
11 6/23/08 (Mon) Caribou-Targhee National Forest, ID (Squirrel Creek Elk Ranch) 22 miles past Moran Junction, WY (Togwotee Mountain Lodge) 83 0 7:00 21:00 14.0 flat tire in front of Togwotee Mountain Lodge
12 6/24/08 (Tue) 22 miles past Moran Junction, WY (Togwotee Mountain Lodge) Bridger-Teton National Forest, WY (Whiskey Grove Campground) 78 0 6:50 23:00 16.2  
13 6/25/08 (Wed) Bridger-Teton National Forest, WY (Whiskey Grove Campground) Atlantic City, WY (Miner’s Delight Inn) 126 1 8:15 20:30 12.3  
14 6/26/08 (Thu) Atlantic City, WY (Miner’s Delight Inn) Rawlins, WY (Econolodge) 134 2 4:50 20:20 15.5  
15 6/27/08 (Fri) Rawlins, WY (Econolodge) 25 miles past Slater, CO (primitive camping in Routt National Forest) 98 2 9:15 23:59 14.7  
16 6/28/08 (Sat) 25 miles past Slater, CO (primitive camping in Routt National Forest) 2 miles past Stagecoach Reservoir (stealth camping) 60 7 8:15 21:00 12.8 Steamboat repairs + lost
17 6/29/08 (Sun) 2 miles past Stagecoach Reservoir (stealth camping) Dillon, CO (Heaton Bay Campground) 107 1 6:00 20:30 14.5  
18 6/30/08 (Mon) Dillon, CO (Heaton Bay Campground) Salida, CO (Woodland Motel) 110 2 5:30 20:45 15.3  
19 7/1/08 (Tue) Salida, CO (Woodland Motel) Carnero Pass, CO (primitive campsite) 113 1 5:45 20:45 15.0  
20 7/2/08 (Wed) Carnero Pass, CO (primitive campsite) Summitville, CO (stealth camp 2 miles past Indiana Pass summit) 66 1 6:00 18:00 12.0 hypothermia
21 7/3/08 (Thu) Summitville, CO (stealth camp 2 miles past Indiana Pass summit) La Manga Pass, CO (informal camping outside cabin) 54 2 8:45 19:00 10.3 look for cyclometer
22 7/4/08 (Fri) La Manga Pass, CO (informal camping outside cabin) Cisneros Park, NM (primitive camping) 47 28 7:30 21:30 14.0 look for cyclometer; camp 0.5 miles away from loud campers
23 7/5/08 (Sat) Cisneros Park, NM (primitive camping) Santa Fe National Forest, NM (stealth camping 33 miles past Abiqui, NM) 100 2 6:15 21:00 14.8  
24 7/6/08 (Sun) Santa Fe National Forest, NM (stealth camping 33 miles past Abiqui, NM) Grants, NM (Sands Motel) 170 0 5:45 22:30 16.8  
25 7/7/08 (Mon) Grants, NM (Sands Motel) Gila National Forest, NM 127 3 4:30 23:30 19.0  
26 7/8/08 (Tue) Gila National Forest, NM Gila Wilderness, NM (30 miles from Mimbres) 77 0 6:15 21:15 15.0 started rolling at 7:15 due to flat
27 7/9/08 (Wed) Gila Wilderness, NM (30 miles from Mimbres) Silver City, NM 45 1 6:00 18:00 12.0  
27.5 7/10/08 (Thu) Silver City, NM Antelope Wells, NM 122 7 4:00 20:37 16.6

Total on-course miles: 2689
Total off-course miles: 90
Total hours ridden: 408.9
Average on-course miles per day: 96
Average off-course miles per day: 3.2
Average start time: 6:36 AM
Average end time: 9:13 p.m.
Average hours per day: 14.6

[Day 5] Camping in grizzly bear territory inspired paranoia about what to do with food, how to fend of bears, etc.  I resorted to a "mark your spot" strategy someone in Grant, MT advised me about.
[Day 5] Camping in grizzly bear territory inspired paranoia about what to do with food, how to fend of bears, etc. I resorted to a "mark your spot" strategy someone in Grant, MT advised me about.