Horses grazing along the road near Stanley, ND.
Horses grazing along the road near Stanley, ND.
Last Modified on 9/23/97 at 17:36:21
Day's Narrative: It was a cold 57F (14C) when Neville and I left after breakfast at 7 am. The wind was blowing at about 15 mph (25 km/h) from the northwest. Within a few minutes of starting out we had to stop and put on more clothes. At the town of Ray, ND, 46 miles down the road, the railroad overpass was under construction and there was a gravel detour. We stopped to get something to eat, and it rained briefly while we were there. After the rain stopped, we continued on. By this time the wind had picked up to about 30 mph (50 km/h) from the northwest. This was not exactly a tailwind. Since we were headed due east, the wind came at us at from our left at about 45 degrees. While this helped push us along, it also blew us back and forth, making it impossible to relax. Most of today's ride was like this. Only at the end of the ride, near Minot, ND, did the wind come directly from the rear. It was a long, exhausting ride. Connie caught up with us about 11 am. I got a much needed warmer jacket from the truck. Connie went on to get us rooms in Minot. The land has become greener here (see photo), and it would appear that we are approaching the Midwest. Connie had problems finding rooms in Minot. Later at dinner we found out that there was a large softball tournament in town, with 75 teams playing. That explains the room problem. [Connie] For the first time I saw waves in wind-blown grass here. Like watching ocean waves, one can become mesmerized with the phenomenon, and I now understand why people love to watch waving grass. After finding that the first very large motel was full, I went on to the Comfort Inn which was the next down the street. I asked for our usual two rooms [one for Neville,] non-smoking, ground floor. The best I could get was one "ground floor" and one third floor. I took them since it seemed that rooms were at a premium in Minot. The "ground floor" turned out to be below ground level, split-level house style. One goes in the door and then either down or up a set of stairs. a most interesting situation when one has to haul heavy, bulky stuff like I do twice every day. At this point, I got creative. The room had a large window with an opening that was half the width of the window. The screen was removable. I moved the truck over near the window, unloaded onto the ground in front of the window, went inside and pulled everything through, except the computer suitcase and my bicycle, they were too heavy and bulky for me. There are only four rooms in this entire 100+ room motel which are on ground level and accessible to someone who cannot climb stairs. Access to the elevator requires climbing stairs. The designers of this place should be strapped into wheelchairs and given the instructions, "Have a good time." [Ray] The temperature in Minot when we arrived was 57F (14C), exactly the same as it was this morning at 7 am in Williston, ND. Yesterday Minot was the hottest city in North Dakota with a temperature of 95F (35C). That's quite a temperature change! Tomorrow Connie and I are laying over here in Minot, and Neville will continue on toward Boston. He's been a great riding companion for me, and we have gotten along well. © Ray & Connie Poore, 1997
We stopped at an RV park in the small town of Ross, ND to get something to eat and met the owners, a German-American couple who had come here from Frankfurt in 1957. They seemed very happy running the RV park in this small town.Return