Epic Great Divide - Day 14

Monday, July 20, 2026

Merry Widow Mine, Basin, MT to Butte KOA Campground, Butte, MT

35.6 miles/57.4 kilometers

2329 feet/710 meters elevation gain

Full-service campground. Flush toilets, showers, electricity, potable water. Laundry available at campground.

Elevation – 5482 feet

This morning was a bit cooler than all of our mornings so far but it was pretty great for riding. I suspect it was in the low 50s?

I slept quite well last night camped next to a river. There were children playing as late as 11:00 pm but that’s what summer’s for, right? In the morning, my group had coffee and breakfast and moved out of the campsite before anyone else woke.

Knowing ahead of time that the scheduled mileage and elevation gain for the day’s ride was minimal, we all took our time and hurried in no way to get to Butte. I rode with Steve and Dave for the first ten miles and then we all hooked up with Jada and Lucas.

Around mile 15, we encountered a bike packer that was experiencing bike trouble. His back wheel literally would not move, even though just minutes before it was moving just fine. Our Lucas – who builds bikes, took about a two second glance at the guy’s bike and fixed it instantly! The backpacking cyclist, Robert, was from the UK and was alone doing the same route that we’re doing. He was SO grateful! Here is a photo of Robert (left) and Lucas (right). I’m so grateful that we have such a skilled bike mechanic in our group!

The ride today was scenic but I didn’t take too many photos – with a windbreaker on, it was difficult to get my camera (phone) in and out of my back jersey pocket. There were cool rivers and handsome cows again. New stuff included mines.

This part of Montana is mine country. The campground we stayed at is actually known for its radon content in the water. Apparently, some people think it’s healthy to drink radon and they specifically go to that campground to consume the water. I heard today that that is specifically why the Mennonite group was there. The campsite we’re in tonight has dangerously high levels of copper in the water. Sorry, but I’m not filling up my water bottles with the water here! My hair has enough copper color in it! (Bwahahaha!)

While writing just now, I was called away for our evening “map meeting.” The leaders gather us all together and go over the particulars of the next route. Sounds again like it will be a straight forward and easier route, 38 miles or so and 3,500 feet of elevation gain. Which reminds me, today I was looking for a bike shop to buy another spare set of brake pads. I got turned around and rode UP to the campus of Montana Tech. Phew! Huge hill! I gained an extra 1,000 feet of elevation. Ha! Admittedly, it was quite fun going back DOWN to the city proper.

Once back to the correct location of the bike shop, I discovered that it was closed. I, therefore, went to The Hummingbird Café across the street and had a nice dirty chai. It had started to drizzle but by the time I finished my chai, it was clear again. Had a nice conversation with one of the servers about my Salsa Cutthroat. Apparently, that’s a pretty popular bike here as the college campus is quite hilly!

Tomorrow I will have neither electricity nor cell service at my destination campground. I will catch up when I can. In addition to often being without cell service here, I did not bring a watch. Yes, of course, I can look at my phone but I just haven’t been. It’s truly been awesome not being tied to a schedule or tethered to a device! Highly recommend! ‘Till next time – ciao for now! ><>