Onto a Great Flatness

Aug. 19, Lake Metigoshe-Upham, 44 miles, S breeze, 82/50; Aug. 20 Upham-Velva, 50 miles, S wind, 88/55—Rounding a turn at Bottineau's country club, I have a mile-long descent down from the Turtle Mountains into Bottineau. It’s impressive, not for the height of the Turtle Mountains—700 ft. above the surrounding plain—but for the board-flat flatness all the way to the horizon on three sides. Overall the Plains aren’t nearly so flat, but this glacier-steamrolled section is. (See Yes, we have mountains! by the state geologist.)

At a café for lunch, I notch a first North Dakota “you betcha” from my waitress, and the owner follows later with a not-as-strong “you bet.” I ride straight roads through wheat and sunflowers, flax, and a crop I can’t identify. The field margins are hayed and bales left in place. Birds and other wildlife depend on this prairie pothole region of North America, and cattailed potholes are everywhere, about half dry from drought. Hundreds of red-winged blackbirds rise from a sunflower field, and seven pelicans swim in one pothole. A half-mile apart a deer and salamander cross the road right in front of me.

I can recognize towns along my route well in advance: a dense cluster of trees, water tower, grain elevators. Like many towns, Upham has a park open for camping. Two RV hookups are next to the tennis court, and I’m free to pitch my tent anywhere. North Dakota ranks high in education statistics (highest percentage of students going on to higher education, for example), and perhaps that's reflected at the Outpost bar, where the bartender addresses some regulars with “Have you heard about that legislation?”

The next day’s destination, Velva, in the Mouse River valley, has even better bike-friendliness. My tent is just a few lengths from the swimming pool, and there’s a grocery, post office, and diner, though the library is closed. To reach Velva I fight headwinds all day on near-empty roads. Leaving Granville I meet the Moores, a retired couple riding cross-country on an Adventure Cycling route. Their journal entry that day includes photos, one of me. Yes, I'm wearing the same clothes as two days ago.