This is a Stepping Stone, Not a Setback

We did a little soul searching during our time in North Dakota’s capital city, Bismarck. We knew that the roads ahead would give us more of the same type of riding—open, windy, and vast stretches of nothingness. The landscape of the state has a peacefulness we have appreciated, but the wind is violent. A yin and yang per say.

Team Olson decided that the best route home was to board the Amtrak train in Minot, ND, and take the Empire Builder route to Spokane, WA. And these are the reasons we have decided to end Phase One of our year-long journey.

What doesn’t kill you make you stronger
Yes, we brought out the old cliche. To ride a bicycle across the windswept plains takes quite a bit of resilience. You are exposed with the wind howling. There really aren’t many places to hide from it. And of course we were basically going the wrong way, uphill and into the NW winds. It didn’t kill us but it wore down our already fatigued bodies and spirit. And we got some impressive wind burn.

Past medical problems resurface
I have had deep vein thrombosis clots in my left leg twice in my life. This bike trip has actually been amazing for my circulation. But as we entered North Dakota, my leg started to swell each day and develop a heat rash that took days to go away. At one point, I started riding in my Teva sandals to help with the issue. Our warm shower host in Bismarck actually was baffled when I showed up in sandals as touring shoes (a big “no” from the clip-in tourists). As we would continue to climb in elevation, I knew I would have circulation issues in the Rockies. So this seemed like the best solution for my health.

This is our trip
Team Olson had to recognize that this our trip. We can choose what we want and don’t want to do. We have chosen our routes, our rest days, our mileage, our cadence. The intentional decisions we have made together and we have decided that this is best decision for us in this moment.

Amtrak was the right transportation choice
We had discussions about how we would get home throughout the trip. Could we do the whole thing on our bikes? Would we rent a car? Could we take the train?

We were in the middle of North Dakota. We had already thrown out the romantic idea of riding all the way back and we looked at prices for car rentals but decided the cost was too high and the trip too long. Amtrak runs through the north part of the state and Minot wasn’t too far from Bismarck. And they transport your bike. It made us anxious not knowing what they would do with our bike and our stuff (we are very territorial about our stuff), but it worked out amazingly for us.

We arrived in Spokane at 3 AM with very little rest and waited for the sun to come up and then rode the Centennial Trail to Coeur d’Alene where our daughter and son-in-law live. It was almost nine months to the day from when they dropped us off in Ellensburg, WA.

We can’t move back home until October
Our house is still being rented for the next few months, so we’ve activated Phase Two of our slow tour. This will consist of family visits, the arrival of our grandson, and many different small trips all over the PNW. During this time, we will also be writing and planning for our re-entry into a little more of a conventional lifestyle. We’re excited about taking smaller adventures and getting to spend quality time with the people we love. We will still be documenting our trips and publishing our perspectives about life on and off our bicycles.

Cheers to the most amazing nine months. We are grateful for every moment.

Side note: If anyone knows of house sitting opportunities this summer, please reach out. We are great with plants, animals, and always practice Leave No Trace principles.

Cortney