shelby, montana

Goodbye, Rocky Mountians. Hello. plains.

 I'm not sure any two days could be more different than today and yesterday. Yesterday was mountain climbs, and the Continental Divide at Marias Pass. Today was mostly flat. Yesterday, we had lots of downhill runs with the wind in our faces. Today we pedaled almost every minute of the day, no coasting, with the wind still in our faces. We did have a great tailwind to start the day and, at times, realized we were cruising at twenty to twenty-six miles per hour with little or no pedaling. About halfway to Shelby, the wind turned on us and tried to blow us off Route 2 into the fields. Yesterday we were in bear country with bear spray in hand. Today we were in cattle country with no spray necessary. Yesterday we had a cold start and today it was pretty much warm all day. But I loved both days! And . . . I found three Montana license plates today. How 'bout that! Someone in Coram told me that Montana has the biggest variety of license plates in the nation. I don't know if that's fact or fable but I've found five plates now and they are all different. Maybe it's a fact.

Margaret and I departed from Cottage 2 at Jacobson's Cottages in East Glacier Park around 7:45 am, stopped by to pick up Phil, and then Phil and I headed to Shelby at 8:30. At 2:20, Phil and I arrived at the Comfort Inn in Shelby. Comfort Inn is one of the ways Margaret spells camping. Other spellings include Hampton Inn and Holiday Inn Express. Of course, I'll camp with her. "You can't make it too tough for me to complain." 

Thanks to Erik and Susan for their hospitality and comfy and clean little cottages last night. We also enjoyed talking with them about their cottages, the local area, biking, and how they got to East Glacier Park. Erik is a cyclist and a physical therapist along with his responsibilities at the Jacobson's Cottages. When I told him that I was glad to be out of the mountains, he said, "Do you want one more? There's a beautiful little four-mile climb right up this road. I may ride it tomorrow."

I told him, "You go ahead and ride it twice. Once for you and once for me. I'm okay to be out of the mountains for a while." Should you ever decide to ride the Northern Tier with the Adventure Cycling maps, Jacobson's Cottages are right along the way. Stop by and stay.

This is Memorial Day. It's a special day for America to remember its fallen heroes. Among those fallen heroes are the Founding Fathers of this free country. Men who lived and died for their country. Years ago, Paul Harvey, a patriot and very popular radio broadcaster said of these heroes,

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants; Nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts and died in rags.

Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in Congress without pay while his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Eillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr. noted the British General, Cornwallis, had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Morris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more.

Standing tall, straight and unwavering, they pledged: “For the support of this Declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”

They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn’t just fight the British; we were British subjects at that time and we fought our own government!

Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn’t.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your holiday, and silently thank these and other patriots like them. And remember: Freedom is never free!

Remember.