Day 21: Wednesday July 9, 2014

We woke to beautiful blue skies and about 64 degrees. We got to an early start because we were concerned we might be dealing with some heat. We logged about 260 miles before we stopped to eat. We had lunch in Livingston MT, a cute old west town from the 1800's. We ate at a bakery/deli with an old marquee of Gil's Goods. The food was great and all natural non-GMO and all GFB (grass fed beef). One of the frustrating things we encountered today was miles and miles of lane closures for roads that weren't even being worked on. The lane closures would last for 10+ miles at a time. Only once did we actually get stopped because of workers yet all the other times speeds would be posted at 35 MPH for miles without a trace of anyone working the roads! ARRRGHH!

One of the only times we saw work crews

 

 

 

 

Town of Livingston

 

 

Quirky store in Livingston

 

Crazy beetle note the long whiskers

What I am going to write about next I hesitated to do so because I didn't want to worry anyone who may be following along with this blog especially my wife Myrna. But what happened today needs to be said because it is about God and his mercy and because He is worthy of my praise. As you may or may not know, Dave and I pray together at least 3 times a day (usually during our meal times) and we always thank God for the safety we have received and pray for His angels to surround us as we travel down the road. We have had several close encounters with automobiles merging and not looking and with the severe rain storms that we have been trapped in. But today something happened to me that is nothing short of a miracle. After lunch we were riding west on Interstate 90 out of Bozeman and Dave was leading (which is not our norm) and several feet in front of me. Interstate 90 has two west bound lanes and I was riding in the #2 lane travelling about 70 MPH, the posted speed is 75MPH. What happened next really shook me up but also made me realize I am being watched over and prayers (yours and mine) were answered. Like I said I was riding in the #2 lane and all of a sudden there is a red mini van next to me (I never saw it approach on my left) next thing that happens I hear this wicked thud sound and flying off the bumper of the mini van is a deer. The deer came from the center divider grassland and struck the mini van, the impact was so strong that the deer spun in mid air and it's face was now facing the opposite direction it came. While in the air I braced myself because I knew I was going to impact the deer on the rebound from the van. It all happened so fast. But the deer must have been carried by angels and pushed out of my way and thrown to the side of the road. Thank you Jesus! The female driver of the van and I looked at each other as she slowed down. I thought the front of her vehicle would have been trashed but it only looked like she had a cracked bumper. I slowed way down and began praying and thanking God for protecting me. I was also looking for a place to pull off the highway and gain my composure but I couldn't find a safe place to stop. I caught up to Dave at another road construction slow down and I told him what happened, we pulled off the freeway into a gas station. We got gas and Dave noticed that I was visibly shaken so he came over put his arm around me and prayed over me then suggested we park our bikes and take a break.

The only explanation there is of the way the van appeared at the right time and took the impact of the deer rather than me, or the fact the deer was spun in the air and carried away (by angels) instead of sliding across the pavement where I would have run into it; is because of your prayers and the fact God had His hand on me and provided protection. I will never forget this experience and I will give God all the glory for protecting me.

After awhile we resumed our ride and got off the freeway onto two lane highway 41 to Dillon MT. We made it to Dillon under cloudy skies and windy conditions with a threat of thunderstorms. Fortunately we stayed dry and the storm blew over. We rode 418 miles today for a total of 5529.

Example of the center grassland where the deer came from

Montana mountain view

Hugh eagle nest

View along highway 41

Farm along highway 41

 

 

 

 

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