A Few Thousand Miles To Go 200-Year-old Tire Tracks on Montana's Continental Divide Trail

Back in July, the Freehub crew joined up with Mike Hopkins to ride a 26-mile section of Montana’s Continental Divide Trail. As fate would have it, this five-man, bike-powered expedition passed Montana’s Lewis and Clark Pass on July 7, 2015, 209 years, to the day, after Meriwether Lewis passed it on his journey back east. The trail winds through Helena National Forest, and passes over nearly every kind of terrain, from expansive ridges and burnt forests to steep scree fields. With the help of Pat Doyle from Bike Helena and Emmett Purcell from Prickly Pear Land Trust, the route was planned and supplies were stashed. The following days consisted of every type of weather imaginable, mixed with plenty of grueling climbs and exhilarating descents. The small-scale expedition provided a glimpse of the area’s endless terrain, and the unwavering quest for discovery that was required of early adventurers.