Clearwater lake to Ovando Clearwater lake turned out to be an amazing place to camp. I had my first morning cup of coffee at the edge of the lake. A curious swan swam by to see what I was up to, and loons were calling somewhere across the lake. I was not in a hurry to leave, so I didn’t, naturally! The unhurried pace felt good, and without pressure I actually got on the road earlier than usual. The past 2-1/2 days have really been magical—I enjoyed them so much. Deep gratitude to the people who made the effort to put together a route such as this I hit the road to my first navigation glitch. For reasons unknown, my ride with gps would not show my track or map. “I” was simply a blue dot in a sea of black. After a few minutes of goofing around with it, I realized I still had the direction list—and as long as I stayed on gravel or dirt I could just follow tracks! Off I went, another first world problem ignored. I knew there was a pretty robust climb ahead of me first thing, and I paced myself nicely with several photo stops along the way. The route really was amazing, with a mix of nice forest service roads, some Singletrack, and old abandoned roads. Great views throughout. I planned on diverting into the town of Seeley Lake—only about 2 miles off route—for lunch and to recharge my batteries after 2 nights boondocking. Success on both fronts, and I even got to FaceTime my wife (it’s our anniversary today). Also—again for reasons unknown—my map and track magically reappeared. Now I could see my squiggly lines through and around Seeley Lake! I hit the road back toward my destination for the day: Ovando. I had seen this little town (population 212) on several of my great divide you tube rabbit holes and wanted to check it out. More on Ovando later. I rolled along on just OK forest service roads happy and content to be out there. Again, zero traffic meant I could pick my line, so it wasn’t too bad. Dense forest began to thin once again to ponderosa forest, then to open grassland closer to Ovando. I met another bike packer—Marcos from Switzerland—about 5 miles out of town, and we rode into Ovando together. We went straight to the only little market in Ovando where I fulfilled my 3 day old dream of a coke and chips. They were just as delicious as in my dreams. We asked the shop manager about where to stay, and the YouTube spots were correct—Ovando has really rolled out the welcome mat for cyclists, with lodging available for $5 per night in a tipi, sheep herders wagon, an old jail, or multiple camping options in lawns in town. And a place to plug in your devices! My curiosity satisfied, I chose to stay the night in the jail. Marcos and I headed to the only eatery in town: Trixis, and had dinner and great conversation. He is only on part of the divide, so will ride partway with me tomorrow and I will continue along to the “llama ranch”; another YouTube regular. Another great day on the great divide. Montana has treated me well so far. Time to report to jail.