Harrison - Norris
Time Traveled: 1 hr 52 mins
Distance: 17 miles
Food Eaten: super oatmeal (5th power), coffee w/sugar & cream, fish sandwich, salad, beer, 1/2 quesadilla, cowboy caviar (black beans, black eyed peas, corn, onion. red bell pepper, chipotle sauce) 1/2 muffin
Today was opposite from yesterday in terms of weather. Bright, sunny and warm, we quickly made the short distance to Norris in search of food, hot springs and a place to stay. We went to the gas station first and talked to the lady working there. She was a bit of a gypsy, always moving her family from one place to the next.
From there, we went to Norris Hot Springs and it wasn't quite open, so we sat out, enjoyed the sun, and I played guitar while we waited. We were let in for free when they opened because we rode our bike there!
This is one of the neatest commercialized hot springs we've been to. It's made all of wood and they fill it up daily with fresh water. There are cooling sprinklers and even a small stage where they have live music on a regular basis. They even hosted a bluegrass festival a few week ago, and as we soaked in the warm water, relaxing our tired muscles, the sound of fret and fiddle softly singing though the speakers soothed our minds. Beer, wine and some food options were available as well as a large patio seating area. We talked to several people here, all were impressed with our voyage.
Next, we went to the only restaurant, a Mexican place, in search of food. Unfortunately, it was closed, so we took our last option with Norris Bar. Even though the grill was only open weekends, Carmen the owner made us some delicious cowboy caviar which we quickly devoured. In appreciation of this, we consumed a large amount of beer and she told us we could sleep in her BBQ shed.
Thrilled that we didn't have to ride further in search of a campground, we drank even more beer, which turned out to be a rather poor choice. During the evening, we met Mike, a motorbike rider who lived in Bozeman. The four of us (Carmen included) even went out to check out our future sleeping area in the BBQ shed and we shared a pipe in the process.
After that, Mike left and three younger guys showed up. Carmen brought out a nice, black guitar (she doesn't play), and I strummed around and sang for a bit. Carmen made us all laugh when she attempted her own performance, which turned out to be an original about how she was going to kill her husband. She sassed the three guys around, first flirting with them and then throwing them insults. They all finally left well after closing time.
Joe and I retired into the cramped BBQ shed after many thanks and drunken hugs. Carmen kept telling me she loved my socks. I think it was the last thing she said to me. Maybe I'll send her a pair when we get home.
