WeSTOC Nelson

This WeSTOC was 1 day up and and day there and 2 days back home. I'll be less hasty next year after retirement. I was lucky to get to go at all but I begged the supt. and he relented. Good to feel indespensable. After very little planning an some hasty packing I set the alarm for 5am this morning. I'm not a morning person. Usually I ride 9am-9pm. I was on the road (MT3) and left the house at 6:08am. I looked hastily at the website about border crossings and had it in my head that the border crossing at Porthill closed at 4pm (3pm my time) That meant I needed to really fly or face the prospect of backtracking to get across the border. Ricks bike turned over 10000 klics on this trip.



At the junction just slightly north of Bonners ferry my fear was relieved to find out the border was open 'til 11pm. I was running tardy and needed to make the Billings to Nelson trip in one day. The RR wanted me to make one more trip before I could leave. As chance would have it, Will and the rest of the Kansas contingent had passed my coal train as we were coming into Helena.



I called Chuck and met them all at their hotel and we all went over to my favorite cafe. Shellies Country Cafe.

Anyway the ride to Nelson went extremely well. I made it across the border without doing anymore than showing I had my passport. The border guard never even took it from my hand. Little did I know I had caught Will and the guys and they were waiting for me in the staging area just beyond the check point. We rode on to Nelson together and I saw no rain until the Welcome to Nelson... then it was like a wall of water.