Day 475 – US – Montana [Lozeau to Alberton]

23/07/21

39km

  From Lozeau (Montana) to Alberton (Montana)

North America

Great company at the start and a lesson learnt (the hard way) about private property

Across the Lozeau bridge

Angela from the Missoula running club wrote to me a few days ago, as the Missoula club sent a newsletter with info about my run. I knew I was gonna get company and I was really happy about it. In these wide spaces and environment it’s easy to feel lonely sometimes. At 6:30am sharp Angela was at the gate of Lozeau and we started running across the bridge and onto Mullan Rd. Angela is a well traveled american (who lived in South America and visited Europe) with a great love for the outdoors, we had lots to talk about.

With Angela of the Missoula running club

After about 12km Angela picked up her bike she had dropped in earlier this morning, to ride back to where her car was, at Lozeau. I kept on running alone. I was following the Google Maps’ pedestrian & cycling itinerary, a bit absent mindedly. A few kilometers down the road I saw a “Private Property” sign, which I thought pertained to the group of houses that was by the right side of the trail.

Lovely welcome message… lesson learnt….

Mistake. About 30 meters after I passed the board, a man was there, loading his pick-up truck by the side of the road. He moved to the middle of the road to ask what I was doing. Running I said happily. He tensed up and became instantly irate. I looked around: he was loading up his truck with hunting guns and there were weapons everywhere. He was obviously very angry and kept repeating “this has got to stop” looking at me, at the guns, at me, at the guns. In a blink I understood I had made a terrible mistake. I was on private property, a trespasser, and anything that could happen now would be lawfully done on his part (he had all the rights to shoot if he pleased).

I backed out, my hands up in the air, pulling the stroller back and then I turned and ran as fast as I ever ran in my life, shouting “Sorry I did not know!” (the greatest excuse ever – NOT!). I made it back to the entrance of the freeway. By luck that’s when Angela was driving her car back towards Alberton. She saw me, stopped to check on me. And I realised how scared I had been. My eyes welled up as I told her what had just happened. I was a bit in shock. Angela comforted me and gave me a very warm hug before she left. How very kind.

Clark Fork river

In retrospect I am mad at myself, because I have read Tom Denniss’ book (3rd world-runner 2012/2013) and he told the story of how his wife Carmel got a gun pointed at her for simply reversing her car slightly on a private property alley. I should have known better. Anyway, there is no way I will ever forget this lesson. A few kilometers down the road I was once again directed by Google to a private property. The sign read: “Prayer gets you closer to God. Trespassing gets you there faster” – with two entwined guns by the side. Clear. How lovely…

2nd Amendment

PS: the pub where I am having my lunch today holds a sign repeating the famous 2nd amendment. “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed”. This is obviously not the place where to tell about how frightful my adventure has been!

Other than that, the natural environment was beautiful. By the river Clark Fork, and I get to camp tonight. A good rest is in order.

Check out today’s flyover video: https://www.relive.cc/view/v36Agd3QMGv

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: