18 miles on bike, 59 miles in ambulance.
A few nights ago I started to get some pain in my leg. Yesterday, I spoke to a nurse on the telephone and was advised to see a doctor or go to urgent care within 4 hours. We were concerned that I may have a blood clot. Hmmm… the nearest ER was in Superior, 61 miles away over a mountain pass, so one and a bit days of riding. We set off toward Superior on Sunday, and luckily/amazingly, we met a physician on the trail who said it looked like a superficial vein problem, and yes, I should have it checked out at the nearest ER (no need to press the SOS button on our satellite communicators).
So I got a jump start on the day, leaving St Regis before Steve and Bob so I could visit an ER in Superior and have my leg checked. The scenery was lovely and the roads were quiet.
I arrived in Superior, quickly found the hospital and met some wonderful people there. After some discussion and testing, it was decided that I should make my way to Missoula for further testing, in an ambulance with my leg raised.
The views on this part of the trip passed more quickly.
The good people at St Patrick’s confirmed that indeed I had a clot in a (large) superficial vein. They prescribed a blood thinner and sent me on my way (with a lot to think about).
I subsequentlu enjoyed a wonderful evening in Missoula with an old friend. I’ll meet up with Steve and Bob tomorrow and decide what to do next.
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