8 days on the road

We started out about 8:45 and headed to Twin Bridges. It was sunny and cool. It is about time to do laundry maybe tomorrow. One nice thing about Montana is the higher speed limits 70-75. We have not really read the news since we left except snippets and it feels like we are disconnected a bit. Twin Bridges is home of Winston Rod Company.
Sheridan - is a cute lettle town with one street and an old fashioned motel. Nevada City is ALL old wood/western buildings very cute with cabins and motels, B&B and then Virginia City where we viewed Boot Hill Cemetary.
We came back through Ennis - the little town we thought was so cute and ate at the Ennis Cafe. If you are ever there order the cinnamon roll. It is huge and very good. Also they have "world famous" strawberry pie but we saved that for next time.


From there we headed to Yellowstone. It is $25.00 for a 1 week pass to Yellowstone and Tetons. The first wild life we saw was Canadian Geese on the river and then an Eagle and a nest. We stopped at Midway Geyser Basin and was amazed at how many people were there. We saw a elk doe across the river going in and enjoyed it with about 80 other cars of people. We arrived at Old Faithful about 45 minutes before she blew and walked through the original lodge. Just like I remember it except not this crowded. Of course that was about 40 years ago so - time change. We have both been surprised at how many people are on the roads, how many motor homes and how many foreign visitors are here. Anyway, we waited around with a few hundred of our best friends and sure enough about 7 minutes after she was scheduled - she blew her top.



















Heading out we saw some elk on this side of the river and then further along a lone large doe that posed nicely for us.



























We decided to head back to West Yellowstone, Montana and stay the night and after a few attempts found the Stagecoach Inn. It is like a chalet on the outside and western on the inside. Looks better than it sounds - has big pine beams, a fireplace, rustic furniture and a moose, bison and elk mounts. Very comfortable and attractive. We are on the 2nd floor but they have an elevator!!!! The hallways have cute little ceiling lights with buffalo on the shades and the room has drapes and bedspread with bear, moose and buffalo and rustic twig style chairs. The AC is a little unsized for the temp we like and this hot weather they are not used to here. Last winter they had 170 inches of snow here and at least twice that much in the higher elevations - now that sounds wonderful!
We ate at Bullwinkles a popular restaurant, bar, and also has a liquor store and casino tonight. I had trout and Ric had walleye and we had bourbon pecan pie for dessert. We both found today too HOT. especially me. wimpy wimpy wimpy!
Anyway after dinner we stopped in a couple of shops - sports and outfitters and book stores and then came back to the room to cool off.
The fire back in 1985 really stripped Yellowstone of a lot of old growth timber and although it has reseeded itself it makes you appreciate a big tree when you see them.
Tomorrow is up in the air - it is supposed to get even hotter not sure I want to enjoy that we'll see. Take care!

Tuesday in Idaho (& Montana)

Well, we headed out this morning about 9:45 - filled the hungry car and used our free car wash token - part of the motel deal - then took a look around Hamilton and drove by a house I had seen on the net and wound up looking at the one next door because the guy was home. Nice land, about 5 acres but it does not snow in Hamilton so when I heard that if they "gave" me a house it would be useless. South to Darby and visited a sporting goods store which we found out was for sale along with the gas station, casino and convenience center. I have not told you but in Montana casinos are everywhere. They are based on how many people are in an area and the license costs about $300,000. Anyway, it was interesting. He told us some of the best hunting is in the valley around Hamilton and Darby. If you are interested this was Mr T's Mercantile.
We wound our way down to Salmon, Idaho losing trees as we went. Great fishing streams/cricks/rivers everywhere! Anyway, gas and Burger King in Salmon - no snow there either. We went to Tendoy and turned east heading up a gravel narrow road to travel the Lenhi Pass (7458 feet). It was close to the path that Lewis and Clark traveled and that most of the gold seeking wagons traveled - hard to believe when you see it! At the top is a marker (see pic) and with one foot on each side of the Great Divide well the view was amazing. The wind had picked up some and it was an awe inspiring moment to see so far and know how difficult it had been to actually settle the west. (http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/lewisandclark/site3.htm) if you want more history on this specific point on the divide.
As you come out on the east side there is a Bar Double T Ranch that has been in existence since 1883 - there are 3 old cabins on the property which they have fenced and were from the earlier generations. This place is the way a ranch should be! The buildings are all log with red metal roofs and their view is spectacular. The older barn is the one in the photo.
We saw one doe and some prairie dogs but no other real wildlife. So glad we took this route off the beaten path!
We made it to Dillon and staying at the Sundowner Inn - nice and simple. We ate on the office's suggestion at Sparky's Garage.
We had their honey cornbread which was darn good. The napkins are mechanics towels and they had very cute antiques decor and friendly service. Ric had Pulled pork sandwich and beans and I had ribs and sweet potato fries. If you like Kansas City BBQ you would like this.
The Dairy Queen in town was having a collector's car show and over 25 cars were there - we followed one to Sparkys - a corvair convertible, white with a weenie dog riding on the back of the drivers seat. Couldn't catch a picture but you can imagine how cute this was!
Tomorrow we head to Yellowstone to see if we can find a bear or two. Hope everyone there is well - take care and write soon.
The Wandering Gypsies

Tuesday - day 6

Something I forgot about last night - while were dining at JJ's it was very quiet - then suddenly from hidden speakers came Christmas Music. It really set the tone for the evening!
Well we ate at a cute little cafe this morning Chic-N-Chop Restaurant, Inc. Home grown flavor and great waffle with strawberries. It was bustling and even the forestry department was eating there - which I corrolated to be like where cops eat - usually good. Anyway, we were on our way by 9 ish and headed towards Kalispell. On the way we went through Libby. It has the most beautiful huge metal eagles at each end of town and over the entry to it's "downtown" area. It has a very cute rehabed area and was certainly worth another look. And I even found flamingos there!
Kalispell is bustling and seems like a big city compared to where we have been. It is nice and clean and has everything you could think of! We visited Mickey D's and it was very different from any we have been in. It had slate tiles on the wall and a fire place and seats/chairs of knarled logs. It had decorations on the walls - show shoes and skis and was "nice". Like a restaurant! We really like Kalispell and the trees and mountains up here are what we think of when we say living in the mountains. Have to go back. It was a nice 77 and sunny. We headed to White Fish! WOW - this is a beautiful little town that is really and extension of Kalispell. The downtown has been completely rehabed and the parks, buildings, stores, everything is wonderful. This is a come back to spot for sure!
From there we headed to around the lake and stopped at a roadside vender selling fresh Cherries - just picked with a few leaves! They of course are delicious. They even give you a "pit bag". We munched on them as we headed around the lake and suddenly I threw on brakes and backed up. There in her lone nest atop a telephone pole was a bird of prey - caring for her babies. Ric got this great picture from the roadside. It wasn't long after that we were heading out of Rollins, MT when again I threw on the brakes. This time I turned around - I had seen a convenience store/post office/ gas station with a house that was for sale on line a couple of weeks ago. There it was! This lovely log building - so we went in and bought something to drink and looked around. Nice place - close to the road of course but interesting. Wish the building was a house on about 5 acres!
We really are enjoying this trip - sometimes we forget to stop and snap the picture but . . . we are trying to fit a lot into the days and see the different areas so we will know where we like best. So far, since we want forest, trees and mountains the north end of both states has been the most pleasing but . . . there is more to see.
I promised Ric at this point that I would not brake so suddenly again but then we were leaving Polson MT and what to my wandering eye did appear - a scrapbook shop. This is really the first one we have seen so of course we went in. Bought some special things they had printed up on Montana. The women up here are a little tougher than down there to get into this shop you had to climb a loose flight of stairs about 15 of them. I told Ric these would not fly in KC but then they did not have a crop room yet!
Not sure where we are going tomorrow - so it will be a surprise to us all. Hot here - more snow gone off the peaks than usual we have been told. I am like a little kid and excited about any snow I see.
Tonight we are staying in Hamilton, MT. Just a hotel and ate at a little cafe - Valley Cafe - pretty good food and pecan pie that was all pecans - hardly any filling.
Take care and thanks for the comments - it is so nice to hear from everyone!

New week New Sights

We left Helena after a $1.99 breakfast at the hotel restaurant. Good and filling! We drove west on I90 through more rolling mountains and beautiful streams. If I was going to brag about Montana's landscape it would be the streams. There were 2 eagle's nests on top of electric poles and Ric said he wondered how many chicks were electricuted while learning to fly.
There was a motor home that had broke down and was being towed up the pass - the family was IN the motor home while it was being towed walking around. Caught my eye!
The trees started getting thicker and we rolled into beautiful country. Just the kind we were looking for!
Wallace Idaho - WOW. The cutest little tourist town! We stopped and went through a museum with history of the town and the silver mines which put the town on the map. The Wallace District Mining Museum on Bank Street. It had exhibits, archives and a video. This town borders the Coeur d'Alene River. Wallace is the silver capitol of the world and one of the few towns that in it's entirety that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Visit if you get near! It has a live theater, antique and gift shops, vintage architecture and although they had 500 inches of snow last year - the town is open all year. Summer is tourists and winter - there are 2 ski resorts just 15 miles on either side of town. You can take a silver mine tour, visit the Oasis Bordello museum and tons of outdoor things. It is on the base of a mountain and not much room to grow. But we loved it. The museum is also home to the last stop light taken down on I90 connecting the US by Interstate. They had a funeral for it and it lays in a casket. It was as important to change as the last spike in the railroad. Connecting the nation by road. The town motto is "go slow and hur.ry back". There is also a historic 1313 Club historic saloon and grill which resides in the Heller Building. This 2 story building has two storefronts joined internally on the 1st floor. The cast iron pilasters remain. The 2nd story retains its segmentally arched windows. It got its name as the original bar area was 13 feet high by 13 feet wide. The Heller building has housed a hotel upstairs, a bus depot, a barbershop, and a cafe since it was rebuilt in 1891. This will definately be on our list of come back toos.
We continued west to Coeur d'Alene. It has been about 40 years since I have been here. We have both changed a LOT. It is a large, bustling, vibrant city. The lake is still pristine and beautiful but it really feels big. You know, since we have left KC we have not been in a "big" city. The traffic in this town seemed "busy". We drove around and found the Idaho still has some smoking - perhaps it is still before congress!!!!! Anyway, fill up with gas and back on 90 north to state highway 95. The scenery just keeps coming. The rivers, the lakes everything is lush, full, green and gorgeous.
Sandpoint Idaho - again, WOW! It is on the northern side of Lake Pend Oreille and what a lake. This is picturesque - we just drove through but 95 takes you through the heart of town and it too is a go back and see. Very artsy, packed with tourists and very well done. It was getting later in the day so we drove on up to Bonner's Ferry, Idaho.
Another great drive - on 95. Very cute town just 25 miles from the Canadian border on the Kutenai River which is huge right here! This part of Idaho is nestled between Canada, Washington and Montana. Bonner's Ferry was created in 1899 most of it still perched on stilts to avoid seasonal spring floods. It became the county seat in 1915 and is the only county in the US that is bounded by 2 states and a foreign country. We ae staying at the Kootenai Valley Motel. It is blue and white and cute as it is one of the old motels where you pull up in front of your room and overall it is a big U shape of 3 buildings. Nothing fancy, clean (pinesol clean) and very nice people funning it with a great dog named Penny dog a combo shepard and lassie dog. We drove through their newly renovated and still working on it old downtown. Very cute and artsy. The river rolls by! Then ate at JJs Cookshack in Naple Idaho about 10 miles back down 95. Home cooked but just ok. We still were full when we left.
Tomorrow we head east on Highway 2 to Kalispell so that is all the news thats fit to print. Let us hear from you if you can!

Sunday - a day of traveling

Some catch up photos from the past 3 days - Mount Rushmore and Little Big Horn Battlefield


























Ok - we had a long day first we drove around Bozeman and really would like spend some time there. It is artsy and the downtown is wonderful. Then we headed out on Highway 84 which runs along the beautiful Madison River! It is the river that brings visions of trout flying through the air on the end of a fishing line and into the skillet! There were quite a few people fishing and there were large white pelicans in some areas. This river definately looks Fishy. We wound through the foothills where there are very few trees and almost every flat surface if farmed. The mountains in the background still have a little snow on the tops.
Ennis Montana is a very quaint little town - made you want to stop and stay a while. It seems to attract a lot of tourists and one of the red fronted antique shops is for sale. There were GREAT small cabins and old fashioned style hotels. The entry into town has a bronze fly fisherman!
We wondered south to the Madison River Earthquake area and Quake Hebgen Lake - an earthquake in I think 1985 shifted things and now there is a lake and a viewing center to see how it changed.
We just snapped some pics, visited with Elsa the dog and drove on. But it is very dramatic. The cabins in this area and the fishing is great. Hebgen Lake is a nice place to plan to come back to. We headed to Bogarth on 191 and it is beautiful. Winding roads with a rushing "crick" and all of a sudden we came around a curve and there were two young deer frolicking in the middle of the river. Couldn't stop and get a picture but that was one of those things that we will remember. We ate lunch at Kountry Korner Cinnamon Bear Cafe. It was great! Cute small town cafe with a lock collection and a play room for the kids. I had ham, egg and pancakes. The ham was devine, and the pancakes were huge, fluffy and well melt in your mouth. Ric had the openface roast beef which he said was very good too.
We headed north to Three Forks and then to Butte then turned north on I15 to Boulder. Unusual little town - but the people all made us think of Leanne's saying "You can't fix stupid". Anyway, the city hall caught our eye.
From Boulder we drove to Helena. We really thought it would be a way to head west to I90 then on to Missoula and Idaho. We are staying in the Jorgenson Motel that has been here for 45 years. Nothing fancy but very clean and the room is cool. We went out looking for some dinner and found that this is a great town. Being Sunday, downtown is quiet and we had the opportunity to walk the mall area which is comprised of the old buildings being restored and - can't say enough. The last chance Gulch includes buildings embellished with giant lizards, thumbprints and gargoyles. Very, very nice town. It is the capitol of Montana and has a nice quiet feel to it . It is very laid back/low key and comfortable. Except for the fact that they put up very few street signs . . . The restaurant we had read about but it was closed so we found a little bar and grill which had pretty good food on south Main Street.
After dinner we drove around some more and went to Reeder's Alley. It is a restored miner's village from the gold rush days. That is great but the show stopper was there was a doe standing in the middle of the walkway munching on flowers in the garden. I thought it was a statue at first then she moved. This was quite a site.
I started proclaiming the merits of the town right after that.











They also have an old wood Fire Tower here built in 1876, it is one of the few remaining fire towers you'll see in the US.
Then we found the Capitol - gorgeous! It is a Greek Renaissance style constructed of native sandstone and crowned with a massive copper dome - the front has a large planter which spells out Montana 2008 in geraniums and dusty miller and marigolds. Great! The lawn looks like a golf course and unlike other states Montana does not seemed very worried about terrorism. You can drive up to the doors on the south side and there were people enjoying the capital lawn - even a cute black and white aussie playing frisbie. It made you think of days before 9/11 and how relaxed people can be.
Well, back to the room and planning tomorrow. Miss the fuzzies so much that I pet every dog I see!
We are still looking for more trees! Take care and let us hear from you!

Saturday - we made it to Bozeman

DEADWOOD, South Dakota

Well, we will pick up where we left off yesterday to keep you all informed. Deadwood still has many brick streets and is bustling with people. It feels like a tourist town - lots of hotels, gift shops and stuff. It would make a great weekend trip so you could see and enjoy things.
This Bullock is the same as in the TV show. And the information center is really nice in the old depot.




STURGIS - the name brings into view hogs, black leather, biker babes, well - thats right. This year is the 68th annual rally. Lets just say - we want to come during rally sometime. It starts next Friday and venders and attenders are already showing up - setting up tents and making and spending money. In the early 1930's JC Pappy Hoel worked in the family business delivering ice to Sturgis and surrounding areas. With the increasing popularity of refrigerators, the need for trucking ice became obsolete so Pappy acquired an Indian Motorcycle franchise. He helped form a motorcycle club that became known as the Jackpine Gypsis. A year later they were sanctioned by the American Motorcycle Association and held their first rally and races in 1938. Nine riders participated in the first race and now there are at least a half a million people and in 2000 and 2005 over a million people who descend on this very small town over a 2 week period.
First we thought it was interesting that every morning they have a AA meeting first thing in the morning. Would like to be a fly on the wall for one of those. But besides the huge numbers - the entertainers are great! This year Steven Tyler of Aerosmith is on the cover of one of the booklets and will be there performing for 2 days also Olivia Jacobs - Sturgis Motorcycle cover girl, ZZ Top, Kenny Chesney, Lynard Skynard, Kiss, Kid Rock and lots more. Most of the riders we saw this week were about our age. The bikes are awesome and the pictures taken during past rallys is hard to fathom.









Anyway, we headed west on I90 this morning through Wyoming. Rolling hills, rock bluffs and the tallest snow fences we have seen. They also have gates that can be closed across the highway during the winter. We passed by Sundance which the water tower brags is where the kid got his name.
We started seeing Pronghorn Antelopes early and by the heat of the day I had counted over 200 just on my side of the road. We have now seen 2 highway patrol cars. Stopped at Gillette McDonalds where one of the locals told us it is the slowest in the world and has been on TV. We believe them.
Into Montana and we stopped at the Little Big Horn park. Quite moving to see all the tombstones. Did you know that it is a national veteran's cemetery and more than just Custer's last stand era vets are buried there? Nice museum and well kept grounds. Pictures to come on that. Started seeing snow capped mountains in the distance and they just keep coming.
Billings is the largest town in Montana - 50,000 people and in this state there are 6 people for every mile.
The rivers are fantastic and it is easy to see why A River Runs Through was filmed here. They meander and have little islands in the middle and are so clear.
Bozeman is a nice town. Just east of here we saw our first buffalo on this trip. Nice town and the view is of mountains all around the town. We are staying in the Bozeman Inn.Which has a casino attached. For those of you who live in Kansas and Missouri - hold your hats because up here from S Dakota to Montana there is a casino in almost every restaurant. Really - and Montana has NO SMOKING in restaurants and we were told they just passed one in bars too and you know what - they still have lots of business.
Tomorrow we are heading to Three Forks and start looping around Montana from there.
Hope everyone is doing well!

2 Days on the Road and we are in Sturgis

Well this was quite a day. Up early and grabbed the "complimentary" (like you don't pay for it) breakfast and drove west on I90 at 8:15. South Dakota is really very beautiful. We had very light sprinkles early then bright blue sky with an occasional puff of cloud. Humidity is lower and feels pretty nice for July. The wheat fields go on forever and smell of the clover being harvested is sweet. Here they even bale next to the highway! There are tons of bee hives and most of the local honey says it is from sweet clover.
Although we were headed over to Idaho and Montana we think we may have found the perfect place - in Kadoka - this just caught our eye!













From here we headed to the Badlands National Park. WOW! The pictures cannot even start to capture these sights. You pay $15.00 to drive through which is good for a week. The drive on loop 240 takes about an hour and that was with getting out for photo ops. It was designated a national park in 1978 and has about 1 million visitors a year. It is the largest expanse of protected prairie ecosystem in the park system and considered one of the world's richest mammal fossil beds. 50% is managed by the Oglala Lakota Nation the 2nd largest American Indian Reservation in the US. It is one of the most successful reintroduction sites for the black footed ferret - one of the world's rarest mammals. The park also has swift fox, bighorn sheep and bison and PRAIRIE DOGS!
The Lakota knew this area as mako sica - bad lands. It reminded me of ancient dinosaurs buried in mud.
About 75 million years ago this area was warm (tropical) and a shallow sea covered the region we call the great plains. From the gulf of Mexico to Canada and from western Iowa to western Wyoming. The bottom of that sea appears now as a grayish-black sedimentary rock called Pierre shale. Rich in fossils as creatures sank to the bottom of the sea when they died and over time became fossils. Continental plates shifted and shoved leading to the active period of mountain building. The land under the sea rose forcing the water to retreat and drain away. The climate was humid and now the land was exposed to sunshine and abundant rain - a dark and dense forest developed. It flourished for millions of years. Then the climate cooled and dried. Forest gave way to savanna then to the grassland similar to what it is today. The vivid read bands in the buttes are fossilized soil.
There is a wonderful form of mountain sage growing wild and narrow leaf yucca and a purple flower we have not identified yet but to me the sunflower/black eyed susan standing alone in such a stark background seemed to make this a peaceful place.
There were swallows swooping everywhere with almost no regard to people in their way.








Leaving the loop we arrived in Wall, SD. Home of WALL DRUG. It opened in 1931 and after 5 years and little business they started putting up signs on the highway telling people to come in for free Ice water. The "Wall" is a rugged strip a half mile to three miles wide, a succession of tinted spires and ridges with twisting gullies - the badlands and of course is where Wall got it's name. Wall Drug and Cafe has everything a tourist could desire including prescriptions. Mining, prairie food, saloon, dinosaurs, picnic area, ice house, horse shed, teepee, dining room, western sculpture, emporium, donut factory, souvenirs, camera store, rocks, books, chapel, clothing, camping etc, etc, etc. It was PACKED - we were getting hungry so we headed a block over to the Red Rock Restaurant whose specialty was broasted chicken. It was cute, pine logs and after spending a small fortune (LOL) on gasoline we were off again.
Next stop Mt. Rushmore. By the way, there is a great wood bridge you go under and a cool tunnel to get there. It is $10.00 to park but your pass is good til the end of the year. I was here about 38 years ago. It has changed! It had a dirt trail but now it is truly a monument on the ground as well as on the side of the mountain! It was packed. Parking garage, pillars with every state flag, stone LARGE walkway, gift shop, book store, Lincoln/ Borglum (the sculpture) museum, and a beautiful amphitheater built into the facing mountain open air which you just know would make any music sound sweet. And then you look up and of course to me - the best president we ever had is up there. Teddy just looks great!
Each face is 60 feet tall. Each eye is 11 feet wide. All the noses are 20 feet long except Washington at 21'. Washington's mouth is 18 feet wide. It was started in 1927 and finished in 1941. There were 500 workers and it cost $989,992.32. They used dynamite, jackhammers, to chip away at the Harney peak granite rock. The workers had to climb 700 stairs to the top of the mountain to start work each day. Winchmen used 3/8" steel cables to lower workers over the front of the 500 foot cliff in a bosun chair. 90% was carved using dynamite. Then the drillers and carvers drilled holes into the granite close together called honeycombing to weaken the granite so it could be removed easily. Then it was smoothed with a bumper tool and the it would even up the granite creating a surface as smooth as a sidewalk. Carving stopped in 1941 with the death of Borglum and the beginning of the US in WWII. (photos to follow - its late)
Next we headed to Deadwood. Most of you know how much I loved the show about this - well like Mt Rushmore it has grown up. It is mostly casinos. But this town has really embraced their heritage and the restoration of the buildings is excellent. Packed again - we walked around and took pictures but to see it you need more time. So we will be back!
So we headed north to Sturgis. Ah but that will be included in tomorrow's entry. You will love it!