Lemhi Pass

We spent the day exploring more Lewis and Clark sites in the area. Lemhi Pass is a narrow pass in the Bitterroot Mountains - 7,373 ft above sea level - near where Lewis discovered the spring that begins the present day Missouri River. We drove about 15 miles on a gravel road - the last several miles were one lane - through private ranch land up to the pass. There is also a small memorial park dedicated to Sacawajea, the Indian women who was so instrumental to Lewis and Clark's success. Beautiful but remote country!

Bannack State Park is actually a gold mining ghost town - gold was discovered here in July 1862. As soon as it ran out, the town died! Several buildings are remaining and you can walk along the street and imagine the hustle and bustle of a thriving place. It was the first capital of the territory. When we checked in, the ranger warned us that several previous tourists had warned them of rattlesnake sightings at the outskirts of the town - that dampened my zeal to snoop around too much!

Camp Fortunate was where Lewis and Clark met after they separated to explore different areas. It is now covered by the reservoir. They called it "fortunate" because it was where they were able to trade for horses from the Shoshone Indians. They needed the horses to cross the mountains before winter. It was also where Sacawajea was reunited with her tribe - she had been taken by another Indian tribe several years prior, during a raid. The Lewis and Clark expedition buried supplies here and retrieved them on their return trip. According to the journals, the men were most anxious to get back here because they had stowed away some of their tobacco!
We call it Camp Fortunate for another reason - Roger lost his IPhone and the people that found it chased us down in the car to return it!!!

Dillon, MT

It was 50 degrees this morning and 88 this afternoon! We drove into Dillon to get propane and play golf - a pretty day but the sun is intense at this altitude.
I read in a Montana visitor's guide that you should pack for weather 20 degrees cooler than you anticipate because temperatures can vary 60 degrees in a day! It basically said "casual, layering" - "Gortex not London Fog" - "jeans are accepted everywhere, and when we say jeans we mean Levis, Wranglers and Carhartts!"
My camera battery was dead so we tried to take pictures with Roger's new IPhone - it was hilarious! Many up close pix of us with puzzled looks on our faces - when all else fails: read the directions! I thought about publishing a couple on this blog but they were too embarrassing!
True confessions: I have not used my curling iron or worn make-up since we left Austin! I'm becoming a modern day squaw!

Missouri Headwaters State Park

We spent the night in the Missouri Headwaters State Park (not much of a park!) at the confluence of the 3 rivers that join and make the Missouri River - the Jefferson, the Madison, and the Galatin rivers. Lewis and Clark discovered this area in July 1804 and named all the rivers. This was a primary goal of the expedition - to find the beginning of the Missouri River. We feel like explorers ourselves but can't imagine how they felt seeing this beautiful country for the first time.

We are driving to Clark Reservoir today - just outside of Dillon, MT. We can certainly understand why this is "Big Sky" country - it is also big land country - mile after mile of hills and ranches. There is a lot more agriculture here than we anticipated - mostly hay for the livestock - it is all irrigated from the many rivers and streams so the fields are all a lovely green. Everywhere you look there are snow capped mountains in the distance.

The view of Clark Reservoir from Roger's lawn chair!

Pompeys Pillar National Monument

Pompeys Pillar is a huge sandstone formation where William Clark carved his name and the date (1806) as the expedition paddled down the Yellowstone River. It is the only physical evidence that the Lewis and Clark group was in this area. Clark named the pillar after Sacagawea's son, Jon Baptiste, whom he called "Pomp." Clark mentions in his journals that the mosquitoes were so bad they had to move camp downstream and that when he went hunting he could not see clearly to aim his gun because the bugs made such a cloud!

Oh my goodness, did we get in a "pickle" getting there! Roger put "Pompeys Pillar" in the GPS and it took us to the small village of Pompeys Pillar not the National Monument - if we had read our AAA guide we would have known to get off at Exit 23 and drive into the parking lot! But......we took a circuitous route down a narrow, winding, dirt road for about 3 miles - a huge cloud of dust billowing behind us! Imagine if any farmers saw us they were thinking " dumb ass Texans!" You can not imagine the thick layer of dirt on the car and bikes!
The "jack saga" continues: When we got ready to drive out of the parking lot at the national monument the right front jack dropped down! Roger was able to "tie" it up and then disengage the computer system so they will all stay up until we can get them fixed. He suspects it is the computer board that needs to be replaced but now we also have one with a "sheared pin." They are still under warranty so we have to go to an Atwood repair station. The one in Billings didn't have an opening until August 11th! The one in Great Falls can fit us in August 9th and the one in Kalispell gave us an appointment for August 15th! Obviously, this is their busy season and no one has sympathy for travelers with emergencies. We are hoping we can level the motorhome the old fashioned way until we can get them fixed. We prefer the last appointment because there is a lot to see and do in that area - afraid we will have to wait for a diagnosis and then parts. We realize the situation could be a lot worse and are determined not to let it ruin our trip!
Samantha called on SKYPE last night to tell us she climbed 10 metres up the inside rock wall! "Way more than any of the boys!" She's a little Spiderwoman! Heather said the guy at the gym said "she's a natural!"

Little Bighorn Battlefield

We got a good American history lesson yesterday when we toured the Little Bighorn Battlefield and learned all about  "Custer's Last Stand." Trivia: Custer was born and married in Monroe, Michigan! Custer and other military regiments were tasked with gathering Indians and forcing them to move to a reservation. They heard about an encampment of Indians (of several different tribes) near the Little Bighorn River (not far from Billings, MT now)  and thought they could surround them and force them to move. But....there were close to 7,000 Indians with an estimated 1,800 warriors - the Calvary was caught by surprise and overwhelmed. Custer and his command were all killed but some of the other troops survived. Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were victors of that battle but not the war - as we know, all the Indians eventually were killed or surrendered to the reservations.
We bought a CD and took the auto tour of the battlefield. It is amazing how the archaeologists piece together what happened by examining the artifacts. They can tell by the shell casings, that fell to the ground, what type of rifle was fired and whether it was a military or Indian gun. The shell casings have unique markings that allow them to determine individual guns. Therefore, they can trace the whereabouts of the user. Using this method they can plot the movements of the soldiers and Indians. Painstaking work!
I bought "Dances with Wolves" and we watched it again last night - a great movie and appropriate for us as we travel through this Indian country. Love the music!
Anyone know about "Pompeys Pillar?" Hint - it is on the Lewis and Clark Trail. Going there tomorrow.

Devil's Tower

We drove about 2 hours northwest today through the rolling plains of Wyoming to Devil's Tower. Through the town of Sundance and the sign said "Sundance - Where the Kid Got His Name."
Hard to imagine living out here - this is the home of the several mile driveway! Don't know where they shop for groceries let alone anything else!
We are overnighting in a KOA campground - needed full hook-ups to recharge our batteries; do laundry and for electricity - it's in the 90's again!
Devil's Tower Monument is really unique - a huge tower of stone in the middle of the plains - pushed up by volcanic activity. We took the 1.3 mile trail around the base - a very nice paved walkway that meanders around the fallen rocks -  and watched the rock climbers way above us. All of the Indian tribes in the area consider it sacred ground and it is closed to climbers during the month of June, the summer solstice, in honor of their customs.
We are having a problem with one of the motorhome jacks - it is stuck in the"up" position (better than being stuck in the "down" position!) Apparently, the computer disengages all of them when it senses a malfunction. Roger called and got some technical support but no luck in fixing it. The closest repair place is in Sheridan, Wyoming but they are booked until the end of next week! Not a show stopper but definitely something we need to get repaired!

Bufflalo Art

Anyone remember the painted cows on the streets of downtown Chicago? We had them in San Antonio too. Well, in Custer, SD they have buffalo art!

George Mickelson Bike Trail

We decided to stay one more night here at Berkshire Lake and ride the nearby bike trail today. We drove about 40 miles to access it at a point where we could go through tunnels without having to ride too many miles - the trail is 109 miles total! We rode about 12 miles through the most gorgeous country -  following a babbling brook through alpine forests and meadows with wildflowers and butterflies - mingled with small mountains of multicolored slate. It is a "rails to trails" ride but with more grade than most old railroads - we got more of a workout than we anticipated! We went over several trestle bridges and through 2 tunnels but pooped out before we got to #3!

Afterwards, we drove to Rochford,SD - the people we met from Grand Haven told us about it - to the Moonshine Gulch Saloon for burgers and a beer. What a hoot! The lady that owns it was fun to talk with - Roger asked her about the population of Rochford and she said "Nine - and that's 3 too many!" She gets a lot of business from bikers during the big Sturgis Motorcycle Rally each summer - she says everything is very expense there but they can "afford to drink AND eat here!"

PS - We know we are "up north" because we see aspen/white birch trees and robins and because they sell "pop" not "soda!"

Mt. Rushmore

We got up early this morning and enjoyed our coffee down by the lake. It doesn't get much better than this - temperature 67 degrees!
We took the scenic byway through Custer State Park - about 70 miles - to Mt. Rushmore and back today. The weather was glorious and the scenery was beautiful - alpine hills and meadows. The road is hilly with many "S" curves and has several one way tunnels. As you pass through one of them you can see Mt. Rushmore in the distance.
We toured the monument sight and saw the movie about how the presidents faces were carved in the mountainside and were amazed at how well they are sculpted - especially their eyes! We ate our picnic lunch at "Breezy Point" in the Black Hills - reminded us of all the scenic, fun picnics we had with Dave & Marion and Bill & AnnaLee when we drove around Lake Superior last year.
Sylvan Lake is a lovely little alpine lake surrounded by rocky out croppings. We hiked to the dam and back.
There is a herd of buffalo in Custer State Park - they estimate around 1,300 - and we saw about 500 of them on the Wildlife Loop Road on our way home. They are huge and I don't remember hearing them grunt before - really loud! They were not the least bit bothered by all the traffic and cameras!
Relaxing and enjoying our pretty camp site tonight - grilling steaks and chillin'!

Custer, SD

We sat outside in the COOL weather last night at the Badlands and the stars were brilliant. We could see the Milky Way as clear as I've ever seen it. We watched satellites streak through the sky and tried to identify some of the constellations while we listened to coyotes in the distance.
At the Badlands campground the group camping area is right next to the dump station. We pulled in this morning on our way out and a large group of young boys & their chaperone's - the campground host said "135" - were all gathered around a U-Haul truck that was blocking our way out. Roger got out and went over to ask them if they could move it - of course, they said yes, they told him they were St. Marys' Boys Club.
It didn't take me long to figure out that the priest was saying Mass - using the tailgate as the altar! I felt so bad - we drove through and there was the priest standing by the side of the road holding the challis! If we had known what they were doing we could have waited! Roger said not if he was going to give a long winded homily!
In South Dakota the ranchers bale hay on the roadsides and in the medians. Makes sense, but strange to see large round hay bales along the interstate!
Signs here call small speed bumps "rumbles."
The Lakota Sioux are the Indian tribe in this area - they are into casinos too! Apparently Deadwood is the Las Vegas of SD.
We drove through more prairie land on our way to the Black Hills. Miles and miles of nothing! At one point we saw a mailbox and a sign that said "For Sale by Owner" - doubt if they get much drive by advertisement!
The Black Hills - so named because they are covered with fir trees and look black from a distance - are beautiful. Rolling high hills covered with ponderosa pine. We are staying at a National Forest Campground on Bismark Lake just on the western edge of Custer State Park. It is lovely and at 5,000 feet elevation the weather is much nicer!
We drove to Crazy Horse Monument this afternoon. It is privately owned and still a work in progress. Eventually, his horse will also be carved out.
On the way back we stopped in the town of Custer and walked around. They are getting ready for some celebration this week-end - arts/craft and food booths were set up in the park. One couple was selling "pronto pups" - Roger had to go ask what they were - similar to a corn dog! Come to find out they were from Grand Haven, Michigan - so, we had a nice chat with them.

Wall Drug

Roger got up early this morning - around 5 am!! - and it was 67 degrees! He wanted to clean all the bugs off the motorhome and car while there was some dew to help - but no dew - too windy and arid. The bugs were so plentiful and big it sounded like someone was throwing mud balls at the window when they hit - nasty! Roger said the vent to the generator was full of dead grasshoppers!
We drove the scenic loop road through Badlands National Park and Buffalo Gap National Grassland this morning. A glorious day in the low 80's! We saw antelope; a mule deer and prairie dogs - hard to get their picture - they pop in and out of their holes so fast! Hard to imagine how difficult it was to homestead out here - a tough life to be sure!
We followed the signs to Wall Drug. Not exactly my kind of shopping but we checked it off our "bucket list!"

Badlands

We drove all morning through miles of huge hay and wheat fields blowing in the wind. All of a sudden the buttes and peaks of the Badlands were on the horizon. We are staying at Badlands National Park for two nights and plan to take the scenic loop drive tomorrow. The rock formations remind us of a combination of Big Bend, Bryce Canyon and Arches National Park. But, they are so bland in color that some areas look just like a cement quarry!
If the 95 degree temperature didn't talk me out of hiking the "Beware of Rattlesnake" signs certainly did!
PS - I lucked out and got a good hair "do" in Austin before we left - Roger decided to wait - big mistake! He finally got his hair cut in Yankton - looks like an Indian scalped him!!! For once, I am asking him to put his hat on!
                                                    

Yankton

We are just across the Nebraska/South Dakota border in Yankton, SD at a beautiful Corps of Engineers park called Cottonwood - guess why?  It is located just below the dam on Lewis and Clark Lake. The water level is very high due to the snow melt and increased rainfall - water is gushing over the spillway. The flood gates are wide open - the first time since the dam was built in 1957 and someone told Roger it is flowing at over twice the previously recorded high. We can see the water spray from the campground.

We plan to stay here for 3 nights and recuperate. Just relaxing, cleaning, doing laudry and getting reorganized. Still hot - in the 90's - so golfing doesn't sound fun yet but, we'll check out the bike trail early in the morning.

Nebraska City

Saturday:
Roger drove this morning and I drove all afternoon - beginning to feel more comfortable behind the wheel. An easy drive - good roads and little traffic - not many vacationers in Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska!
Not much to see - corn, corn, and more corn! At least it got greener as we went north with pretty rolling hills and farms - better than brown grass and baked earth!
The Missouri River is flooded over I-29 near where we are staying and the highway is closed for about 30 miles.
103 today and 99 at the campground at 5pm - 10 degrees less than yesterday - every little bit helps!
Can't help but think of Heather and Kyle and the girls - still on the  airplane!
Sunday:
Email from Heather - home safe and sound but "wiped."
We started our Lewis and Clark journey "officialy" today by touring the Lewis and Clark Visitor Center on the Missouri River near Nebraska City. They were having a special celebration and had additional exhibits outside.
The keelboat maker had a small cannon similar to the ones used on LC's boats for protection. They often filled them with debris and nails. Roger made a small donation so he could load it with black powder and fire it off! BIG BOOM!! Imagine it did scare the Indians!

There was also a self proclaimed "mountain man" demonstrating guns; traps and pelts of the era but the most interesting was meeting Chamberlin Clark - 7th generation descendant of William Clark - on the left. He and a friend actually made a dugout canoe from a cottonwood tree and are paddling it from Denver, down the Platte River, to the Missouri River and on down to St. Louis. Kinda' scruffy looking dudes but I guess you need to be a little different to undertake such an adventure!

Traveling through Nebraska today to Yankton, South Dakota. Greener and a bit cooler!

Oklahoma City

We drove most of the day yesterday - north out of hot Texas - NOT!  Drove into even hotter Oklahoma - 109 as we drove into the campground - no boondocking in this kind of weather - where's the plug?!

We drove into the city to see the memorial at the Murrah Federal Building. Such a senseless tragedy(1995)  - all because of one crazy man! It is a beautiful park like setting with a large reflection pool - the water is only about an inch deep - and chairs on the hillside for each of the victims. The chairs are arranged by the floor that the person worked on with the children's chairs near their parents. It was especially poignant to see all the little chairs in remembrance of the children at the day care center that were killed - especially since we just kissed our granddaughters good-bye.

We are heading north again today - hope to make it to Nebraska City. We may hit some rain on the way - wonder if we'll recognize it?! As we gaze out the window there are plains as far as we can see - trying to imagine them covered with buffalo!

Good Bye!

We kissed the kids and our two little angels good-bye yesterday morning and headed north. Carlos and Megan will join us in Yosemite in October but we don't know when we'll see Kyle, Heather and the girls again - that always makes it much harder for me to say good-bye! We had a wonderful 6 weeks with them - lots of great memories - but, it's pretty lonesome now! No giraffe and panda bear tooth brush holders in the bathroom; no night gowns hanging by my PJ's; no little voices and no sticky finger prints!
The girls spent the night with us on July 4th and I asked Samantha what was her favorite part of the week-end and she said  "Spending time with my family" - my heart melted! Then I asked Emily and she said "CAKE!" - it was Joel's birthday!
We went out to breakfast before we left and Samantha was quiet so I asked her if she felt OK - she said "I'm just tired - Emily woke me up on the wrong side of the bed!"

Biking in San Antonio

The kids went back to work on Tuesday and Judy, Mel & Ray and Roger & I came back to San Antonio to stay at the townhouse. Quiet time compared to the week-end! We went bike riding along the river on Wednesday morning; shopped; went to the movies and had margaritas and dinner on the Riverwalk. They flew home this morning - eager to get back to cooler weather! We are staying one more night and then returning to Austin tomorrow.

Glad I looked around - found Emily's "Yogi Bear Ball" in a cupboard! Thought she had lost it for good!
Get well wishes to our friend Anne who had surgery yesterday!

Family Reunion

My whole family came to Austin for the July 4th week-end. Judy, Mel & Ray arrived Thursday night; Joel & Rachel and Kirt came in Friday afternoon and Kyle & his girlfriend, also a Rachel, got there Friday night.
Kyle Liskow was due in on Friday afternoon but when he got to the airport on Thursday night he found out the flight he booked was actually for Friday night so he didn't make it until Saturday afternoon. The girls were so disappointed - they had to wait "one more sleep" to see their Daddy! Poor guy suffered from jet lag most of the week-end!
They rented a house with a swimming pool close to where Heather & Kyle and we are staying in Austin. We spent most of the long week-end just relaxing and playing in the pool. Of course, there was a lot of eating and drinking too! Samantha & Emily are like fish in the water so they were totally relaxed with everyone. Joel & Rachel brought their dog, Oakley. Both the girls are afraid of dogs but he is such a good dog that they gradually warmed up to him.

The guys played golf in the early mornings; the girls went shopping and we went out for Mexican food one night  -but we mostly just hung out!

Megan brought arts and crafts supplies and we worked on making paper bag puppets all week-end. Everyone had a puppet that looked like them! Samantha had so much fun! On Monday night we all sat in a circle - everyone had someone elses puppet and had to act like their character. It was hilarious!

Joel's birthday is on the 4th so Samantha and Emily picked out a pinata for him. They were eager to help eat the candy!
The best of family times!!

Splash Pad

There is a "Splash Pad" with water spouts for the kids to play in near our RV park. The girls love it!