Katie's Meanderings

Devils Tower National Monument

2010-09-22T00:11:00.001-04:00

Early Sunday morning, Sept. 12, we headed from Sheridan, Wyoming, to Devils Tower National Monument, famous for its role in the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Ray had read something saying that you can view the monument from the road for free. We figured we'd drive by, snap some photos, and head for the hills--the Black Hills.

So, we pulled off at the spot designated for taking photos. My first shot, with my 18-55 mm lens, made it look rather puny in the wide open spaces. Not what I expected at all.

Then I put on my friend Ike's 70-300 mm lens and brought it in closer (but it was windy and I had trouble holding the camera steady enough without a tripod, which I was usually too hurried to use).

Still not so impressive. Maybe we'd find a road that gets us closer. When we drove on down the road and turned toward the tower, we realized it was part of the National Parks system. An unexpected opportunity to use Ray's NPS senior pass ($10 lifetime investment that got us in to all the National Parks that charged a fee).

What was supposed to take less than an hour wound up taking us about three hours. All I can say is, if you ever go to Devils Tower, spring for the admission price to the park. It's phenomenal up close. And, yes, the sky really was that blue.

We decided to take the Tower Trail, a 1.5 mile hike that takes you around the entire tower. Each side of the tower had something new to offer. First, a reminder that this place is held sacred by many Native Americans, especially in the Plains tribes.

Ray posed at the base of the trail.

And off we went.

To go beyond the boulders at the base of the tower requires registration with the National Park Service (probably because only rock climbers go beyond there--and the NPS probably needs to know how to contact next of kin if they don't make it up and back safely).

Can you see the climbers in this one? (You really can only see one, because one is behind the other.) Look closely.

In case you didn't see him, here's a close-up. Now you'd think only these two would be crazy enough to do this, but every side had a few climbers. I'm more than a little afraid of heights, so I just don't see the attraction.

I must have a thing for dead trees, but this one really caught my attention.

On this side of the tower, I spotted a climber midway between "shelves" (wearing a light green jacket). But when I blew up the photo, there actually were SIX in the photo! First, the full shot.

Now for the closeup. Can you find them all?

About halfway around the tower, we came upon some viewing tubes (stationary so that you couldn't miss the ladder, although it still was hard to see) and this sign.

Here's a closeup of the historic ladder (horizontally about halfway across the photo, at a diagonal line with the "ribs" of the tower). Check it out to the right--yet another climber! (They don't let you use the ladder any more.) I read that it usually takes 4-6 hours to climb the tower, although someone did it in 18 minutes once.

Yep, another dead tree. You wonder what caused the trunk bark to look so twisted.

As I said earlier, the Plains Indians treat this as sacred place, and we saw prayer cloths like this one in trees all around the tower. Visitors are cautioned not to disturb them.

About three-fourths of the way around the tower, there were more trees. Right about now, we're thinking 1.5 miles is longer than we thought.

When I read this marker, I thought, "Oh, my! The tower is crumbling and may not be here much longer!"

Then I read the REST of the story.

Phew! I guess I have time to pose for a photo near where the loop trail meets up with where we began.

From here, we drove on to Hill City, So. Dakota. We thought we had a reservation at the Comfort Inn, but it didn't go through with the online booking site. (Always make sure you get a confirmation!) So, Ray looked at the travel book and we found a nice locally owned place called the Lantern Inn. Great people own it and we're glad that we got to stay there. Liked it so much, we stayed another night so we'd have a full day Monday to enjoy the 1880 Train and the Crazy Horse Memorial. I'll save that for another blog.

Moose on the Loose in the Bighorns

2010-09-21T22:28:00.000-04:00

We left Montana for the last time via US 310 into Wyoming. At Cowley, we picked up the Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway (US 14A East). We hadn't gone too far before Ray said, "There's something crossing the road ahead." Being used to free range country, I figured it would be a cow. He thought it was a moose, but I had given up "shooting" a moose, not having seen a single one since we'd started the trip.

But as I rounded the curve, sure enough, it was a MOOSE! As it came to the road, it stopped and looked in our direction. I was driving, but reached for the camera and got off three shots.

Another car approached it from the other side.

And one more before it sauntered into the woods.

While I drove, Ray snapped some photos of the passing landscape through the passenger window and windshield. In the early 1960s, Ray and his parents had driven west and came eastward through the Bighorn Mountains. But it didn't look the same as they had seen it in the early summer, with snow and wildflowers. Now it was dry and arid. If not for the evergreens, it would have been a barren-looking landscape.

We didn't really see much snow in the Bighorns. Perhaps it was on the northern sides of the slopes and we were on the southern sides. If we'd gone to the Medicine Wheel Passage, we probably would have found snow. But it was getting late and we were trying to get to Sheridan, Wyo., for the night. So we just kept driving.

We pulled over at a rest stop, where a fellow traveler with an accent asked us if there were any hotels on the road ahead. I asked where he was from, and he said Sweden. He was driving through the mountains and planning to end up in Salt Lake City before flying home. Ray mentioned that his cousin married a man with recent roots in Sweden, but we couldn't remember where they were from.

These rocks look small until you realize that the green spiky vegetation are tall evergreens. And the lighter-colored trees dotting the landscape are aspens. They're turning lighter, but not the brilliant yellow they soon will be.

The upthrust of the mountains is clear jutting out among the evergreens.

You can see yet another winding road ahead of us. The populated area in the upper-lefthand side of the photo is the town of Dayton, Wyoming. We're about the leave the Bighorn Mountains. As we drove down the mountain, the rock formations were labeled, showing the various time periods in which they were formed, including the Pennsylvanian Era. (Ray was born in Pennsylvania, which is why it caught my eye.)

Speaking of Ray, here he is!

Before we headed for Sheridan, I snapped one more shot of this interesting looking tree skeleton.

Next up, we get to use Ray's National Parks senior pass one last time (for this trip, at least)--Devils Tower, a National Monument in northeast Wyoming, near Hulett.

What a Difference a Day Makes--Recrossing the Beartooth Pass and the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway

2010-09-19T23:56:00.002-04:00

We left Red Lodge, Montana, early Saturday morning (Sept. 11) and headed back over the Beartooth Mountains. The sky was as blue as could be, no sign of the snowstorm the night before.

We stopped a few miles outside of town to snap some photos of the river. (Not sure which river it was, but am sure it's a tributary of the Yellowstone River. It was on the right-hand side of the road--US 212--southwest of town.)

The road ahead looked promising. See what I said about a blue sky?

Check out the rock slide catcher. (I'm sure that's not what it's called, but it gets the idea across.)

Here's the closeup. It's made of steel. Looks like chainmail, reinforced with a layer of steel rings.

While driving over the mountain passes in the snowstorm was exciting and beautiful, these were the views we expected when we put this route on our itinerary.

Lakes dot the countryside, between the mountain peaks.

The ice and snow were melting in the warm sun, but it looks like it got worse overnight, judging by how much was left.

Don't look down. There were lots of places without guardrails where I, for one, would have appreciated them. The poles on the side of the road are to help snow plows find the road when it's covered in snow. (The other side has similar poles, as seen in the photo above.)

I'm not sure what this is for. It's not a ski lift. Any ideas?

Not too long before the Bear's Tooth, we came across this feller buried up to his waist in snow. Looks like there was some fun had on the mountain last night (or early this morning).

What a cutie.

Remember the photo at Bear's Tooth last night (where the couple were taking a photo)? Well, here's what the Bear's Tooth looks like (this one, at least--I guess there may be others that count as bear's teeth, too).

This time, we stopped at the pulloff at West Summit--and the wind blew my door shut with such force, I'd have broken my legs if I hadn't caught it before it hit them.

See how the wind is blowing my pants and hair? It was hard to stand upright.

We descend around sharp curves.

Here comes a snow plow. As you enter the scenic highway, there are signs informing you that snowplows do not plow after about 4 p.m.and before 8 a.m. Sometime in September, the road/pass will close for the season.

The mountains seemed to go on forever. Around every mountain, we'd see the range stretching from one side of the horizon to the other.

Check out the long and winding road.

Now this is a serious-looking snow plow. Check out those claws! (It was parked at a turnout, though, because the snow wasn't deep enough for this kind of power.)

As we neared the turnoff for the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway, we stopped to capture this photo of a pretty meadow with Yellowstone in the background.

Another high peak off to the west, but soon we'd be turning east toward the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming.

Yet another of the great scenic highways of America's West. This is northeast of Yellowstone, taking us to the Bighorn Mountains.

We were too early for large displays of golden aspens (that will come in the next few weeks), but I noticed that the seedlings and saplings turned golden early, so stopped for a bit of fall color.

We came upon the highest bridge in Wyoming--the Sunlight Bridge (click here to see what it looks like when you aren't standing on it)--and stopped to take some photos. I'm not sure what other activities they were prohibiting with this sign.

Looking down (with the girders of the bridge showing for perspective) onto Sunlight Creek.

Here was the view of Sunlight Creek from the other side of the bridge.

At a pulloff high up one of the peaks, we stopped and I found this sculpture depicting the Nez Perce. Chief Joseph's band of non-treaty Nez Perce fought in Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho to avoid being put on a reservation. Of course, they lost the war ultimately, and in northern Montana, Chief Joseph uttered his famous words: "...I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever." Then he surrendered his people to a reservation in Idaho.

Here's a photo taken at this turnout. Below (right side) is the road we had just traveled to get to this lookout.

Further down the mountain, as the terrain began to level out, we saw this butte in the distance. We later discovered it was two different buttes, not one as they appeared here.

These red rocks were interesting. We could see snowcapped mountains off in the distance. These may have been the Bighorn Mountains.

Here you can see the two separate buttes.

We drove through a lot of open range areas where cows and horses roamed free, but someone did some serious fencing along this road (northern Wyoming, before getting back into Montana, I believe).

These ranches looked more like the desert to me. Not much rainfall here.

We crossed into Montana and outside Belfry there was a beautiful valley with farmland.

We got a kick out of the school sign.

On a much more somber note, before leaving Montana for the last time, I wanted to photograph one of the white crosses placed by the American Legion of Montana to indicate where roadside fatalities had occurred. For reference, here's the sign I took a photo of as we were entering Montana on the Beartooth Scenic Byway Friday night.

I had noticed the uniform markers from a week earlier when we first entered Montana. This marker was placed not far from the Wyoming border north of Frannie (Wyo.), as we left Montana for the last time (on this trip, at least). A loved one had place on it an autumn wreath.

Here's a parting shot taken in Montana, with the promise of the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming to come, where I would FINALLY get my moose.

Beartooth Pass in a Snow Squall

2010-09-19T20:59:00.001-04:00

On Friday, Sept. 10, after leaving Yellowstone, we headed for Red Lodge, Montana, where we had a room reservation. When we made the reservation, the plan was to drive over the beautiful Absaroka-Beartooth mountain passes on the Beartooth Scenic Highway in Wyoming and Montana. All day long, we had seen snow squalls up in the high mountains--and the roadbed at the highest point in this pass was at nearly 11,000 feet. (The snow line tended to be about 9,000 feet.)

As we exited Yellowstone at the northeast exit, we saw a sign saying the Beartooth Scenic Highway was open. So, we decided to go for it. A dark rain cloud blanketed the northeast Yellowstone area in darkness. And the rain was falling as snow up ahead, where we were headed.

We still hadn't stopped sightseeing, though, capturing these mule deer crossing the road. (Taken through the rainy windshield.)

The roadway continued to be wet (not icy) as snow began to accumulate on the ground.

As we climbed higher in elevation, we were enveloped by the snow squall. (That's the guard rail and post in the lower part of the photo. We didn't stop to too often to take photos! For the first time in the trip, on this leg of the journey, my husband Ray took up the camera and shot this and many of the other photos taken as we crossed the Beartooth Mountains pass.)

The the road was still clear.

We captured this beautiful vista from a side window.

Here's a shot showing the switchback roads lying ahead of us. Looks like a little slush accumulating at the roadside.

And the snow, snow, snow, came down, down, down.

Near the Bear's Tooth marker turnout we saw a couple pulled over to take a photo. As you can see by the snow drifting across the road, the winds were really high. We were nearing the West Summit, where the winds seemed to be strongest. Ray snapped this photo.

I was driving, so I asked for the camera and pulled up alongside them to snap this photo. The man asked if we wanted him to move out of the way. I laughed and said, we can't see the Bear's Tooth--these two people WERE the photo I wanted.

The sun tried to break through the heavy clouds, without much success.

Ray snapped this shot of the snow blowing across the pass. I was getting a little nervous about driving through the drifting snow! But was more afraid of pulling over and getting stuck up there.

The actual pass was rather harrowing and the camera was put aside so we both could focus on the driving. (Ray was my moral support.) Then, shortly after crossing over the West Summit, we looked out and the snow was no longer falling and blowing. Look at those canyons!

Then, like night and day, not long after we crossed the pass, we reached the eastern side of the mountains, where the skies were blue, the roads dry, and you'd think it was a different day altogether. In the upper-left side of the photo, notice the little stretch of road. Then the longer stretch below. We did lots of winding our way around mountainsides.

We stopped at the Rock Creek Vista Point (elevation 9,190 feet) to switch drivers. Unlike similar elevations in Yellowstone and west of the Beartooth Mountains, there was no snow here either.

But it was very cold and blustery! Looking back to the west, we could see what we'd just been through.

From here, we drove on to Red Lodge, Montana. While I didn't take any photos, it was a neat little town, with lots of artsy types. Much bigger than I thought, too. I expected it to be a small tourist town. For dinner, we went to the Carbon County Steakhouse for a real treat--Ray had some of the best salmon he's ever had and I had a rack of ribs. Possibly the best meal we had on the trip (and we had a lot of good meals!).

Next up, a return over the Beartooth Pass in sunshine and on to the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming.

A Winter's Day, In a Deep and Dark ... September?

2010-09-18T00:20:00.000-04:00

On Friday, Sept. 10, we awoke in Jackson, Wyoming, to find that snow had fallen in the mountains nearby. While excited to head up to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone national parks and check it out, first we set out for breakfast. We wound up in the Bunnery, where we'd had a really good dinner (with reasonable prices, which isn't easy in Jackson) a night or two earlier. One tip for finding coffee or breakfast in the morning in Jackson, nothing opens before 7 a.m.

We walked to breakfast and I snapped a few photos of shops and residences along the way. This is strictly a tourists town, with lots of eateries, bars, and art galleries.

This sign caught my eye (near the Bunnery).

At the Town Square, the entrances all have these gates made of entwined antlers (elk?). I'm not sure how many animals died to make it possible. Maybe they just shed their antlers and someone gathered them all up. (A positive spin!)

Check out this fence on North Millward Street near our hotel.

Here's a closeup of the gate.

After we checked out of the hotel, we headed out of town to the north. (See my blog about the Tetons for photos taken on the 10th of that part of the journey.)

What a difference a day makes! When we arrived at Yellowstone, it was exciting to see the mountains covered in snow across the lake.

Soon we were in the snowy mountains ourselves.

The roadways were clear, so we could enjoy the snow and not worry about the driving.

We pulled off at the Lake Lodge in Yellowstone to mail some postcards and I snapped a quick photo of the back side of the lodge.

We drove around the lodge and on the side where the cabins are located, we found some bison grazing. These tourists didn't even have to leave their front porches to encounter wildlife up close and personal.

Near the entrance of the Lake Lodge, we found these rangers on horseback.

A little further down the road, we saw this elk buck grazing. Check out his rack!

One of the last sights I wanted to see in Yellowstone was Tower Falls. While Yellowstone Falls (the blog entry before this one) was powerful with lots of water, I love these tall ones with less water. Isn't it beautiful?

We then headed for the northeast entrance of the park, on our way to the Beartooth Scenic Highway and the pass that's almost 11,000 feet high (on the roadway). We had seen snow falling in the high mountains all day and wondered if they'd close the pass before we got there (or if we should just chose an alternate route). But, having lived in snowy conditions for many, many years, we decided to go for it when we saw signs that the pass was open. In my next blog, I'll share the experience of crossing the Beartooth in snow and high-wind (drifting snow) conditions.

But first, we saw another herd of bison as we headed for the exit to Yellowstone. With blue skies and those clouds, it's hard to believe what weather was awaiting us in Montana.

But this view of the same herd showing the road ahead hints at what is to come.

Yellowstone National Park--Day One

2010-09-16T00:26:00.000-04:00

We went to Yellowstone National Park two days during our vacation--Sept. 9 and 10. The two days were radically different weatherwise, so it was like visiting at two seasons of the year--fall and winter.

On the first day, we took the Old Faithful loop. Before we arrived at the oarking area for the famous geyser, we saw our first bison.

I've heard people have waited 90 minutes from the time of arrival before seeing Old Faithful spout off. Well, we sat down and five minutes later, off she went.

From there, we checked out the geyser basin nearby and saw some of the bacteria that causes the rocks to look yellow.

Here's a closeup of one of the scalding pools. The smell of rotten eggs was pretty pungent.

I really liked the Opalescent Pool, though. The pools is blue not because it was reflecting the blue of the sky, because it was a very cloudy day.

We got a real treat with these two elk curled up beside a stream. I can't imagine anyone wanting to shoot such beautiful creatures with anything other than a camera.

I love waterfalls and we decided to take the loop road to Firehole Falls. There, we encountered a very friendly chipmunk--my, but these 'munks are huge out west! (You can't tell here, but it was about 50-percent larger than the ones in the midwest. The western ones also have long bushy tails. Maybe they're a cross between a chipmunk and a squirrel.

This wasn't one of the tallest falls, but it was a pretty one with lots of stones to cause the water to diverge in different directions.

We also drove out the North Rim loop and saw Yellowstone Falls. While walking back to the car, I heard an osprey's cry and saw the mama swoop down onto a jutting rock in the canyon where she had several fledglings. No photo, but we watch her feeding her babies through the binoculars and shared the field glasses and conversation with another couple. These were pretty big babies and we figured mama would be clearing her next soon. Can you imagine what it must be like for them to take their first flight? It's a long way down!

As we made our way to the Mud Volcano Area, I saw an old bison bull making his way across a field. On the other side of the road (and far across a river and a field) was an enormous herd of hundreds of bison. I had a feeling this old bull was heading down to rejoin the herd, so we pulled off where other visitors were photographing the far-off herd. Slowly, but surely, this noble beast made his way. At one point, we were afraid this unobservant driver was going to hit him. (The driver must have been looking at the herd and missed the one right in his path!)

But he made it across the road, not too concerned about all the gawking (and clicking) people standing nearby.

Clearly, the old fellow has had to deal with more than his share of tourists.

The neatest thing was to watch him swim across the river (note the dark specks on the right-hand upper side of the field--part of the herd).

Then, he stood up in the water and shook off the excess water.

From here, we went on to the Volcano Mud Area. This pool bubbled with its steamy contents. Notice the islands of vegetation growing (and dying) nearby.

I thought the colors of these "grasses" (or whatever) were so beautiful compared to all of the gray and neutral colors nearby.

Then we came to the Dragon's Mouth. The rhythmic "belching" of the dragon was mesmerizing. And check out the milky color of the water! A sign said this "mouth" used to spew it's hot, milky contents at visitors on the walkway. But it hasn't been that forceful in the last couple decades (for which I am truly thankful).

As we made out way toward the southern exit, it began to rain. I looked out across the lake at one point and was sure I saw snow in the higher mountains. (As you read in the blog entry before this one, I hoped that would mean snow in the Tetons.) But the rain was falling and the sun was shining and there in front of us (very briefly) was a beautiful partial rainbow.

Talk about a perfect ending to another wonderful day of checking out the many wonders our nation (and National Parks) had to offer!

The Grand Tetons--Ahhhhh

2010-09-12T23:45:00.001-04:00

After driving through northcentral and eastern Idaho along US 12 (a beautiful drive!), we arrived in Jackson, Wyoming, on Sept. 8 and stayed until Friday, Sept. 10. This was our home base for touring the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone national parks. Rooms are usually in the $200+ range, but we called the morning we were due to arrive and got a room for only $115 including tax at the Angler's Inn on Millward.

Check out the room--with a real woolen blanket on the bed! (Good thing, because it snowed in the nearby mountains the second night we were there. Brrrr.)

We quickly unloaded the car, then got back in and headed for the Tetons and Jenny Lake. The majestic Tetons spoke to my heart. I felt as if I'd been here before--perhaps in another lifetime. All I know for certain is that I will be back one day. (I want to see the peaks with much more snow on them!)

Jenny Lake was so serene. The sun was low on the horizon and I thought it was beautiful how it was shining between these mountains. The northern slopes of the one mountain still had a lot of snow caps.

In the morning, we headed back to the Tetons, then on to Yellowstone. (More about the latter in another blog entry.) The clouds were casting shadows on the mountains.

This time, we drove up to the Moran Junction (also the road to Yellowstone). Here's my attempt at a mirror-image photograph. Still not perfectly still and the ducks (mergansers) were determined to swim across the reflection multiple times, but I did manage to et this shot before they disturbed the water again. The cloud makes Mt. Moran look like a volcano spewing its steam.

Driving back to Jackson from Yellowstone that night we were in a driving rain. I thought, surely that is coming down as snow up in the high elevations. When I got back to town and checked weather.com, I was right. Was I going to get my wish to see snow on the peaks of the Tetons this very trip?

Well, half and half. Here was the view Friday morning. Heavy clouds obstructed the view of the upper peaks, but I did get to see that snow had indeed fallen overnight.

Likewise, Mt. Moran's peak was lost in the clouds.

Our last stop in the Tetons was at the Jackson Lake picnic area. The cloud cover got even heavier. You'd think this photo was taken in monochrome or grayscale.

I cried as I said goodbye to the Tetons, which isn't my normal reaction when leaving a place, no matter how beautiful. My soul was having a visceral reaction to the Tetons and I can't wait to return again and again.

Falling in Love with Palouse Falls

2010-09-12T00:22:00.001-04:00

On Labor Day (Sept. 6), we woke early and set out for a two-hour drive westward in Washington to the Palouse Falls State Park. We drove through more dramatic and ever-changing landscape. Most people I know who have been to Washington State have only seen Seattle and the Pacific coastal areas. Even the locals in Pullman we asked about the falls said they hadn't been. But this was a four-hour round-trip drive we'd gladly take again and are happy we didn't decide to just head for Idaho. The state park would wind up being the furthest west we travel on this trip.

We took US 195 North to state highway 26 West (the Walla Walla Highway) to highway 260/261 through Washtucna (what seemed like a dying town, but apparently there are some year-round residents, because we met one--the ranger at the state park).

In contrast to the "sand-dune" wheat fields of yesterday, the terrain looked much like this on the drive.

My hubby, a geology enthusiast, explained that the area was once a "hot spot," which now is located at Yellowstone. So, the basalt rocks shown here were from lava flows long, long ago. (You'll have to google for more scientific information.) The area has the unfortunate name of "the Scablands."

After a very long drive on little-traveled roads, we arrived at the park.

Palouse Falls is located on the Washtucna Coulee and nearly 200 feet to the basin below. The ranger said that, in the winter when the ice in the basin gets high, the falls are much shorter.) While not as spectacular as in the spring and early summer, the September flow over the falls was impressive and beautiful. The park ranger said that the water flowed here from the St. Joe River in Idaho (near Coeur D'Alene, which we had seen the day before).

From here, it flows to the Snake River through these basalt canyons.

Near the stairway to the falls, I captured these beautiful sunflowers.

We spent another hour just walking around the state park and checking out different vistas and sights.

I'm always fascinated with train tracks. Didn't see a train go by and didn't want to get any closer to the ledge, but managed this shot.

We also spent quite a bit of time talking with the park ranger, who has worked there for six years and you cna tell she takes great pride in this special place. She's loved by new and repeat patrons alike. Just a few minutes before this photo was taken, some fishermen gave her these beautiful peaches before they headed off to do some fishing.

When we arrived at the park that morning, she was busy sweeping off the sidewalks. She told us tales of a kayaker who went over the falls (when the rangers weren't on duty) and how she worries when people go on the unofficial trails to get a better look (because they have no rails to keep them from falling off the trail). She often sees them sliding and just holds her breath until they right themselves.

We hated to leave, but had to try and get to Idaho at least for the night, so we left just as the Labor Day picnickers and others were arriving. We headed for US 12 along the Snake River and took this photo of a railroad bridge over the river before moving on. The sunlight on the undergirding made for an interesting photo.

We spent the night in Lewiston, Idaho, just over the river from Washington. There was an awful smell throughout the town that we never quite identified. But we did manage this pretty sunset photo along the Clearwater River walk that evening. Another railroad bridge. This was a drawbridge, but you can only just see the left side of the drawbridge frame. The middle section was never lowered while we were there, so perhaps it isn't used much anymore. I didn't have a tripod, but managed to hold the camera steady enough on a railing or bench. Improvise!

My next blog entry will be on the drive along US 12 through eastern and north central Idaho and then Jackson, Wyoming. I must be fickle, because my love soon shifted from Palouse Falls to the Tetons.

Northern Idaho and the Palouse in Washington State

2010-09-10T23:53:00.000-04:00

We spent Saturday, Sept. 4, along the eastern side of Flathead Lake and the night in Kalispell, Montana. As I write this (on Sept. 10), I find myself back in Montana. We encountered snow in Yellowstone and on the Beartooth Pass. But more about that later.

From Kalispell, we headed south on US 93 to Ravali, where we took Highway 200 westward into Idaho. This photo was taken just after we left Sanders Co., Idaho.

After a few photos, we were back in the car and heading toward Highway 135, which took us to I-90. Our destination was Coeur D'Alene Lake and the Scenic Byway on the eastern side of the lake. First we stopped for lunch at Sherman Junction, on Sherman Avenue in Coeur D'Alene. Really huge sandwiches for only $7-8 apiece with side! (I did not take the Tubbs Hill Challenge described in that review link.)

We had a false start on the lakeside scenic byway and took the local scenic parkway instead along the northern shore. Nice walking and bike paths. And a beautiful view of the lake.

I was interested in the Memorial Bridge we crossed when we came in on I-90 (and crossed again as we headed eastbound to the scenic byway exit).

If you decide to take the scenic byway, it's off I-90, exit 22, and here's the byway sign.

Here are some houses with nice lakeside views.

Further down the lake, we stopped to photograph some sailboats on the lake.

The wind was whipping the lake. There were storms abrewing further down the lake.

A lonely dock.

Here's the view from the passenger seat (through the windshield).

Remember that rain I told you about. Here it comes!

Rain followed us, off and on, through Idaho and into the Palouse area of Washington. We entered the state at Tekoa (without even a welcome sign) and wound our way to Steptoe. If you've never heard of this area, here's a photo showing the wheatfields shaped like sand dunes. This was once a glacial flood plane. It looked dry to us, but apparently this has been a wet spring.

Check out the wheels on that tractor! I guess that's how they are able to maneuver along those dunes.

The road to Steptoe Butte, which towers like a mountain over the Palouse area.

My hubby strolls along a path at the top of Steptoe.

And the rain, rain, rain came down, down, down. Luckily, not enough to spoil the photography. It actually made for some interesting shots, I think.

More views from the butte.

The Palouse just reminded me of a crazy quilt.

As beautiful and interesting as the area was at harvest time, I'd still love to see it in springtime. Linda Lantzy's photos (especially the spring ones) are what drew me to this area in the first place.

We spent the night in Pullman, home of Washington State University, and the next day saw another beautiful site that most people who visit Washington (or even those who live nearby) never see--Palouse Falls. It was a four-hour round-trip drive westerward and would be the furthest west we went on this trip.

Parting is such sweet sorrow

2010-09-09T00:37:00.000-04:00

Glacier National Park, its views, and its people are so amazing. We're already looking into taking a train from Cincinnati to East Glacier in the early Summer some year to enjoy it in a different season.

On our last night (Friday, Sept. 3), we decided to drive up to the lodge at Many Glaciers to hike and maybe get a nice sunset shot. After checking out various trails (and starting off on one that's clearly intended for horses, given the urine stench and hoofmarks), we found the Swiftcurrent Lake Trail, which went around the lake and was only 2.4 miles long. It seemed a safe trail--lots of other hikers, close to the lodge. We were not wanting any bear encounters. But we don't always get what we want!

Here's the view from the lodge side looking across the lake.

These trees caught my eye. I wonder what caused them to be so distorted.

At about the halfway mark in the trail, we crossed over a bridge and I took some shots looking straight down at a tiny "waterfall" below the bridge, using the bridge to prop the camera so that I could use a slower shutter speed. I'm loving taking shots where I "slow down" the water!

Just a little further, after the split off for another trail (Grinnell Lake, perhaps), we came upon some people standing stockstill in the path. They motioned to us and said there was a bear. Having seen a black bear along the shore during our boat ride earlier that day, we just figured it would be another black bear.

Not so. About 50-60 foot down the path, there was a huge mama bear and we soon realized this was a brown bear. She was almost blondish in spots. She was ambling along the shore, to the right of the trail (within feet of where we would have passed if someone hadn't stopped us). Then she stood up to reach some delectable morsel in the tree.

She doesn't look as big in the photo as she did in real life. But, after hearing another one traipsing around in the hills above us, we decided it would be prudent if we turned around and headed back to the lodge parking lot. When we got past the boat dock and the little bridge, we looked back across the lake and saw the mama grizzly being followed by not one, but two cubs. It scares us to think what could have happened if the cubs had come down the hill with us between them and mama. Or if hikers coming from the other direction had scared her in our direction. This was close enough for me (even if it didn't net me a great photo).

Instead of heading back to East Glacier, we stopped in at the St. Mary's entrance and drove up to Wild Goose Island to see if we might get a nice sunset photo. No such luck there, but it was still a nice place to sit and reflect on the day.

As we made our way to the exit (and the long drive via Browning back to East Glacier), we saw these clouds that lit the sky on fire.

The drive home through the Blackfoot Nation was uneventful (because I was able to brake before hitting the horses walking across the road just beyond one of the many sharp curves).

The following morning, we had breakfast at Luna's in East Glacier before heading for Kalispell, Montana. My hubby read the headline in the Great Falls (Mont.) newspaper, and I heard it as "Moose turns head ..." and thought, wow--a moose turns its head and makes the front page. But it was actually the people who were turning their heads:

From Glacier, we drove to Flathead Lake on Sept. 4, where I did some research for a novel I have set there. I'll share more about that later in a writing-related blog. Then, on Sept. 5, we headed down the western side of Flathead Lake to I-90 and across northern Idaho to stay at Pullman, Wash. More about our visit to the Palouse area of Washington in my next entry!

The Big Red Bus

2010-09-07T01:27:00.000-04:00

On Friday, September 3, we rose early and headed under the train tracks to the East Glacier Lodge to meet up with our 9:30 Red Bus "Secret Valley" tour. There were two interesting signs I found near the bellmen's station while waiting for our bus. Check out the date and the forecast:

Interestingly, my hubby and I have already checked the Amtrak schedule from Cincinnati to East Glacier and on to Seattle. Next trip planning is in the works! We figured seeing Glacier in June or July would be like seeing a whole different place. There were others on our bus tour who were traveling by train, too, and seemed to enjoy that.

The other sign next to it was this one:

Bellman (or Bell-evators) with a sense of humor!

Then we met our driver, Larry Perry (a Red Bus icon), and loaded into the bus. Here's Larry providing a welcome and some info about the day's tour.

Everyone was there early and so we started off a little before 9:30. First he drove over to the Amtrak Station and we were able to take this great shot of the East Glacier Lodge and gardens. Larry had the roof rolled back, so I could stand up and take the photo without a window.

Later in the day, we spoke with one of the gardeners. She said the garden crew weeded 40 hours per week. She was on her knees weeding at the time. They kept the gardens up beautifully. At the end of the season, the soil from the window boxes and baskets at the lodge would be dumped into the garden to reuse the soil.

Larry drove us past the road to the lake and up to where we could view Two Medicine Valley. Here's another passenger taking a photo from the rooftop. (I was the only one who did this while the bus was moving.) This particular bus was the first to be refurbished by Ford Motor Company. When the cost was deemed to be too prohibitive to do the entire fleet, the buses were retired. This bus was sent to Washington, D.C., to the Smithsonian Institution for a few years before Ford discovered a more economical way to restore the buses. Still, it cost Ford and some other companies about $7 million to restore the fleet.

Here's Larry and some of our fellow passengers. I believe that's the lower lake below.

There are three lakes in the Two Medicine area. Part of our tour ticket cost included a boat ride on one of the lakes. Here are a few photos taken from the bow of the boat, where I and a couple other photographers stood for uninhibited photos. From the boat, we caught a glimpse of a black bear on one shore and the tiny white speck of a mountain goat on another. Neither was close enough to photograph.

This Two Medicine Camp Store is a National Historic Landmark. President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered one of his 1934 Fireside Chats from here. This was the dining room for the chalet that used to serve park visitors in this location.

On a nature walk to Running Eagle Falls, Larry told us that the Mountain Ash berry led to the color chosen for the Red Bus touring vehicles. In early September, they were still orange, but later turned more red. The person who was ordering the park buses filled a mason-type jar with the red berries and sent them to the White Motor Company in Cleveland, where the buses were being made. He told them that the buses should be painted that color--and they have been ever since.

Here was the Running Eagle Falls. I didn't have my tripod with me, so I propped the camera onto a railing. I'm pleased with how it came out taken with a slower shutter speed.

Larry pointed out the three types of rocks found in this area of Glacier. The red ones were highest on the mountains and exposed to the most oxygen for more than a billion years. The greenish ones were in the next layer, getting their color from being undersea over that time. And the white ones were limestone, which were the lowest level.

This photo of Rising Wolf Mountain, taken earlier while on the lake, clearly shows the red and greenish layers. The white limestone layer is nearer the base.

Larry pointed out this tree where a black bear had scratched the trunk to bring out the sap, which would attract flies and insects. A couple days later, the bear would return to eat the sticky treats.

And this was the mark of a grizzly bear with it's larger claw (the wider one on the right) doing the same thing.

Little did we know that we would encounter a grizzly (or a "grizz" as Larry called them) on our hike at Many Glacier's Swiftcurrent Lake that evening!

Going-to-the-Sun Road

2010-09-05T23:42:00.000-04:00

Everyone told us that we must take the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier, so that was the first place we went. Arriving from the east, you start at St. Mary's, wind your way through the park (east to west, more or less) and come out at West Glacier, MT. We were told by some folks from Washington that the west side is more spectacular than the east. I don't know if it was because of construction vehicles blocking all of the scenic views at the top of the west side of Logan's Pass, or that most of the spectacular views were behind us, but we didn't agree. In retrospect, I think that with Logan's Pass before you, you'll find it the most beautiful. They probably never drove east to west as we did. If we drove from West Glacier to Logan's Pass, we probably would have agreed with them.

This Going-to-the-Sun Road was forged in the 1930s with the many workers in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). This bridge reminded me of other CCC projects. It was near the entrance on the St. Mary's River. (If you don't get out of the car and look back, you will miss it.)

The wind whipping out of Logan's Pass causes the east side to be much windier, especially down at St. Mary's Lake, which looked very choppy.

Our first glimpse of the historic Red Buses of Glacier National Park.

These are one of the icons associated with the park (along with the mountain goats). We were fortunate to get a tour with Larry Perry the next day in one of the buses that had been relegated to the Smithsonian after it wore out, before Ford Motors and some other companies found a way to economically refurbish them. More about that in another blog!

We saw that several of the Red Buses had pulled over at a spot, so we did, too. You've heard the expression about something taking your breath away. When I came around the trees and looked out at Wild Goose Island and the mountains surrounding St. Mary's Lake. Apparently, I'm not alone, because I read or heard somewhere that this is the most photographed spot in the park.

There were a number of wildflowers blooming. Here are a few, although I can only identify the first ones--Indian Paintbrush.

Actually, the one on the left below is a Showy Daisy (or Aspen daisy in some books).

We stopped between the first and second construction flagmen (notice the construction area on the left side of the photo) to take photos of Siyeh Creek, downstream. As we entered the park, we saw signs that Logan Pass was closed from 9 p.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. Our thought was, why would anyone want to be on this road in the dark?

Here's the view of Siyeh looking upstream.

Just before the east-side tunnel, we were stopped for construction again. I got out of the car and ran across the road to quickly take some shots. (A super-friendly construction worker gave me the heads up when the last car was coming down the mountain, so I got back in the car just in time.) Not the sharpest photo, but the wind was really whipping and I didn't have time for a tripod.

This tunnel was more picturesque than the one on the west side of the mountain--minus all the construction paraphernalia. But I was glad that the park is keeping up the road so that we can see these beautiful views.

The parking lot at Logan Pass was full, so my hubby stayed with the illegally parked car. (He found a group from Washington State to talk with and didn't mind at all.) This photo was taken from the sidewalk near the visitors center. Our car was at the opposite end of the parking lot.

It was very windy on the pass and I didn't take out the tripod, so the shots probably aren't as sharp as they could be. The next two views were taken looking eastward.

I wasn't able to climb the trails beside the Visitors Center to see what views there were then. Had expected to come back on the road again, but didn't get to. Oh, well--next time! (And there WILL be a next time!)

As I said earlier, going down the western side, we were limited in where we could stop. These shots were taken through the windshield or the driver's side window (past my hubby who was driving). Here you can see the Going-to-the-Sun Road hugging the curves of the mountainsides.

In this one I got a little of the window, but left it in to show I'm telling the truth about how I got the photo. The places where you can see the rock strata, the snow is new. In the places where it's thick and white, the snow probably has been there since the spring snowfalls. You can't see but a couple glaciers anymore on the American side, so it was nice to be able to see the snow packs. But it will always be Glacier National Park because they still are what carved these beautiful mountains.

While the car was stopped for another flagman, I jumped out and snapped these harebells.

Bird Woman Falls drops 492 feet. This is the view up the mountain, but it continues far below. Bird Woman is the Americanized name for Sacajawea, the Shoshoni woman who helped Lewis and Clark on their 1804 expedition.

We stopped at Lake MacDonald to mail postcards and took this photo, but the lighting wasn't great. Didn't get any "mirror" lake images because the wind was always too strong.

Next up, our Red Bus tour on Sept. 2 to Two Medicine Lake, which included a boat ride and a nature walk to Running Eagle Falls. I hadn't heard of Running Eagle before, but she sounds like quite a warrior (and horse acquisitions expert, to put it nicely).

Approaching Glacier

2010-09-05T01:52:00.000-04:00

Just a short blog to share in the anticipation for Glacier. Eastern and northern Montana (along US 2) had been rather bleak and depressing for us (both its weather and scenery). So, imagine our excitement when we saw that the mountains were getting closer. This photo was snapped outside Cut Bank, I believe--my first glimpse of the mountains. (I pulled off the road to relish the moment and take photos.)

When I saw that there was SNOW on the tops, I can't tell you how excited I was. We later learned that this snow had fallen just a night or two before we arrived--probably in part from all that rain we had encountered the day before.

Outside Browning, I believe, we stopped again for this shot. We were now in the Blackfoot Nation and would be for several days, when not in Glacier National Park.

We stopped on the western side of Browning (Highway 89), while heading to St. Mary's, one of the eastern entrances to the park and one end of the Going-to-the-Sun Road.

This photo (taken while riding through the windshield) shows the recovery from a forest fire in either 2001 or 2003.

Getting closer all the time ...

Just inside the St. Mary's entrance is the Visitors Center. The best part for me was the Native American exhibit--a huge teepee that you sit inside and listen to recordings of four Indian tribe members telling about themselves and their relation to Glacier. Just outside the teepee was this saying, which touched a cord with this editor/writer.

Next up, the Going-to the-Sun Road through Glacier National Park. But first some sleep and maybe a few more miles!

Where the deer and the buffalo roam

2010-09-05T00:45:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the long gap in blogs. The town of East Glacier, Montana, was supposed to have wireless throughout, including the Circle R Motel where we stayed two nights, but it wasn't working in our room and we were too busy (or tired) to try it elsewhere in town.

Not sure when I'll ever catch you up on the trip, but I did manage to write this blog about the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, where we were on August 31. This was the same day we drove the Old Red/Old Ten Scenic Byway.

We fell in love with western North Dakota! It's such a shame that most Americans never get to North Dakota. A store clerk I was talking with in Medora, N.D., said you wouldn't believe how many people come through who have on their bucket list to see all 50 states (or all the national parks) and North Dakota and its Theodore Roosevelt National Park are usually last on the list. I must admit that, if my husband didn't have this as one of his last 48 lower states to "check off," we may have gone through South Dakota and missed it, too!

From I-94 West, we exited at the Painted Canyon Visitor Center for the Theodore Roosevelt National Park and took photos of the badlands. Gorgeous views and my first glimpse of this kind of geologic formation.

We drove on to Medora, N.D., a very interesting place. It seems to be “owned” by the Theodore Roosevelt Foundation. Most of the people working in the motels and shops are “volunteers,” who give up 3-4 hours a day in exchange for room and board. Lots of senior citizens (and the ones we talked with who had multiple homes certainly could afford to pay). But they enjoyed the experience and came back year after year to “volunteer” again. We were talking to some people from Minnesota who said that the waiting list to get the opportunity to volunteer in Medora is very long.

We stopped at the Badlands Motel, but opted for the less expensive option—the Bunkhouse. We just happened to arrive on the last Tuesday Senior Discount of the season, which gave us 15 percent off the regular price. The clerk put us in the Red Fox bunkhouse. These units aren't much to look at. Each one had 8 rooms and a center hallway. A tiny, functional room, but the best mattress I’d slept on the whole trip.

We unloaded our things, took a nap (all this driving is getting to us!), and then headed to the National Park at about 5:30. It was kind of exciting to see the ranger station where fees were collected, because my husband was going to get his “senior pass,” a $10 pass for those 62 and older that gives them free admission to the National Parks for the rest of their lives. What’s even better is that, if the park charges by the carload, everyone in the car gets in on the pass. My mother first learned about these when she got hers while living in Albuquerque in the 1990s, which is how we knew to ask for one. With four or five National Parks on the agenda this trip, what a bargain! (Glacier and Yellowstone alone charge $25/carload each!)

If you don't have much time while passing by on I-94, try to do all or part of the South Unit loop. It took us about three hours, but we stopped at every wide spot in the road to take photos. What we enjoyed most was the lack of cars that we expect to find in Yellowstone after Labor Day. There were lots of places to pull off and observe the scenery and wildlife. We stopped at three prairie dog colonies and you could get rather close to them.

But the high point was encountering two groups of bison. (Neither was quite a herd, but six or seven in each group grazing together by the roadside.) We had seen bison manure at every stop we’d made, but didn’t know if we’d actually see the real thing, so this was very exciting.

The males are enormous! This one was taken through the passenger window (while I was in the driver’s seat). It was just a few feet away!

If you go, be sure to take the drive up to Buck Hill. When you get to the parking area, climb up the hill (not too bad) on the right (western side). The view is breathtaking. A park ranger told me this would be a great place to view and photograph the sunset--but we were there an hour too early and didn’t want to be that far from the exit at night.

We also drove up to the Coal Vein Trail, but it wasn’t that interesting. (Probably was back when the vein was on fire, but now, not so much.) Then we came upon a mule deer alongside the road and I managed to take a picture through the windshield. My, what big EARS she has!

Later, we saw three more, but no photos then. When it looked as though sunset was imminent, we just pulled into the next parking area. Not the best shots, so I won't even share, but another chance to practice the aperture/shutter speeds to find the right combination. I don’t think I captured it, though. It looked gorgeous through my hubby’s binoculars, though.

It was rather eerie driving the rest of the way out of the park in the dark. At one point, I came around a bend and there on the right was a huge bison. I asked my hubby, "Did you see that?" "What?" So, I put the car in reverse and backed up to look at it a moment as it scratched on a post. I didn’t take a photo, because the flash would have startled it. But it was nice to just share a parting moment with one of the park's bison.

Next stop, Glacier National Park! While hiking a very populated trail, we came upon a grizzly bear sow (and saw her later with her twin cubs). What a moment! More to come!

2010-09-02T09:19:00.000-04:00

We didn’t have wireless at our motel in Medora, N.D., so I’ve fallen behind a bit. On Tuesday, we set out on the Old Red/Old Ten Scenic Byway west of Mandan, N.D. (Tip—follow the signs for N.D. 94, because there are no signs for the old US 10. Just after you pass the turnoff onto highway 6, you’ll see your “Begin Scenic Byway” sign with the bison on it.

It’s definitely worthwhile to get off of Interstate 94 a few hours to enjoy this beautiful drive! High on the ridge of a hill, about a mile out of town, we spotted a metal-sculpture memorial to Buddy Kahl that caused me to tell my hubby to pull over. I'm leaving all the junk in the foreground, just so you'll know what to look for. You'll get a better photo of half of it on the previous link. Someone put a lot of time, love, and money into this memorial.

The farmland of western North Dakota was incredible--lots of sunflowers, hay, grains, and some cattle.

We took the “Byway Spur” to see Sims and Almont, the places that time forgot. Watch carefully for the turnoff. There's nothing to tell you it's the road to Almont. And the Sims Road (on the left coming from Mandan) comes out of nowhere--but they did have a sign with the silhouette of the Sims Scandinavian Lutheran Church, a famous landmark, which tipped me off. The first church on this site was North Dakota's first protestant church west of the Missouri River (built in 1884). This structure was built in 1896.

No ghost sightings at the parsonage, but read more about the preservation of the church and parsonage and paranormal activity over the years at this preservation site.

But it was the deserted and crumbling “Gray House” that grabbed my attention. The gingerbread trim and brickwork over the wood tell that it once was a beautiful home. My imagination ran wild thinking about the families that must have lived there over the decades. I wonder how much longer it will stand against the ever-present winds on the plains.

The lean-to at the back must not have been built as sturdily, though. It's the only part that seems to truly be crumbling.

Sitting sentinel across the road from the relic house was this bull. The rickity fence made me happy that he was a sitting bull, because he was much larger than he appears in this photo.

Almont wasn’t totally deserted yet, but the school was for sale, which can’t be a good sign.

There were several churches (Catholic, Wesleyan, and Lutheran) still apparently active. An older woman taking a stroll waved as we drove by. People waved as we passed them driving, too, which is a sign of a friendly population.

The byway spur wasn’t paved. It wasn’t exactly gravel--almost more of a dirt road with some pebbles on the shoulders. But it was wide enough for two cars to pass one another. We even tried our hand at herding some free range sheep a few miles from Almont.

We rejoined the main scenic byway at Glen Ullin. Because this was the first restroom since Mandan (a couple hours earlier), I was ready for a stop. We went inside Fitterer’s, which didn’t look like much on the outside but a cement block building. But inside we found the nicest bathrooms and a lot of snacks and even some hot food. To our Central Time minds, it was noon (although by this point we had crossed into Mountain Time, so it actually was 11 a.m.). So, we each had a hot dog--and I discovered Lay’s Dill Pickle potato chips. The clerk said they’d carried them for quite a while. (Where I live, we’re always the last to get new things.)

We chatted a while with the clerk, who was originally from further north. We aren’t sure what brought her to this little out-of-the-way place. She was only in her early 20s. Like most of the North Dakotans we spoke with, she was very open and friendly.

We found the Assumption Abbey in Richardton. Just walked around outside and took pictures, rather than go inside. (There was a door to go in for information.) I’ve been following the activities of the Benedictine monks via their Facebook page, so it was nice to see their huge garden and where their abbey was located.

I mailed a few postcards from Taylor, N.D., and took a photo of this forgotten railroad line. It was right next to one that is still used actively. Lots of trains still run regularly in North Dakota.

We exited the byway on the road to Gladstone. I could see the gigantic “Geese in Flight” sculpture, but didn’t tell my hubby that was our next destination. He’s not much on road art. (I couldn’t get him to drive up to Salem Sue, the huge dairy cow at New Salem a little earlier in the day’s trip. And there were others we passed, as well. But I wasn’t going to miss this.)

The sculptor, Gary Greff, created a number of huge metal sculptures along what he named “The Enchanted Highway.” I knew I wouldn’t get my husband to drive the whole highway, so had to settle for this one. Even he was impressed with it! You can't miss it, whether coming I-94 (take exit 72) or the scenic byway. Individual geese in flight will lead the way. At 110 feet tall and 154 feet wide, Guinness deemed it the world's largest metal sculpture.

We then got back on I-94 and headed to Medora and the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in western North Dakota. That excursion deserves a spotlight of its own, so stay tuned for that blog next. Now (on what is actually Thursday), we will head to Glacier National Park. We'll be there for three nights, so plenty of time to catch you up!

On the Road Again

2010-08-31T09:57:00.000-04:00

Another long driving day yesterday. Drove from Albany (St. Cloud), Minn., to Bismarck, N.D., only stopping for lunch and a rest stop. Most of the photos I took today were from the passenger seat, so please excuse the lack of focus. This one turned out pretty well, shooting right through the windshield. (I did manual focusing, so that the camera wouldn't focus on the bugs.)

This Minnesota farm caught my eye out the open passenger window.

Got into a rain shower briefly, then watched as it spread across the prairieland of Minnesota. Lots of marshland along I-94. While we expected the marshes and lakes in Minnesota, we were surprised to see so many in North Dakota.

Caught just a glimpse of the few remaining sunflower fields. Most had already gone to seedheads.

It was interesting going from nothing from wilderness (most exits didn't even list the names of towns and said "No Services,") we topped a rise and below us Bismarck spread as far as we could see. My hubby said, "Civilization!" And he isn't one who cares much for cities.

There is only one tall building in all of Bismarck--the Capitol. It's the strangest Capitol Building we've ever seen. My hubby said it looked like something from eastern Europe and didn't believe me that it was the actual capitol building until we drove around it and found the sign. He says it looks better in this picture than in real life.

And, as a parting shot, the funny sign of the day was this one. Do we, or don't we go in there to park?

Time to hit the road again, but we'll spend the rest of the day in western North Dakota, on the Old Red/Old Ten Scenic Byway following the old US 10 from Mandan to Dickinson and then in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. One of the high points of my trip plan!

Little House in the not-so-big woods

2010-08-30T09:52:00.000-04:00

A gorgeous day in Wisconsin Sunday. The beautiful weather brought out more motorcycles than I've ever seen. We thought maybe Sturgis was happening. There also were cyclists and others like us just enjoying a relaxing Sunday drive.

We took the Great River Road (US Highway 35), which meanders along beside the Mississippi River. Our first stop was at the Trempeauleau National Wildlife Refuge. We went down to the marshland alongside the River where native grasses and prairie flowers are preserved. There also were some wetland birds, but not close enough for a clear photo. (We didn't have the bird book, but they look like egrets, however their bills were orange, rather than black.)

But this butterfly was very cooperative with me as I took its photo.

While sitting and enjoying the scenery, we talked with a group of four fellow travelers out for a Sunday ride--two were from the Twin Cities, one from Winona (across the river), and one from Arizona. The man from the Twin Cities said he used to visit his grandparents in Morehead, Kentucky. Small world.

From there, we continued northward and, at the suggestion of the man from Twin Cities, stopped at the Nelson Creamery for cheese and ice cream. My husband thought it a tourist trap (true), but when in Wisconsin, one must taste the dairy products! I enjoyed a bing cherry ice cream cone. Very creamy and good. I passed on trying the batter-dipped, deep-fried cheese curds someone at work suggested I try. Just didn't sound too appealing, although it's supposed to be quite a treat.

Surprisingly, there weren't many dairy farms and those we saw all were small family operations. A hard way to make a living. This barn looked as though it had seen better days. It was on County Road CC in Pepin County, on our way to the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

By mid afternoon, we reached the goal for this leg of the journey--visiting the birthplace (more or less) of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The woman at the museum in Pepin said that the replica cabin is located on land where Charles and Caroline Ingalls lived. An Ingalls family member from the Pepin area (some of the Ingalls family stayed in the area--Charles brother and Caroline's sister, who were married to each other) assisted in designing the cabin the way he thought it might have looked in 1867 when she was born.

While no longer in a "big woods," it felt special to be on the land we had read about in "Little House in the Big Woods." And, from the long drive from town (about seven miles), we can fully appreciate why it was such a big deal when they got to go to town, as told in that book.

One surprise was learning "Lake Pepin" actually was just a wide (and long) spot in the Mississippi River, rather than a separate lake. No wonder we couldn't find it on the map! Here's a photo we took before venturing on up the road to Prescott where we crossed over into Minnesota.

Because of warnings about various construction sites, we chose to drive through St. Paul and Minneapolis, rather than take the bypass. Well, that was interesting. Things don't slow down on Sunday afternoons in the Twin Cities. Luckily, we weren't in the several-mile backup inbound on the western side of town. It must have stretched for seven miles at a crawl or standstill.

Spent the night in Albany because I was just too tired to drive any further. Had dinner at the Hillcrest Family Restaurant & Stubby's Tavern. Got a kick out of this sign. (At least we could eat knowing there wouldn't be a shoot-out!) The food was very good and filling--and our server was a delight. When she came to tell us about the special, which was "beef commercial," we had to ask for a definition. Sounds like an open-faced roast beef sandwich with mashed potatoes in the middle of the split sandwich and gravy on the works. We decided to go for pork chops, instead.

Today, we set off for North Dakota. Most of our Minnesota sightseeing will be in Southern Minnesota on the way back, so this will mostly be a driving day. Hope to make Bismarck tonight, so we can set off on the Old Red/Old Ten Scenic Byway in the morning. Will spend the day reading up on the little towns we'll visit while my hubby's driving today.

First stop--LaCrosse, Wisconsin

2010-08-29T09:13:00.000-04:00

Day one is behind us, and so is 1/10th (or 600 miles) of the total distance we expect to travel on our three-week journey. We had only expected to have the energy to make it to Madison, Wisc., but because we had hit the road at 7 a.m. EDT, it was only late afternoon when we arrived there. Not too tired, we decided to go on to Portage. Got there and just kept going, heading east now on I-90. We chose LaCrosse, along the Mississippi River, as our first night's stop.
We stayed at the EconoLodge, using some of my rewards points on my Choice Hotels rewards card. The clerk checked us in and upgraded us to a "theme" room. From the lobby, I could read some of the names on the doors of "theme" rooms. The Sheik Room. The South Seas Room. Oh, my! This could be interesting and could get my romance writing mind flowing again.

But ours was "The Loft," which was more of a barn setting. Check out this life-sized horse's head looking down on our bed, as though it's poking its head out of a barn's Dutch door. Lots of wooden features, including swinging doors that remind me of saloon doors, primitive shelves instead of end tables or a desk; slatted shutters instead of curtains; and two rocking chairs instead of regular chairs. (Not conducive to computer work, but homey.)

Not having had much of an opportunity to practice my photography last month, I decided that a trip to the river was needed. The sun would be setting on the Minnesota side, so I hoped for some nice shots. After consulting the map, we headed for Riverside Park on the Mississippi. (Our motel is closer to the Black River, but that didn't sound as impressive as seeing Old Man River.)

The evening was sunny, breezy, and probably in the upper 70s. Perfect (although having SOME clouds in the sky would have made for better photos). We strolled the River Walk with other tourists and locals. We were quite impressed to see a tugboat pushing what we thought at first was six barges, but soon realized actually was nine. At LaCrosse, the Mississippi has a sharp bend (or they'd wind up on the Black River). It was interesting watching the tugboat maneuver its load to hang a left.

We found a nice place to sit and watch the sun dip behind the tree line across the river. The sun set behind the tree line around 7:30 Central. While my husband sat patiently, I practiced various shutter and aperture priority settings to see which made for the best color and lighting. (Smaller apertures and faster shutter speeds seem to do the trick.) I hope to take some awesome sunsets during the trip, so was happy to get a chance to practice.

Today, we'll head north, following the Great River Road of Wisconsin (Highway 35), until we cross over into Minnesota at Minneapolis/St. Paul. We have some stops planned along the way, but the reason we're going this way is to go to Pepin, Wisc., where Laura Ingalls Wilder was born. My hubby pulled out his copy of "Little House in the Big Woods" last night to prepare for the visit. Can't wait!

The final stretch of the plan

2010-08-27T09:42:00.000-04:00

Today, we hit the road on our adventure. It seems odd to start at the end, but I did promise to share the plan for the final leg of our trip.

We left you in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Now we'll continue east across South Dakota. Our destination--DeSmet, S.D. If you're a fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, you'll know that's the mecca for Little House fans. I think five of her books were set there, including "The Long Winter," "On the Shores of Silver Lake," "Little Town on the Prairie," "These Happy Golden Years," and "The First Four Years."

The Surveyor's House where the Ingalls family lived during "the long winter," is now a museum. While Silver Lake no longer exists, Lakes Henry and Thompson (where Almanzo took Laura for buggy/sleigh rides on many Sunday afternoons) are there still. I hope we can walk on the land bridge between them, because I know their buggy crossed over that very place. I wonder if it will look as it did when they courted there? Spirit Lake, in the northerly direction from DeSmet, is there still, as well.

We'll take the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Highway (US Highway 14) from DeSmet to the places the Ingalls family lived in southern Minnesota, including Walnut Grove. The museum there is geared more to memorabilia related to the television series. From there, we'll head south to Burr Oak, where the Ingalls family lived for more than a year, but which wasn't recorded in any of the books. I did find two books available at the museum gift shop there. I read Laura-biographer William Anderson's nonfiction "The Iowa Story," already, but not the fictionalized version of Laura's time there--"Old Town in the Green Groves," by Cynthia Rylant. I can read in the car, so maybe I'll read aloud as my hubby is driving, so we'll both be on the same page when we get to Burr Oak.

Depending on how much time we have, we may make the trip to Vinton, Iowa, the location of the School for the Blind that Mary Ingalls attended for about five years. (Click on the link for the school to learn more about Mary's time there.) The school building is still there and only just closed as a school for the blind in the last year or so.

From there, it will be time to head home.

But this trip is now ready to go from planning stages to the road stage. First, I must finish packing my not-so-virtual suitcases. I'm going to enjoy this experiment of blogging about the trip and am glad you've decided to follow along!

2010-08-20T00:28:00.000-04:00

Just a little more than a week before we embark on our adventure and I can hardly wait! I've been working incredibly long hours and will be so ready to just hit the road without a care in the world. I love that we've planned the trip without making a single hotel/motel reservation (except at my Mom's guest room the first night).

In my first blog, I mapped out the intended route west. I don't know if it was the long hours working these past few weeks or my reluctance to think about coming back home that has caused me to delay blogging about the trip east again. But the return trip also will be filled with sights and adventures that will keep us rolling along new highways and byways. (We will seldom drive on the Interstates west beyond Bismarck, ND, until we get out of the Black Hills of South Dakota on the return trip). We'll experience the Rockies, Northern Plains, and Upper Midwest up close and personal!

The furthest west we plan to go is the Palouse area of eastern Washington State. I first learned about this gem of a place by seeing the outstanding photography of Linda Lantzy, of Idaho Scenic Images, of Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. She posts some of her photos on Facebook and I have discovered some amazing places through her keen eye and lens.

The route from the Palouse back through Idaho to Jackson, Wyoming, is still up in the air. We're thinking about taking WA 27 South to US 195 South to US 95 South to US 12 East to US 93 South to Idaho 28 South and Idaho 33 East, and eventually to US 20 East to Idaho 33 East, which will take us to Jackson. That route would be iffy if there's an early snowstorm, though, in which case we'd stick to the interstate into Montana and then south to Jackson.

We'll probably not spend a lot of time in Jackson, although I've been told to stop at a lodge there with an enormous lobby or common area window looking out at the mountains with a breathtaking view. This person (a native of Wyoming) told me that they don't have televisions there, but during a conference, he said everyone spent the breaks watching out the window. Just have to find out which one!

After a quick visit to Jackson, we will head to one of the high spots on my list of places to see--the Grand Teton National Park. My only regret is that there probably won't be snow on the peaks. But I don't care. This range is magestic.

From the Tetons, we'll head to Yellowstone National Park. My hubby wants to enter from the West, but I guess that would have been without going to the Tetons. So, I'm guessing we'll enter from the south. We'll spend two or three days hitting the high spots, including Yellowstone Falls, Tower Falls, Old Faithful (check out this webcam!), and wildlife (here's an interesting story about the bison and elk in the park). Of course, with only a few days, we'll not get to see everything there is to see. That's a vacation destination on its own!

But we have many miles to go before we finish, so from Yellowstone, we'll move on to the Beartooth Mountains. Linda Lantzy was there recently and photograph alpine flowers and lakes along the Beartooth Highway. I was afraid all of those would have bloomed in the spring. Check out this sunset she captured--as if the mountains were on fire. Gorgeous! (The photo is on Facebook--I don't know if you can see if it you're not on FB.)

From the Beartooth range, we'll head across northern Wyoming into western South Dakota. First stop--Deadwood. I can still remember Doris Day as "Calamity Jane" in the musical of that name. That was probably the first I'd heard of Deadwood--and the place has intrigued me ever since. Besides, what's not to love about those Rowdy Women of the West! So, while we're there, I want to take an historic tour of Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane sites. And, if there's a room available, we might stay at the haunted Bullock Hotel in Deadwood. Room rates are reasonable and we'll probably be there midweek. Keeping our fingers crossed! (But refusing to commit to being there are a certain night.) The only downside to the Bullock appears to be that all the rooms are smoking ones. But to get some good ghost photos would be worth the smell! A ghost-hunting friend, paranormal author Terri Grimes, tells me to talk to the ghosts to get them to come out for the photos. And she gets some amazing photos of them. I guess we'll see! (At least, I hope we will!)

We probably won't make a stop in the Deadwood casino. But if I did and I won big, a friend told me I should look into the Black Hills Gold jewelry, which has a pinkish and/or greenish tinge to it. She bought some for family members while on her way to Montana one year. It's pretty, isn't it? I'm just more into trashy cosmetic jewelry, so it might be too nice for me.

From there, we'll head south, further into the Hills with a long stop in Keystone, where Carrie Ingalls Swanzey lived many of her adult years. Her husband, David Swanzey, is known for naming nearby Mount Rushmore. We may go there, but will definitely be going to the Crazy Horse Memorial nearby. To see it during its construction will be awesome. What a moving story of the commitment the Ziolkowski Family has to keep Korczak Ziolkowski's dream alive!

From Keystone, we will board the 1880s Train for a short ride to Hill City, SD, along the Black Hills Central Railroad line. I fell in love with the narrow-guage railroad lines on the Cumbres & Toltec Railroad in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. Later, we rode the Durango-Silverton train. This one in South Dakota is of a smaller scale, but it looks like a beautiful area to experience by train.

Well, looks as though there will be one more installment in the pre-trip story. Next up, Laura Ingalls Wilder country in South Dakota, southern Minnesota, and northern and eastern Iowa!

Embarking on a Great American Adventure

2010-07-26T23:19:00.005-04:00

The word “meandering” most often describes creeks and rivers, which is perfect for my blog, because I love the look and sound of flowing water. Whether following a stream into the woods to locate a secluded waterfalls or crossing a bridge and watching a creek gurgle beneath my feet.

Like the water flowing in those creeks, this summer, my husband and I, too, will meander toward the Mississippi, but will go against the flow, heading north and west. Along the way, we’ll eventually see many rivers, including the Missouri, Flathead, Kootenai, Snake, Yellowstone, and, on the return trip, the James River, referred to by Laura Ingalls Wilder in an 1894 diary as “the Jim.”

Our 6,000-mile journey will take us through Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Wyoming, South Dakota, Southern Minnesota, and eastern Iowa. We’ll visit four National Parks—Theodore Roosevelt, Glacier, Grand Tetons, and Yellowstone, and other federal lands. We’ll explore numerous upper Midwest homeplaces and historic sites relating to Laura Ingalls Wilder, a favorite author of us both, including Pepin (WI), DeSmet (N.D.), Walnut Grove (MN), and Burr Oak (IA).

In each state, we’ll meander off the interstates and onto scenic byways and welcome your suggestions on places to eat, sleep, or explore:

• Along the Mississippi River (either on the Wisconson or Minnesota side—does anyone have a suggestion for the best views?)--we'll drive from from LaCrosse, Wisc., to Minneapolis, Minn., stopping along the way in Pepin, Wisc., where Laura Ingalls was born.

• Beginning in central North Dakota, just west of Bismarck, we’ll exit I-94 and begin the 100-plus mile drive along the Old Red/Old Ten Scenic Byway, meandering through plains, ghost towns, farm communities, then into the badlands of western North Dakota, near Dickinson. Once known as US 10, this was part of a major east-west artery in a bygone era, taking travelers between the coastal cities of Seattle and New York City.

• In Montana, we’ll take US Highway 2 along the northern tier of the state. We’ll spend a couple days at Glacier National Park, including at least one excursion along the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Talk about meandering! Those hairpin turns will ensure that we pull off the road to see the breathtaking views and snap lots of photos. We’ll also spend time at Flathead Lake, where I am researching a novel I’m working on.

• We’ll traverse the panhandle of northern Idaho, exploring the Lake Coeur d’Alene Scenic Byway, then drive into Washington to meander along the Palouse Scenic Byway and environs.

In my next entry, I'll spotlight some of the routes we have planned for the return trip, from Washington State to Iowa. I hope you'll join us as we meander across the United States on this Great American adventure! We'll be hitting the road on August 28, 2010!