Monday, June 17, 2013

Since leaving Montana we have traveled across North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. In western North Dakota there were lots of signs of oil drilling. Eastern ND was quite flat and lots of plowed fields although I'm not sure what they were growing. Once we got into Minnesota, it was still fairly flat but far more houses and lots more trees. We went by Duluth, MN, across the bridge and into Wisconsin. The northern peninsula of Michigan was all new to us. We spent one night on Michigamee Lake which was very pretty. However, we couldn't enjoy it fully because there were tons of both blackflies AND mosquitoes!

When we were in MT, regular gas was just 85.5 octane and we were told that is all it needed to be at the higher elevation. Gas was most expensive in Michigan where most places were over $4. a gallon. The least expensive was Ohio where it was $3.35 a gallon.

The GPS is a lifesaver on these trips and you wonder how we navigated before but we did. We are now back in Long Lake safely! Thank you for following our trip!!

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

This morning we left Livingston, Montana and headed east. Not long after we left, the mountains started to disappear and there were lots of rolling hills. By the time we got to North Dakota (approximately 380 miles), it was pretty flat. We stopped in Dickinson, ND for the night.

One thing we noticed about the west is that we saw lots of trains. I am not sure if there are actually more freight trains or if they are just more visible than in the east. Livingston train station was always busy. Each time we went into town, there was a freight train coming in or just leaving. They also have a train museum in Livingston and a very active model train club.

The state of Montana ranks 4th in size of all the states but it ranks 44th in population so it is a good place to get away from it all.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Today was Doug and Paige's last day here so we took them to Yellowstone for a visit. We did a loop around the northern part of the park which included one road (Roosevelt/tower to Canyon Village) which we had never been on before. Last year that road was still closed due to snow and it only recently reopened for this year. We saw many buffalo and thanks to another park visitor, we saw a black bear with a cinnamon cub. This gentleman set up his scope near us and asked if we would like to look through it to see the bears so we all took him up on his offer. I don't think any of us had seen a cinnamon cub before. They were quite far away and nothing we would have seen without the scope, although we could see them through binoculars once we knew where they were.

After the bear sighting we continued on over this road that was new to Jim and I and it was quite a road to say the least! The elevation when we started was 6,270 feet. The road climbed steadily until we reached approximately 8,800 feet. The temp was around 81 degrees when we started and slowly went down to 68. As we got closer to the top, we also got closer to the snow until there were snowbanks along the roadway. The road just wound around along the very edge of a mountain and you just prayed the brakes didn't give out!!!

During the trip we saw buffalo, black bear with cub, elk, antelope and a mountain goat. The weather was perfect and it was a fun day.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Posts are nonexistent this week as we have enjoyed time with family. Just as they arrived, the weather took a big turn for the better. The clouds nearly disappeared and the temps rose into the 70's and even low 80's at least one day. Jim and the guys were able to spend some time on the Yellowstone River and they caught a few trout, including a couple cutthroat trout which are native to Montana. We do not have any of them back east. Doug was able to pull in the most fish but everyone enjoyed the time fishing.

On Saturday I went with the kids to Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone National Park. We climbed to the top of the hot springs along the boardwalk where we had a nice view. after a picnic lunch, we headed back to the cabin. While we were gone, Jim went to an antique car show in Livingston. Our neighbor is a very active member of the antique car club and he also rebuilds old cars and trucks so he had one of his vehicles on display. Luckily we all got back early enough that the guys could get a bit more fishing in.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Today the sun was out until late afternoon so it was another nice day. Jim headed over to the Point of Rocks public fishing area on the Yellowstone River to see if he could catch some trout. The water has gone down some now due to the colder weather we have had which slows the snow melt. At this access spot he was able to walk in the water a short distance to an island and once on the island, he could fish various spots on the river. Once he got to the island, however, he was in for one big surprise! He saw a set of bear prints that were the largest ones he has ever seen!! He then headed back to the truck for his bear spray before continuing to fish. Unfortunately, he didn't have any luck but it was a nice day to be on the water and the tracks added a bit of excitement to the day.

Saturday, June 1, 2013

After a long stretch of cloudy, cool days, this morning we woke to see the sun out, blue skies and warmer temps so we decided to head out to the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone. It is always an interesting ride and you never know what you might encounter.

Not long after we went through the park entrance, we spotted a couple mountain goats along side the road. All areas were very green after all the spring rains. There is still plenty of snow visible on many of the mountains. In fact they had reopened the Beartooth Highway recently. It is always closed for the winter and normally reopens around early June. This year they reopened it in time for Memorial Day weekend and then had to close it again this past week due to some three foot snowdrifts! They told us they were not sure when it reopen. The Beartooth is just northeast from the northeast entrance to the park, near Cooke City, Montana.

We got to see the usual buffalo all along the ride and as usual, we had to stop several times to let them cross the road. I have no idea the number of buffalo in Yellowstone but it has to be at least several thousand. Many of them now have their little calves with them so that's neat to see. We also spotted some mountain goats high near the top of a cliff. To tell you the truth, until Jim gets his pictures on the computer and blows them up, I am not sure if they were mountain goats or bighorn sheep. All I know is that they were very high up on a very steep cliff.

We also saw several elk, some antelope and a few deer, although I didn't get pictures. Many places you can't just pull over as there may be a steep cliff on the side of the road. Speaking of steep cliffs, it is amazing that there are not more accidents there (or maybe there are and we just don't hear about them. It wouldn't make for good press concerning the park :-). Anyhow, there are very few guardrails along the roads, including on some turns. There could be a drop of hundreds of feet with a foot of the edge of the road and still there is no guardrail! I'm surprised more people don't just drive over the cliffs when they take their eyes off the road just for a second to look for or look at an animal!

When we got to Silver Gate, MT, which is the first little town you come to after you go out the northeast entrance to Yellowstone, we stopped in a little shop there to look around. It turned out one of the girls working there was originally from Warrensburg, NY, which is about an hour from Long Lake. She had moved there this spring. They were telling me that in the winter one of the roads leaving Cooke City is not plowed for an eight mile section. She said some people do leave a car at the end of that unplowed stretch. Then they take a snowmobile over to their car! The other road is the one that goes through Yellowstone and that is kept plowed all winter. In order to get groceries, they have to drive through Yellowstone to Gardiner, MT, which is just over 50 miles. Then they usually go to Bozeman to shop which is another 75 miles I am guessing. The road through the park is tough enough on a good day so I would hate to have to travel it in bad weather!! IMagine driving over 125 miles one way just to get groceries and whatever other items you might need at the store. It certainly would be a different way of life! I have posted some pictures on Shutterfly if you'd like to check them out.