2001
MONTANA MEDLEY AUTHOR: Lois Olive Gray PHOTOS: Kay Ellen Gilmour, MD Website: www.kaygilmour.smugmug.com
MONTANA MEDLEY 24-day, 6200 mile-Road Trip visiting national parks in the upper Midwest of the USA
Table of Contents ON THE ROAD TO SOUTH DAKOTA ................................................................................ 1 SOUTH DAKOTA ............................................................................................................... 1 Badlands National Park ............................................................................................... 1 Wall Drugstore .............................................................................................................. 3 Mount Rushmore National Memorial......................................................................... 3 Deadwood ..................................................................................................................... 4 MONTANA......................................................................................................................... 5 Devils Tower National Monument .............................................................................. 5 Big Sky ........................................................................................................................... 6 Day 6: Big Sky ............................................................................................................... 8 Day 7: Big Sky ............................................................................................................... 9 Giant Springs State Park ............................................................................................ 11 Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center ............................................................................. 11 Glacier National Park.................................................................................................. 14 Logan Pass & Highline Trail ....................................................................................... 17 IDAHO ............................................................................................................................. 20 Craters of the Moon National Monument ............................................................... 20 UTAH ............................................................................................................................... 22 Salt Lake City Tabernacle ........................................................................................... 23 Kennecott Copper Mine ............................................................................................. 25
COLORADO ..................................................................................................................... 27 Dinosaur National Monument .................................................................................. 27 Rocky Mountain National Park .................................................................................. 30 Estes Park/ Rocky Mountain National Park .............................................................. 32 Garden of the Gods .................................................................................................... 38 Air Force Academy...................................................................................................... 39 Pikes Peak ................................................................................................................... 40 KANSAS ........................................................................................................................... 42 Konza Prairie............................................................................................................... 42 MISSOURI ........................................................................................................................ 43 Branson ....................................................................................................................... 43 ARKANSAS ....................................................................................................................... 45 Crater of Diamonds State Park.................................................................................. 46 Hot Springs National Park.......................................................................................... 48 State House ................................................................................................................. 50 Governor’s Mansion ................................................................................................... 51 BACK HOME .................................................................................................................... 52
ON THE ROAD TO SOUTH DAKOTA Jacksonville to Berea, KY Day 1: 690 Miles Left at 5:40 AM and arrived 12 hours later. This was an uneventful and long trip to the home of Sharon’s brother, Bill. His wife, Marilyn, provided a spaghetti supper which was tasty and much appreciated since we did not have to go out for dinner. Caught up on Sharon and Bill’s earlier South Dakota trip and then hit the hay.
Berea. KY to Sioux Falls, SD Day 2: 998 Miles! A 17 hours-long day was a hard push. Lois read “The Ice Master" aloud to its conclusion just as we entered the motel driveway. It's a haunting book about Arctic survival by victims of a crazy and careless expedition planner and a foolhardy ship’s captain who let himself be bamboozled by the expedition leader into taking an unseaworthy and certainly un-Arctic-worthy ship on a crazy “scientific” adventure which ended in disaster.
SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls, SD to Rapid City, SD Day 3: 350 Miles
BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK Another 14 hour day on the road. We got to the Badlands at noon and lunched at Cedar Pass Café, which looked exactly the same as it did when Kay and I were there years ago. Drove the Badlands Loop Road (South Dakota Highway 240) through the eastern portion of the Badlands National Park. Spectacular scenery but only saw 1 pronghorn antelope lounging in a field. Then we pushed on to out Wall, SD. Had ice cream at the famous Wall Drugstore.
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WALL DRUGSTORE The small town drugstore was purchased by Ted Hustead in 1931. Hustead, a Nebraska native and pharmacist, was looking for a small town with a Catholic church in which to establish his business. At the time of purchase, the population of Wall, South Dakota was 231. Business was very slow until
his
wife,
Dorothy,
thought
advertising
free
ice
to
water
of
parched
travelers heading to the newly opened Mount Rushmore monument 60 miles to the west. From that time on, business was brisk.
MOUNT RUSHMORE NATIONAL MEMORIAL
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Clear skies gave a spectacular view. We wished we had had the time to hike the trails up towards those four gentlemen's faces.
DEADWOOD Went on to Deadwood for supper and gambling. Kay and Lois were amazed at how much the city has grown! Many more casinos, restaurants, shops, etc. Sharon lost $20 and Pat lost $8. Kay did not partake of the slots. Lois lost a dollar.
Went to a small town outside Rapid City for a cheap motel, the Lariat. Sharon held the lady to the AAA rate quoted in the book.
Used the blow-up
mattresses so everybody got a good night sleep even though the room was quite small. Lots of bikers staying here too—waiting for the Sturgis rally. We actually did get the last room in the place.
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MONTANA Belle Fourche, SD to Big Sky, MT Day 4: 508 Miles Only 12 hours out today. Belle Fourche is the geographical center of the 50 United States while Rugby, ND, is the geographical center of the North American continent.
DEVILS TOWER NATIONAL MONUMENT The Tower itself was wreathed in clouds under a lowering sky, which made it look that much more mysterious. Took a brief hike around the Tower's foot and enjoyed seeing the 6-sided columnar basalt, a lone bunny and a few birds. Then we drove through the wonderful scenery of wide valleys and hills and were lucky enough to see multiple pronghorn antelope in the fields. It was another long and lovely day of lots of driving, but some sightseeing along the way.
Got to Big Sky really hungry and had dinner at their casual restaurant (Chet’s) and all got hostile over the poor service and too-expensive food. The food was so long in coming and not worth the wait and we were so tired. We all had our showers, got relaxed and were asleep by 10 PM 5
BIG SKY Up and out at 6:30 AM -- Learned that Kay had no conference responsibilities yet, so we headed to West Yellowstone after breakfast in our own room with our own supplies. We saw crows, red-shouldered hawk, trumpeter swans, elk fish, ducks, Canada geese, pronghorn antelope, squirrels, buffalo, and marmots. Not bad for one drive through the northern part of Yellowstone Park. We had our lunch at the Pebble Creek Picnic Grounds at noon (ham and cheese sandwiches with chips and drinks). We had a volunteer ranger visit us as well as a ground squirrel who begged at the table. It is 73 degrees and 6800’ high here. We were surrounded by 10,000 foot peaks and we’ve decided that we want a 4-woman mountain sculpture with Eleanor Roosevelt, Sacagawea, Harriet Tubman and Susan B. Anthony to rival Mt. Rushmore.
We had the time and opportunity to drive over Beartooth Highway and it truly must be the most beautiful drive in America! It was glorious all over again to those of us who had seen it before.
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Pat agreed as the newest eyes to look at the views. Blue, blue skies, very strong winds (one gust forceful enough to take Pat feet out from under her), peaks, valleys, lakes, buttes, cliffs beyond all description. Gorgeous meadows with tundra flowers. We stopped at every overlook and talked with a few bikers who were passing through and not particularly enjoying the winds. We were out for 10 hrs. and 375 miles! Had dinner at a steak place (the 4Bs) in Bozeman and it was good. Now Kay’s all registered for her first session in the morning. We will do the laundry and get lunch goodies for everyone. In bed by 10:30 after everybody got cleaned up. Kay worked on the pictures for a while and our e-mails got sent out.
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DAY 6: BIG SKY Up and out at 6:30 AM -- Breakfast in our room again and then Kay took off for her seminar and the rest of us found the laundry, and we finished that up by 9:30 AM. Pat, Kay and Lois took an afternoon outing by first taking the ski lift up the mountain and then hiking down. It took about 2 hours and it was really hot surprisingly enough. Lots of sunscreen but no bug spray necessary this time. We saw lots of wildflowers still abloom but no wildlife and scarcely any bird calls. Too many folks on the mountainside.
After getting cleaned up, we tried to find a reasonably priced supper and after a couple of false alarms, we found ourselves at the Cinnamon Lodge (where Kay & Lois had eaten before. The food was good and relatively cheap. On the way back to the Huntley Lodge, we saw a beaver in the big pond at the turn-in spot. Our entertainment for the evening is a slide show presentation on mountain climbing in Queen Maud Land in Antarctica by Gordon Wiltsie, a National Geographic photographer. The show lasted until 10:30 PM so it was a good thing that the pictures were stunningly beautiful! 8
DAY 7: BIG SKY Up and out at 6:30 AM -- Kay went off to the seminars and Pat, Sharon and Lois called for future reservations at places we will be heading and schlepped some of the stuff to the car. Lois joined Kay for a seminar on bears and other wild animal attacks. We learned that you act differently when you are threatened by a grizzly from how you should act with a black bear. You should try to show the grizzly that you are harmless and then try to back away carefully and slowly. If the bear actually attacks, you curl up and play dead trying to protect your face. With a black bear, it is best to behave aggressively and make noise and threats yourself. If the black bear attacks, then you are supposed to fight for all you are worth. Bear spray is superior to a gun for self-defense. However, if a grizzly comes into your tent in the night, he is there to eat you and therefore you must try to fight him off. Playing dead will do no good at that point. If you happen on a grizzly in the wild on a hike, it is best to let him see you so you can help him alleviate his fears of being threatened. If he no longer sees you as a threat, he probably will not attack. Rather sobering little lecture. Be aggressive with a black bear and passive with a grizzly. Lunch at the Picnic Basket in West Yellowstone and then checked out the IMAX Theater but we had seen what they were showing. So we went to the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. The place tries to take care of captive-born wolves and grizzlies that cannot be turned out into the wilds because they could not survive. They use their wolf pack, all spayed and neutered to teach folks about these wonderful creatures. The Center also has 8 grizzlies, all of whom were captive-raised as orphans, usually In Alaska. Are occasionally used as test animals for supposedly bear proof items, etc. All the animals seem quite content at the Center. The director is a female veterinarian and it is a private organization dependent on fundraising, etc. It survives on entrance fees, souvenir sales, grants, donations gifts and goods donated by the townspeople. While we were there, a fund raising raffle was on with the ticket price being $500 with 100 to be sold. A life-size bull bison sculpted in metal by a woman was the prize. We debated because it was quite handsome; 9
however, the fact that the winner had to pay transportation costs to wherever, we decided against taking a chance to win. Next we drove out to Ted Turner’s Flying D Ranch which we had found last time. It was rainy but we figured we would see a few critters there. Kay and Pat pointed out deer, bison, and 3 moose! We were delighted to see one of the moose was a cow with a calf. Enjoyed our picnic supper watching the bison in the rain. Went back to the conference center to see a presentation on medicine in war settings and then one by Steve and Marilyn French on the grizzlies of Yellowstone. The couple are the primary researchers on these bears for 25+ years and founders of the Yellowstone Grizzly Research Foundation. They gave lots of good info on showed some extraordinary slides and movies they had taken over the years. The movies demonstrating the bears’ ability to run uphill with great speed and stamina were pretty amazing. Also climbing up pretty sheer rock faces. There is still much to be learned about grizzly physiology and behavior. Plus the couple see the grizzly as a “sentinel” animal for the Yellowstone ecosystem.
Big Sky to Great Falls, MT Day 8: 195 Miles Up and out at 6:30 AM -- Kay went to her seminars again while P, S & L did more laundry so we could start out with clean clothes again for this leg of our trip. All of us attended some sessions on snakes and then fracture/dislocations in the wilds. Then we got into the car and left Big Sky for Great Falls. We had already packed the truck and Kay had checked us out of Huntley Lodge. Had lunch at the 4Bs restaurant in Bozeman again before leaving on the Interstate. It was a fairly tense ride to GF because of the very heavy rains and lots of lightning. Too much rain accumulating on the road too so it often felt like we were hydroplaning. Our hotel in GF (the Central) turned out to be better than we had expected from the price and then when we saw the location. It had two bedrooms and a kitchen area with good air-conditioning. Dinner was in our room with sandwiches again. We were all relieved not to have to get out on the road again after the nerve-wracking drive to this town. Played cribbage for a bit and then went to bed about 10 PM again. 10
Great Falls, MT to Shelby, MT Day 9: 85 Miles Up and out at 6:00 AM -- Drove out to the Benton Lake Wildlife Refuge about 6 miles out of town. It turned out to be an unusual looking waterfowl spot because the land is so flat and prairie-like. Finally we did see a lake and many, many ducks, egrets, hawks, songbirds, even pheasants, plus prairie dogs and marmots (hard to believe they were there). It turned out to be good morning for critter-spotting. Then we all went to Tracy’s Family Dining for a fine breakfast and then we took Sharon to church while the rest of us got gas, ice, etc., and then picked her back up. To the Heritage Center next to buy the audiotape tour of the Lewis & Clark sites in the area. Also explored the parks along the Missouri River. The Great Falls of the Missouri and the four other associated falls which required the 18.5 mile portage Lewis and Clark described are no longer really visible since the river has been dammed.
GIANT SPRINGS STATE PARK The Giant Springs State Park was pretty impressive because the springs are right next to the River. The Springs gives rise to the “shortest river in the world”, the Roe which is just 100’ long. The Springs are quite clear and give off 134,000 gallons of fresh water a minute. We had our lunchtime picnic there and it was really a lovely shady park.
LEWIS & CLARK INTERPRETIVE CENTER
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We also visited the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center for a good movie by Ken Burns on the “Voyage of Discovery” in Montana.
The building also housed an impressive display of dioramas, pictures, objects, texts, etc. Very interesting place. Earlier we had seen a very well-done bronze statue by Bob Schiver of the two explores themselves as well as York the black man on the trip and Seaman the big black dog overlooking the whole city.
Afterwards we left GF and drove 80 miles to Shelby MT where we stayed at the O'Hare Manor Motel (such a fancy name for a motel in such a small town). It is a 12
nice place though and really inexpensive. Had supper at the Three Hens Restaurant and are now relaxing after showering, etc. Getting ready to tackle Glacier National Park early in the morning.
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GLACIER NATIONAL PARK Shelby, MT to Glacier National Park Day 10: 143 Miles Up and out at 7 AM -- Coming from Shelby, we drove through Cut Bank, Browning and St. Mary to finally arrive at the Going to the Sun Road. What a fine and special day we had too! Cloudless and deep blue skies. Plains metamorphosed into foothills and then into the massive Rocky Mountains! Waterfalls everywhere, big and small, trickles and torrents.
St. Mary’s River was spectacular with its backdrop of fir-covered mountains piercing the blue of the sky. The color of the Lake’s water was so unusual with the aqua and teal tints and the multicolor rocks giving additional tones, likes reds, blues, and greens. As Charles had said all those years ago, “the eyes get sore from all the looking!” 14
We picnicked along Avalanche Creek and it was comfy with our wonderful fold-up chairs. Took us about an hour to reach Logan Pass where the visitor center stands. Because there was absolutely nowhere to park there, we passed by the High Line Walk until tomorrow. Kept on going until we reached Weeping Wall and the Loop and thence on down to Lake McDonald. The really is a vertical park and many of the trails are also forbidding because they are “Posted” for recent grizzly bear activity. After seeing the beautiful lake, we decided we did not need to do a boat trip and so we headed up a gravel road leading to the little “town” of Polebridge which really is just an old mercantile with some associated cabins and outhouses. What a ride that was! Terrible, potholed road, dusty and amazingly traffic-filled. Took about an hour to reach the Mercantile. Along the way, we started a short nature hike but it wasn’t very interesting to see or read about because it had to do with a fire and all the ramifications of forest fires. We already know about that topic. 15
The Mercantile was interesting and we got drinks and cookies there before deciding to take the North Interior Boundary Road back to West Glacier and our motel. The road to Polebridge was actually outside the park boundaries. Anyhow, the Boundary Road was even more hellishly pock-marked and it took a little over 2 hours to complete that ride. We had some alarming compass readings in the car when we were told we were going north and northeast instead of south and west. Did see a few critters along the way— deer, a vole, 8 grouse. Then, in the Anaconda Creek bottoms we saw two lovely does in a wonderful setting beside the stream, framed by the beautifully lit waters and mountains covered with trees. Such a lovely “world new born” look. Got back to West Glacier about 6:30 PM and went for supper. We were so tired and hungry we decided to skip the ranger talk at Lake McDonald and come home to repack, rearrange the car, shower and rest and relax. That turned out to be a good choice and I got to write a couple of cards and read a bit before hitting the showers. A gorgeous Glacier Day! Surprisingly, it was quite hot! No wonder all the glaciers are receding. 16
Glacier to Missoula, MT Day 11: 155 Miles
LOGAN PASS & HIGHLINE TRAIL Up and out at 6:30 AM and off to Logan Pass to reach the Highline Trail about 8 where today there was plenty of parking. It was cool and breezy and lovely! After only a little time on the trail we saw a mountain goat up on the hillside pretty far above us but still quite visible to the naked eye. Saw ground squirrels everywhere. We walked about an hour out and an hour back.
On the way back to the Pass, we had the most thrilling experience! The mother mountain goat and her baby had come down the hill and were walking right at us on the trail. They passed so close to us that we could have reached out and touched them. The baby was so cute and so white! When we got back to the trailhead, there was a male goat chewing and sniffing the air. Raggedy but still cute.
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Kay and Lois were quite amazed to learn that the Visitor Center (which we thought was new since we had last been in the Park) had been built in l967 because we certainly did not remember it being there. What they remembered quite clearly was the outhouse on the “edge” with the wind blowing it so hard it felt dangerous to be inside. That outhouse was poised on the same side as the Visitor Center so how we failed to recall the Center, we cannot explain. Guess the one more dramatic memory pushed the other out altogether. Anyway it was wonderful to see the Highline again (no beargrass blooming this time) and the drive back to W. Glacier took about an hour because the traffic had increased by this time and the road takes many a sharp turn. We had a picnic lunch along the way (really right beside the road with our terrific chairs and folding table). While there, we watched some amazing duck behavior, something we had never seen before. A mother duck and her 8 ducklings were racing up the Creek. They “raced” one another over and over until they went out of sight. Left W. Glacier about 1:30 PM to get as far as we could that day. “As far as we can go” turned out to be Missoula where we had supper at another 4Bs here and then came the Best Inn. S & P went next door to gamble at the Diamond Casino where S lost $10 and P broke even. Both said it was a smoke-filled gloomy sort of place that wasn’t really fun to be in. We have learned that Montana has passed a law that anyplace serving food and drink has to have some gambling available—chiefly slots. So folks can indulge their passion or addiction whenever they like in Montana! Got interesting news from Kathy (Lois' sister) telling me she had been offered a much better job now that she has been on the job for two days at the job she accepted in desperation! She’s having a problem with it, but will make the only decision she can—quit the first job and head for 2nd which pays so much better and utilizes her skills more commensurately.
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IDAHO Missoula, MT to Arco, Idaho Day 12: 270 Miles Up and out at 7 AM -- Lots of critters seen during today’s ride: coyotes, bald eagles, llama, pronghorn antelope and a herd of bighorn sheep in a farmer’s pasture below a pretty rocky butte.
CRATERS OF THE MOON NATIONAL MONUMENT Left Missoula early despite our intentions of sleeping late. Had breakfast on the Best Inn and then proceeded towards Salmon, ID about l00 miles away. The plan was to take a float trip on the Salmon River but we decided that we were already seeing all the sights driving along beside the river. So we just had lunch in the little town and headed straight for Craters of the Moon National Monument.
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We stopped often along the way, reading historical markers, taking pictures and seeing everything we could—especially the results of the earthquake in 1988 which had caused Mount Borah to rise 6 inches and the valley beneath it to sink 9 feet! We could see the scarp created by the separation of the mountain and valley and it was pretty darned impressive. Finally made to it to Arco and even found the D-K Motel—a bargain price and a laundry facility right next to our room too. Then we drove out to Craters of the Moon with all its lava flows, spatter cones and cinder cones. Last eruption was about 2000 years ago and geologists believe another is coming. Unearthly looking place but made somewhat softer appearing by the plant growth on these formations. Craters is one of the places that the early astronauts used to train in before the moon landings. Supper at the Pickle Patch next door to the D-K Motel—pretty casual affair. Kathy has accepted the better job after all. We did the laundry when we got back from supper and then went to bed about 11 PM
UTAH Arco, ID to Park City, UT Day 13: 280 Miles Up and out at 7 AM -- Our air-conditioning has been problematic most of the trip, probably because we are staying in really cheap places. However, last night’s was somewhat better than usual so we all slept better. Still, we were awake and ready to go pretty early. Had breakfast at an Arco “hot spot”. A 50ish lady was running the whole show and was doing it with aplomb and cool. She beamed when I complimented her and she told me that the waiter who should have been there with her hadn’t come in today. She apparently left him a message that he had better get himself to work or else. He was arriving as we left. But she had handled everything and quite a few tables all by herself—waiting tables, cooking, clearing and washing dishes! A real “together” gal! We drove south towards Blackfoot and went through an amazing place! Wide valley that was desert-like between two mountains but it houses a federal laboratory that creates nuclear engines, etc. for US Navy vessels at least that’s 22
what they admit to. It’s the biggest such facility in the world. The window dressing is all the “research” going on about the wildlife on the reserve—elk, coyote, bobcat, fox, etc. Lots of weather information is also collected. They claimed to have a website you could access to see about the temps, etc., but we haven’t been able to locate in on the laptop. The scenery was breathtaking at time. It was hard not to stop every mile or so to take pictures and breathe the fresh air.
SALT LAKE CITY TABERNACLE Crossed over into Utah and headed for Salt Lake City, where we arrived just after noon. Went to the Visitor Center for maps and ideas of what to do. Drove to Temple Square and had lunch at a Dee’s near the Salt Lake City Tabernacle which is a different entity from the Temple. Then we attended the 2 PM free organ concert there. The amazing acoustics of the Tabernacle were demonstrated by the 23
following things without the use of microphones: newspapers shredding, three straight pins dropping, and a nail falling. All the sounds could be heard clearly all over the hall! A lady played for about 30 minutes and she ended with a piece that demonstrated the organ at full stop! It sounded terrific since the organ has 10,000 pipes, but I must say I like the sound of an organ in the big Gothic cathedrals better. I like to feel the stones throb with sound. The pews did carry vibrations here in the Tabernacle which is only a performance hall, not a sanctuary for worship services.
Afterwards we went to the Family History Library across the street. Kay and Sharon found some of their relatives but nothing could be found for Pat or me, even including ourselves or our parents. Very interesting place indeed, but it was being renovated so we could not visit all the areas usually open to the public.
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Everything is free for anyone to use. We also learned that discs of info can be borrowed at any local LDS church in the country. There were about 18-20 computers operational in the big room and all were being utilized though we all got a chance at one.
KENNECOTT COPPER MINE After that exercise, we drove out of town to see the Kennecott Copper Mine (much bigger operation than the Kennecott Mine we saw above Murphy, Alaska on our rafting trip. This open pit mine is the only US one of 2 manmade structures visible from outer space (the other is the Great Wall of China). It is a mammoth undertaking from which over 96 billion tons of earth and ore have been removed since 1906.
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There’s a fascinating Visitors Center which goes into the history of copper mining, great people who work at Kennecott, discussions and pictures about the environmental mitigation which goes on constantly to repair the huge scar upon the land, the research into the impact the mine has on water quality and animal life in the area. The mine is wonderful in several ways: its ability to get excellent quality copper from very poor quality ore, its multiple recycling efforts for water, etc., its safety record, its complete “vertical integration” of the mining process. After being so educated about mining, etc., we left SLC for parts east. It had been a busy and long day and we were suddenly tired so we stopped in Park City where we had supper in a Denny’s connected with the motel we chose.
COLORADO Park City, UT to Craig, CO Day 14: 265 Miles Up and out at 7 AM -- Behind our motel and on the way south and east out of the city, we stopped to see the ski jump and luge runs being built for the XIX Winter Olympics in SLC. Looks like they are on schedule in getting the work done. Afterwards, we went down Route 40 towards Heber City and the Rockies. Saw one wild turkey on the way and stopped for a potty break where we watched 10-12 Rufus hummingbirds around a feeder. The land changed from glacier-scoured sea bottoms with sage to mesas and buttes with some actual trees, albeit small ones. A gorgeous day again with only puffy white clouds along the horizon and blue, blue sky above and beyond. Temp was 60 degrees this morning when we started and rose to 73 at 9 AM
DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT Stopped at Dinosaur National Monument around noon and it was a fascinating place. The bones of various kinds of dinosaurs are left in place in the sandbar which was tilted up millennia later and now appears as a rock wall. The most complete skeletons were removed long since for display in many different museums. Today they have protected the bones left behind in a wonderfully authentic looking structure that we have seen before
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sheltering “digs.” The findings are illustrated very clearly and dramatically. We also took the auto tour and explored the tilted formations on the 20 mile road through the setting.
The park has a Utah and a Colorado component and we only saw the Utah side.
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Afterwards, we drove over a long and lonely road with angry rainclouds all around us. No rains really ever fell on us though. We were tired so stopped at Craig — 45 miles short of our goal of Steamboat Springs. Stayed in a Super 8 and did laundry yet again after a dinner in the Golden Cavvy Restaurant (the strange word had something to do with roundups). Good and cheap! Craig to Estes Park, CO Day 15: 180 Miles Up and out at 7:30 AM -- McDonald’s breakfast and then a car check for gas and engine fluids as well as buying ice. To Steamboat Springs first. Saw 2 deer last night right in Craig and then a lone pronghorn antelope there this morning. We also saw Sandhill cranes and 3 more deer in the Yampa River (2 adults and a baby). Drove on through small ranching towns & finally reached Steamboat Springs which is a charming and upscale little city! Lovely central park with bubbling sulfur springs (not hot) and a terrific elk statue.
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Beautiful valley with wonderful homes and condos, but still some working ranches around the area too. Our first stop was the Grand Lake Lodge—one of the original structures from back when the Park was established. It is run by a private concessionaire and it is quite gracious as far as we could tell (we never saw any of the lodge rooms). The big veranda that overlooks Grand Lake was very stylish and afforded a wonderful view of the lake, the mountains and all the boats skimming across the waters.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK Then we reached Trail Ridge Road from the west side where we had never been before in Rocky Mountain National Park. The road starts at Granby and Grand Lake. At this juncture, it was getting beautiful and more mountainous than Western Colorado. Perfect weather and lots of boats and marinas to enjoy it around the Lake. Plenty of traffic too! Trail ridge Road is as stunning as it was 20 years ago.
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Dark, threatening clouds began to close in as we got to the 11,200 ft. summit, but we kept gawking anyway. Saw lots of elk, pica, chippies, ground squirrels, Clark’s nuthatches, magpies, juncos, and then we began to hear rolling thunder echoing through the passes. Next, we saw some pretty dramatic forked lightning, even three streaks at the same time! That made it time to get back in the car and head down the mountain road. Hail hit us as well as hard rains with even more spectacular lightning cleaving the skies. Got into Estes Park West vial Beaver Point Park Entrance and started looking for a home for a couple of days. We already knew things were tight because of all the calls we’d made beforehand. Found this cute little cabin at the Telemark Motel and we are comfortably settled. It is really a room for three but with our blow-up mattress, we have made it do for four.
Next we headed out to Horseshoe Park and Endo Valley. Saw no bighorns and got the shock of the trip when we realized that “our” beaver stream and lovely valley had been ruined (changed) by the 1982 Lawn Lake Dam collapse. 31
The waters carried huge rocks and boulders down into the Valley in an alluvial fan shape and changed the course of the stream altogether. We did see 2 coyotes who greeted each other and howled together so charmingly that we thought maybe they were a couple. Also watched 2 deer on the hillside above the valley and then a 25 member elk herd caught our attention and we watched them cross the road, plunge into the stream and play and drink and bathe and then go to the valley grasses to feed.
ESTES PARK/ ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK Day 16: Up and out at 8:30 AM -- Cool this morning until Pat discovered the furnace when it became sauna-like. We checked out the Tramway up Preston Mountain for its times and then Sharon went to church at the Our Lady of the Mountains. When she got back, we headed for the Aerial Tramway and bought our tickets. It was a smooth and quiet ride up to 8700 feet and then the hike to the summit took us to 9000 feet.
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There were lots of ground squirrels and chippies up there as well as Clark’s Nuthatches—all begging—we resisted (partly because we had no food to share). Sharon did well and was so surprised and pleased her knees did not her going up or down. Being 100 lbs. lighter had to have something to do with that, I’m sure! We got some excellent views of the city and the area out towards Long’s Peak from this summit. Next we drove through Big Thompson Canyon, Drake and the Narrows. This was the site of a terrible flash flood in 1976 and then a fire last year (2000). The canyon is steep sided and narrow so it was easy to see how a wall of water 15 feet high travelling three times created great devastation. 145 people died in the flood. Had lunch at Drake at an old inn that had been a stagecoach stop in earlier times. Food was good and worth waiting for (which we did). The wooden beams and the wall were the original lumber used in the early construction. It has withstood the big flood as well as fires and earlier floods as well. Then we drove to Horseshoe Park looking for bighorn sheep but we failed to find them yet again. The park itself and Endo Valley were both much fuller today than yesterday. Next, we went out to Moraine Park and saw a huge herd of elk—at least 100 we counted. Went to the Moraine Park Museum and it had a very interesting and clever exhibition on mountain building, the effects of glaciations, different life zones in the mountains, etc. There was also a photographic exhibition of pictures taken by various “artists in residence” over the years since 1990. Lo and behold Clyde Butcher was the “guy” in 1997. We went to the ranger program at 7:30 at Beaver Point. It was a clever presentation by a lady ranger who impersonated the remarkable 19th century British explorer, Isabella Lucy Bird Bishop, the 3rd woman to climb Long’s Peak. She was dressed in period clothing and used a Scottish accent. She had interesting slides to illustrate the lady’s world travels to India, Tibet, Persia, China, and Turkey. She stayed in character very well.
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Estes Park to Denver, CO Day 17: 70 Miles Up and out at 6:00 AM -- We wanted to be at the trailhead early this morning so we had to leave early to get there at a reasonable hour to begin our hike into the wilds of RMNP. Pat & Sharon drove us to Glacier Gorge Junction so we could start the hike to Loch Vale and Mills Lake. The walk started off in the forests but quickly got above the treetops and showed us clear and outstanding vistas, beginning with Alberta Falls about l/2 mile into the hike. The Falls was a medium height and medium flow cataract that we enjoyed seeing.
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The trail then forked right towards Lock Vale which was a lovely mountain tarn in a cirque-like setting with waterfalls and snowfields or glaciers nestled in the rugged crags! It was quite scenic and we had it pretty much to ourselves as well. The hike was mostly straight-ups too. We were pleased with how easily we were able to make the 1600’ elevation—Bow-Flex works!
Came down from the Loch and headed for Mills Lake which was even more picturesque! Sort of like the Plain of Six Glaciers in Banff National Park. Lots of rock-hopping and uphill climbing to get there. Only critters we saw, besides people, were Clarks, ground squirrels and a lady mallard. Hike took us from 8 to 12:15 PM and then 30 minutes to take the terrific shuttle system to Moraine Park to meet up with Sharon and Pat again. Drove out of the Park then at Beaver Point and headed down the east side of RMNP towards Long’s Peak, Lily of the Valley, and Wild Basin. Then we took a scenic byway to bypass Denver since we had decided not to visit there after all. The scenery was pretty and highlights included: 1) The Chapel of Catherine de Siena at St. Malo 37
Center (a Catholic retreat and church built into the rock which had been visited by Pope Paul a couple of years ago; 2) the city of Black Hawk (given new life by gambling) and Greenwood Village where we are staying in a wonderful Main Stay Inn (an extended stay hotel with kitchen, living room, bedroom and bath). Denver to Colorado Springs Day 18: 70 Miles
GARDEN OF THE GODS Up and out at 7 AM -- We had a our breakfast at the Main-Stay and then drove towards Colorado Springs. Took about 1 ½ hours to get there and we started at the Garden of the Gods! A wonderful beginning to any day of sightseeing. It was beautiful and very strange looking with all the upturned red “walls” and pinnacles. We watched a very informative video on geological history of the area answering the question, ”How did those red walls get here?” We walked the central garden trail, took pictures, watched 2 rock climbers, saw lots of pigeons and ground squirrels. We oohed and aahed over the bright blue sky, Pikes Peak in the background but very apparent as it loomed over us with its head draped in dark clouds. The many shades of green were glorious in themselves.
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AIR FORCE ACADEMY Then we hied ourselves over to the Air Force Academy to see the noon formation and the Chapel. Couldn’t see the Jewish sanctuary because it is being rehabbed.
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PIKES PEAK Had lunch on the fly as we were under a time crunch to meet our 12:50 date with the Cog Wheel Railway up to the top of Pikes Peak at 14,110 feet.
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We were very lucky because clouds were really heavy on his brow but we had excellent views all the way to within 100’ of the top. There it was cloudy, rainy, and we even had some hail. Chilly but not terribly cold. However, there was absolutely no view available.
We ate the famous donuts and took a few more foggy pictures. By the time we headed back down, it was really raining and more socked in than ever. All the way down the weather got worse and worse and we felt sorry for the folks going up as we descended. None of us felt strange or sick due to the altitude. We had to drive back to Denver to our Mainstay Inn (which was such a luxurious bargain) so we had dinner at a Western Sizzler in Colorado Springs before the drive and then we got back to Denver by 7:30 PM
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KANSAS Denver, CO to Manhattan, KS Day 19: 495 Miles Up and out at 6:30 AM - Wanted to avoid the early morning rush hour traffic in Denver so we left quite early. Guess we did miss the worst, but it was pretty rushed anyway even at the time. It’s amazing how Colorado flattens out as soon as you leave Denver and the Front Range. The land is flat and mainly used for agriculture. Long spaces loom between the farm homesteads. Colorado changed to Kansas imperceptibly since the terrain stayed the same. When we reached Abilene, the land did change—there arose some hills and bluffs and some prairie looks.
KONZA PRAIRIE Pat, Kay and Lois went out to the Konza Prairie (owned by the Nature Conservancy and managed by Kansas State University).
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There was a three mile nature trail hike through the “tall grass” prairie and we took it for 1 ½ hours. It covered a series of ledges or hills (the Flint Hills) and had never been plowed or grazed. It is managed and researched by prescribed burns, grazing, etc. We had thought the grasses would be much taller.
Enjoyed the views of the prairie and the Kansas River bottoms. We went to the biggest draw in these parts—the Vista Drive-In with the famous Vista Burger. Got to bed about 11 PM.
MISSOURI Manhattan, KS to Branson, MO Day 20: 330 Miles
BRANSON Up and out at 6:30 AM -- Knew we had a long way to go today, so we started out early and didn’t stop for breakfast until later. Then drove on towards Kansas City and then Branson. The land looked similar for a while but Missouri did produce a difference: it’s hillier and more verdant because there are many more trees (maybe, I should say, there are some trees). 43
It’s amazing that so much of our heartland is still rural
Branson itself is still farmland all around with a Gatlinburg City inside the farms rings. The city is built among a atop the hills and the individual theatres are built into the hills so their parking lots have big “slants” to climb and descend when going to and from the shows. Most of the theatres are pretty gaudy—but in an entirely different way from Las Vegas (it’s much more countrified). We went first to get a cheap motel and found one—The Eagle’s inn for $40.00 and then we went to the individual theaters to get our tickets for 3 shows. Saw Yakov Smirnoff, the Russian expatriate comedian, at 3 PM after a fast McDonald’s lunch. He was funny and sentimental and droll and an obviously proud naturalized American! His juggler, Slim Chance, was pretty amusing too. Used a Pat Buttram voice. Best of Yakov’s humor was mistakes in understanding between Russia and USA customs.
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Had an early supper at a Red Lobster and then went to our evening show, Legends in Concert—a group of pretty good impersonators. Turned out to be the same outfit Kay and Lois had seen in Las Vegas at the Imperial Palace. The folks “did” Garth Brooks, Jerry Lee Lewis (the best of the lot), Britney Spears, Blues Bros., Faith Hill, John Lennon and Elvis. Okay but not great! The Beatle John fellow looked like John during the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band phase, but he did not sound like him! We got home and to bed by 11 PM
ARKANSAS Branson, MO to Little Rock AR Day 21: 170 Miles Up and out at 9 AM -- Got up later than usual because our third show wasn’t until 10 AM Filled the car, and ice chest and had breakfast at a buffet type Branson place before making our way to the Majestic Theatre for the Comedy Pet Show! Mr. Gregory Popovich is a Russian juggler who also trains house cats and dogs that he rescues from pounds and shelters all around the country. His juggling is unremarkable which explain why he has added the animal acts to his show. The trained cats were truly remarkable. Never expected to see anything like this! The 14 or so cats actually sat and stayed where he wanted them to be, they climbed up tall poles covered with material to sit on tiny pedestals like their big cousins in lion taming shows. One pushed a dog in a baby buggy while riding on a beach ball. 45
Another crossed a ladder, another crossed it upside down, and yet another crossed it on her armpits like a human gymnast on the parallel bars. They jumped through hoops, even blind hoops, they jumped to his shoulders. One road a dog piggyback. They entered toy train cars and stayed there, one even “disobeyed” apparent orders by jumping down off his pedestal and then right back up it when Popovich looked disapprovingly at him. They were so cute and relaxed. It was truly amazing! Afterwards (what could top that performance?) we left Branson and started towards Little Rock about noon. We rode for hours and finally got here about 5 hours later. Countryside was mostly small towns (tiny towns really) and rolling hills and farms. Looked Kentucky-like to Sharon. We had a good lunch at a farmhouse restaurant. Then had supper at Denny’s tonight. Staying at an Amerisuite and it’s very nice. Big enough and the air conditioner works well too. Little Rock to Hot Springs to Little Rock, AR Day 22:
CRATER OF DIAMONDS STATE PARK Up and out at 7:30 AM -- Decided to stay another night in Little Rock so we could visit the Crater of Diamonds State Park south and west of Hot Springs National Park. Took a couple of hours to reach the State Park on back country roads, through tiny towns looking very poor. No wonder we read later that Arkansas is among the 5 lowest per capita income states. Looks like folks were either working for the big timber companies or some sort of borrow pits. So, we weren’t a bit surprised to find so many people at the diamond crater looking some means of increasing their incomes.
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The mine looks like a plowed field with some greenish cast to its soil. There are puddles of water between the furrows. This is advertised as the only public diamond mine in the world! We “miners” paid a nominal entrance fee and then were invited to dig, sieve, or just surface look. Some folks were actually digging deep standing in shoulder height holes. Others did as we did and just put some of the mud in buckets to be searched through with panning sieves.
We tried our luck for about 2 hours but became discouraged when we met with no success. However, this mine does produce winners and fairly regularly too. Since it was overcast, we didn’t suffer too much from the heat. The diamonds are here due to a magma intrusion into the earth here. The diamonds were born under that intense heat and pressure. Now the mine operators have only to keep plowing the earth to keep turning up the diamonds! Several large diamonds have been found here—including one that is considered a perfect white stone. 47
It was another 40+ country miles to Hot Springs NP and what a strange place it is! It was federally set aside in the early 1800s because it was a recognized health spa. To prevent folks from being exploited unfairly, the government decided to own and operate the hot baths, springs. However, private concessionaires built the various bath houses in varying degrees of opulence. Today, the Park Service is trying to preserve Bath House Row buildings because of their historical, social and cultural value. Upper middle class and upper class folks come here regularly to take the baths and socialize, just as they did around the same time in Bath, England. The hot mineral waters were believed to have medicinal value. To really preserve and restore these buildings will take a considerable amount of money which I don’t see forthcoming from this administration any time soon.
HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK
In the meantime, Hot Springs past and present, has fallen on pretty hard times and looks rather tatty! Some sort of cooperative effort is being tried between the town merchants and the NPS but we saw only a limited success so far. The town is set in the low mountains and the hot springs still bubble up out of the ground but folks don’t believe so much in spas any longer. Apparently, the 50s saw the last of the glory days for “taking the baths.”
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After touring this dispirited and dispiriting place, we returned to Little Rock to rest awhile before going to dinner at Regas. Then we all rested some more, watched TV, got cleaned up, and read. Tomorrow after Sharon returns from church we will head for Memphis and then Nashville. Who knows? Maybe we’ll tour Graceland?
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Little Rock, AR to Nashville, TN Day 23: 350 Miles
STATE HOUSE
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GOVERNOR’S MANSION
Up and out at 7:30 AM -- Did a little sightseeing around Little Rock before we left. Saw the Capital building which is modeled on the US Capitol only smaller. Found the Old State House where Mr. Bill declared for the Presidency and saw the small governor’s mansion. Went to the riverfront to see the “little rock” that gave the city its name on the banks of the Arkansas River. The rock apparently was a landmark folks used to employ to find their place on the river.
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Afterwards, we left that state and drove towards to Memphis where we decided not to stop at Graceland because it was the week of the anniversary of Elvis’s death and we figured the place would be mobbed. So we drove straight on to Sharon's sister's home in Nashville. Shirley had already fixed supper for us which we ate out on her lovely patio. We went to see the condos everyone wants her to move into—they are connected to her church and are reasonably priced. Everybody that is, but Shirley herself who seems pretty determined to stay in her house regardless of the pressures.
BACK HOME Nashville, TN to Jacksonville Day 24: 594 Miles Left at 6:30 AM and arrived at 4:45 PM. Good trip back home. Read “Pearl’s Secret” to Kay all the way home. We went to Famous Amos for supper! A great trip of 6200 miles in 24 days to see some of our beautiful country. But there's so much more to see!!!
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