Butch & Dave's Great Road-Trip!

This morning, Butch & Dave saw the sunrise in Montana.  There's just something about sunrise in the West~

Dave's amazing photo~

Leave it to these two - to take the route that puts them just where they wanted to be :-)  Not in time for the big rally - maybe not driving a U-Haul - but a great place to make a stop~!

Sturgis!

By now, they've traveled well over 1,000-miles - with the Ford U-Haul truck cruising right along!

Dave & the U-Haul~

It's great that even when they don't have much cell phone reception - in most cases they can still sent out a text.

In Town~

They walked the town & had nachos & beer!

Dave & Butch at lunch~

So glad they're taking a little time for some stops!  :-)

Packing Up, Butch & U-Haul Leave & a Birthday!

We spend Friday - all day Friday - packing the U-Haul!  It was crazy, the amount of boxes that we had packed!  Without Donnie - who came up early & later Kyla & Pat - we couldn't have gotten it done!  By early evening - two more friends came up after working all day & helped with the final push!  I was way too busy to take photos, sure wish I had.  After we were done, we managed to find enough chairs to sit!  Next you ask?  Margarita's out of a can & beers for all!

Butch & I spent the night in the camper - both exhausted.  Butch was up & gone with the truck by 6 a.m. the next morning.  He picked up our son-in-law Dave & they were on their way!

To Montana!

 By just after 2 p.m. Butch sent this photo as they crossed from ID to Montana!  The next text was after 7:30 p.m. when they'd stopped for dinner & the night just outside of Bozeman MT.

Cassidy & Cupcakes!

I'd been invited to Granddaughter Cassidy's birthday party.  Hard to believe that she's now 13 & officially a teenager :-)   Courtney served a wonderful taco bar for dinner, then the Poke Ball Cupcakes for dessert!

Cassidy, Mason & friends!

The girls wanted to go see Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children in Monroe.  It was quite the movie!  It wasn't Mason who was scared - it was Grammy!  I told him I was about ready to sit on his lap & close my eyes!  :-)  To just sit in a chair & be entertained was amazing after the last week...

Nika is sticking close - Donnie came up to feed Farah.  Now, I'll be rattling around an almost empty house for a few days!

Missoula on Home~

Dawn~

The final leg seemed the longest of the trip.  I'd slept the night before & enjoyed the very nice room.  I woke an hour before my alarm, took my time & watched the weather report.  Freezing rain near St. Regis had me worried, so by the time I called Butch - I'd stopped at Starbucks for a hot tea & was already on I-90.  Pretty much the only car on the road.  I had some interesting radio stations that I listened to along the way!  The Bear, the Wolf & the Eagle!  I'd listen until I ran out of the range of each station, early in the mornings anyway.

Daylight~

As the day lightened, all it did was to show me how icy in spots the roads were.  I just maintained my speed, kept the wheel straight & didn't make any sudden changes.  I'd wait for the straight stretches to pass any trucks.

Near St. Regis~

By the time I was near St. Regis - the road was down to one clear lane, but with no traffic - I had it to myself :-)

Rest Area~

I made a very short stop here - up on the pass.  No lack of snow in the Tamarack Forest!  Some of the trees look almost dead in winter, dropping their needles.  Coeur d'Alene was the next goal & the WA state line after that.

Coeur d'Alene

Filling up whenever I got down to half a tank worked out well.  That usually took two-hours & by that time I was ready for a short break & stretch.  I pulled off for gas at Liberty Lake & was right back out on the road heading for Ellensburg, when I realized that the tank wasn't totally topped off.  Oh well, if it got too low - there was always Moses Lake.

Central Washington State~

 On such a slate gray day - the monochromatic views were far from inspiring.  I'd started the trip doing about 70 mph.  Once in Montana - with the 80-mph speed limit - the Bronco just seemed to go 80 all on it's own.  That's the speed we did all the way across, so at least we were making time.  I stopped at the Schrag rest area & did a few jumping jacks just to get the blood flowing!

The Columbia~

Views of the Columbia, gave me at least a little of the scenic interest I was using to enjoying!  I didn't get a photo of the lit, blinking sign that greeted drivers climbing the hill on the far side.  It read;  "50+ Elk killed in a year, over the next six-miles."  Believe me - I kept both eyes open through there.
At Ellensburg, I stopped at the truck stop & asked about the pass.  The truckers were worried & wondering about it as much as I was.  It started snowing lightly while I was there & lasted for a few miles out of town.

Leaving Ellensburg~

Now, so close to getting home, I sure didn't want to be stopped on the pass!  Friends let me know that the eastbound lane had been closed due to an accident.  It was noticeable - hardly any traffic coming eastbound.   It started raining about half way up!  Rain!  Hadn't seen any of that since I'd left!  :-)  The worst part, was on the down hill grades - the lanes were narrowed for the construction & had No shoulder!  With snow packed up against the barriers - there was maybe a lane & a half of space.  No fun...

Eastbound Emergency Rigs~

I didn't have much of a chance to get a photo - but What a Mess!  The backed up traffic went on for miles & miles...

Trucks line the shoulder of I-90~

More trucks were off to the side than I'd seen my entire trip...  Just a way further & the wind struck!  Huge gusts blowing the rain right at us in sheets.  I took the Fall City exit & let me tell you - following a car at 35 mph. seemed like a crawl!  I stopped at daughter Courtney's for a minute - to tell her I was back & took the back roads home!

I just have to brag up the Bronco.  Purchased in April of 06, after my other one was totaled, we bought it with 117,000 miles.  It was almost impossible - even then, to find one that was in decent condition.  We've always taken good care of it, maintenance when needed etc.  I drove it on this same trip in July of 2012 - to see my Dad, so this was our second long-distance haul.  Not one single problem the entire way!  The engine just purred & purred!  The harder I worked it - the smoother it ran.  I think the Bronco enjoyed his vacation from pulling the horse trailer & all the short around town trips that constitute the work week :-)  Our total mileage was 2,808 & I was gone nine days.  Of those nine, only three weren't on the road.  I still feel like I'm moving today!   The cold/wet of the great north-wet has already settled back in my bones :-)

P.S.  The one thing that I noticed the most - in every state I traveled through - was the lack of snow.  All the way across - there was maybe 3" of windblown snow, nothing like the Winters of old by the time January rolled around...

Sheridan to Missoula~

Leaving Sheridan~

The days are getting longer!  Last week when I was heading east - it was still dark when I left Sheridan at 7 a.m.  This morning, there was light!  I'd worried that the roads would be icy, but it was warmer than yesterday morning's six degrees!  Sunday morning the sun was shining & it was so pretty out.  I went out to the Bronco to get my camera & the minute I opened the door, the cold hit me!  My fingers went numb in an instant!  I rushed back to the house to the loud laughter of my family!  :-)  Even my tea was frozen IN my thermos!

Racing the train :-)

 After taking a day off - I was back on the road.  Over a week of mostly traveling, I'm actually getting used to it!  Watching the country roll by is almost like being in the middle of a travel video.  The higher the sun got in the sky - the more beautiful the day became.  Stunning blue, wide open sky, a high layer of clouds & the dazzling white of the snow.

East of Livingston~

Soon though - I had another challenge...  Wind!  It hit like the blast from a bomb!  Sweeping the snow across the road with a fury.  I had to keep the wheel tilted to the outside to even begin to stay in my lane.  It was brutal & the Bronco was bucking like his namesake!  My gas gauge was dropping fast!  I'd planned to stop in Bozeman, but hadn't seen a mileage sign for quite a while.  Instead - Livingston was coming up & I decided to get off there.  Oh My Gosh!  What a BEAUTIFUL place!  The mountains were all around & so amazing!  The guy at the mini mart was so friendly, I told him he must really enjoy living in such a beautiful place.  He had been born & raised there.  He said that they used to get lots of snow, that now & for the last few years, hardly Any snow.  Instead - he continued;  the temperatures have been colder for longer.  Weeks of sub-freezing temperatures.  Across the street was a jeweler.  In my hurry to leave home I'd forgotten a ring & my watch.  I walked in & asked the sales person if he had a ring with a local stone for a reasonable price?  He took me to a case with an amazing ring with three small Montana Sapphires.  The first I'd ever seen & the exact color of the river below!  The cost was a paltry $3,500.  :-)

Missouri River

 The river was Montana Sapphire blue - darker than the beautiful afternoon blue sky.  It's a long haul across to Butte, but my audio book helped & so did a dry road over the pass.

Almost to Butte

Finally - another town to check off.  Another quick stop for gas, another shorter pass & up ahead the day's goal, Missoula.  I was surprised at all the haze in the air.  Not sure what kind of plant is putting the up the plume of steam?

Missoula~

I was happy to see the exit for the motel come up.  Another fill up & check in.  The staff remembered me & after hearing the distance I'd traveled since they'd seen me last week - they upgraded my room.  Four flights of steps, I ask for a top room on an end of the building next to the stairs.  I actually enjoyed going up & down those steps - at this point - any exercise is Oh So welcome! 

The Bronco below

Tomorrow - Washington & HOME!

Westward Ho ~

Snoqualmie Pass- Day 1

Unexpected - life throws those events at us from time to time.  Colorado was again calling my name...  Flying is not my thing!  Crowds, confined space & stale air - since Butch didn't nix my plan to drive, the Bronco & I hit the road.  When I checked the pass report, it was to close for avalanche control at 9 a.m.  I took the back roads to North Bend, then headed up onto I-90.  Even with slow going I made it through with 30-min. to spare.

Near Spokane

By the time I was coming into Spokane - the day had turned stunning! 

Lolo Pass 3 p.m.

Once into Montana - the 80 mph. speed limit really helped our time.  I wanted to be to Missoula before dark & just made it by 5 p.m.  Tired didn't describe it, so made my calls & turned in early.  Of course I couldn't sleep...  Up early & back on the road.

Leaving Missoula - Sunrise, Day 2

It was still dark, but before long the sun was coming up & I love seeing sunrise in the west!  Montana is a big state & my audio book helped the miles click by.  By 1 p.m. I was in Billings - making the turn south toward Wyoming.  The goal for this day, my favorite Aunt & Uncle's home in Sheridan, WY!

Bronco covered with road grime!

Butch called & said that the Bronco wanted a little oil.  I got out my step, climbed up on the hood & with the phone on speaker - started the process.  Within a minute, I had three guys offering to help :-)   It's friendly in the West!  Driving along, I was surprised to see two women on horses with their dogs heading toward a small horse herd.  I beeped the horn as way of saying;  "Hi!" They waved & how I wished I was out there riding with them!

Big Horns in the distance~

Back on the road, the sun shining on the snow was brutal.  Even with my good sunglasses, my eyes were tired.  By 3 p.m. I was pulling into Sheridan!  First stop - the car wash!  The Very Best car wash I have ever used!  It blasted that road grime right off!  Visiting family that I seldom get to see - is always so wonderful!  Of course we never stopped talking & going to bed was hard!  Next morning when I went out to warm up the Bronco - it was frozen solid!  17 degrees felt darn cold!  :-)  It was sure fun motoring around on the snow covered streets.

Leaving Sheridan - Day 3

Another gorgeous sunrise in the West.  I would have loved to stop & take photos with the camera, but it would be another almost full day's drive.  Over the years, & the drives back & forth - Auntie has always sent me on my way with a packed lunch!  Chicken salad sandwich, chips, cookies - yum!   I don't think anyone would argue that Wyoming can be a bit dull out in the middle of the state.  I was looking forward to crossing the Colorado state line!   Traffic picked up the further south I drove.  Two-lanes each direction once on I-25 seemed small after being so used to I-5! By just after 2 p.m. I was at Mom's door!  So good to see her!

The Long Winding Road~

July 26, 2012 - The Chugwater area of Wyoming

I feel like a Road Warrior!  Ten days on-the-road so far & another to get back home.  The final mileage will be interesting.  The landscape is something out of one of the old Westerns.  As I sped along about 75 mph - watching the scene roll by - how I wished I was in Farah's saddle, feeling her big walk & hearing the quiet of the country.  Maybe back about one-hundred years in the timeline.  When I dared to pull off to the side of the Super-slab - noise was the biggest onslaught to my senses.  Even so - just taking in the scope of the country is such an amazing experience.  It had been years since I'd taken a drive of this magnitude by myself.  The last time was about 1995 - driving a black Ford Mustang 5.0 that the truckers nicknamed;  "That little muscle car!"  :-)  This time, it's still a Ford, but a full-size Bronco - with four-wheel drive, not smart to go over 80.  With the Mustang?  Safe to say that the upper limit was over three figures :-)

July 27, 2012 - Just after 10 a.m. West of Billings

Butch & I had taken the trip in 2008, but the changes are startling.  Almost every town along the major interstate highways has grown even more.  So many new interchanges, each with the mandatory gas stations & fast food.  Gone are the days of the small unique restaurants where you took your chances of getting a great meal, or not!  Getting gas is a challenge too, with all the large motor homes - especially the ones towing jeeps or other vehicles behind.  When they pull into the pumps - they take them ALL!  Lines were common, even during the week days.

July 27th,11 a.m. - Grizzly Mountains, near Big Timber, MT

The majesty of the views become almost overwhelming & certainly awe inspiring.  I wished that grandson Ben had been able to come with me for the trip.  His mother & I had taken my orange 78 Mustang with T-tops (The Starman Mustang) all the way to Iowa in the summer of 1990, to visit my grandparents - when she was about the age he is now. That time we took in the Corn Palace of Mitchell, SD & Devils Tower, WY.  Travel Gods willing, one more long driving day & I hope to see the green, green grass of Home!

On The Road Again~

Welcome to Wyoming

Wyoming has a new welcome sign since my last visit here!   I'm taking a road-trip.  It was unplanned but not completely unexpected.  I have family things to do in Colorado, so decided to drive, flying isn't my favorite thing.  Driving gives me time to reflect on the beauty of our great Country's wide open spaces, since I've been lucky enough to go through the width of Washington State, across the top of Idaho, through Montana & from the top to the bottom of Wyoming!  Finally - back to Colorado!

Peaks of Yellowstone~

Hot!  Have I said something about the heat yet?  Not the best time of year to travel & when the air-conditioning went out on the Bronco - I didn't think I'd make it!  Thanks to my husband calling ahead, he found a great little repair shop in Bozeman, where they took the Bronco in & replaced the blower.  Sweet relief.  Problem is though - that the heat is so intense during mid-day - that the blower just can't keep up with the cooling.  Every so often I have to shut it down, wait, then turn it on again.  Otherwise, the miles have been flying by.  I've made stops to visit friends north of Spokane the first night, then family in Sheridan - where I met my cousin's grandchildren for the first time!

Hydrangea's & Aspen

I haven't been posting - but have been taking pictures & enjoying a audio book along the way!  Have threatened to bring a wolf-hybrid home with me too :-)  Missing the Homestead though -  blooms on my hydrangea's, blueberry picking season & even the cool of the rain!