Alberta

On the Blackfeet Reservation at the border of USA and Canada

We've been in Canada since around noon on Monday, crossing over at Carway (just East of Glacier).  We spent Monday night at Banff, but had to find a different campground for the next several days.  Thursday, July 1st is Canada Day and of course July 4th is coming up soon. With both the holidays, all the campgrounds in and around Banff were full for the week, so we're staying at Spring Hills RV Park just outside Calgary.

Yesterday we went to Tellus World of Science in Calgary. (http://www.calgaryscience.ca/) We were all really excited to see that the current exhibit was Body Worlds. We've all been wanting to see it for a couple of years.  It was really fascinating and the girls thought it was awesome.  The Children's Museum at the Tellus had a Lego exhibit which was also pretty impressive.

Today, Mickey and Ron went fishing and exploring while us girls stayed behind and had a lazy day.  All this fun is sure tiring, so we were glad to have a day to rest.

Some things we've learned about Canada so far are:
   *  It looks a lot like Montana
   *  The money is funny colored.
   *  It doesn't get dark until at least 11:00pm
   *  The sun comes up around 4:30am
   *  The people are friendly
   *  Groceries are REALLY EXPENSIVE - 3 pounds of boneless/skinless chicken breast at Safeway      
              cost $ 24.00 (we didn't get chicken) and a can of Campbell's Soup cost $ 2.15
   *  You get lots of practice with the metric system (mileage is in km and you purchase diesel by the L)

Today marks our first month on the road.  So far we've all been well, with the exception of Sophie who's had an upset stomach the last 2 days. We've traveled about 7100 miles so far and only been cross with each other a few times.  We think that's pretty good for a family of 4 living in a trailer.  The girls have each read three books and are working on a fourth.  And we've discovered that we can live without TV and/or Internet when we have to.  We wake up when we want and stay up as late as we want.  And everyone seems to have a pretty open mind about the activities we choose.  We know everyone won't always like the same things, but when you see your sister or your husband patiently waiting while you spend extra time doing what you like it makes you more understanding when they find things that interest them.

All in all, it's been great so far. We're seeing and learning a lot about new places and each other.  I'm so thankful we have this time together.

                                   Amanda

Glacier National Park

We've spent the last two days at Glacier National Park. (http://www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm ) On Saturday we drove the Going to the Sun Road through Glacier. (http://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/goingtothesunroad.htm )  It's an historic highway constructed in the 1930s and the only road that goes through the center of the park. The views along this drive are just amazing.  The road is pretty narrow though, so driving it in our rig was an adventure.  The first two pictures are from along the Going to the Sun Road.  We were surprised that we didn't see near as much wildlife in Glacier as we had in Yellowstone.  Glacier and the surrounding area has the greatest population of bear in the lower 48 states, but we haven't seen a one.

We also have not seen a glacier.  Right now the snow is still in the mountains and a park ranger explained to us that the glaciers will not be visible until the snow that's covering them right now has melted.  There are currently 26 named glaciers left out of the 150 that were here when the park was established 100 years ago.

Today we went to Many Glacier and toured the historic hotel there.  The next two pictures are from Swift Current Lake at Many Glacier.  There are 200 lakes within Glacier National Park and waterfalls everywhere.  The lakes are emerald green and gorgeous.

We've spent the evening relaxing and watching a movie (Field of Dreams) before packing up to cross into Canada tomorrow. 

St. Mary, Montana

Sunset view across St. Mary Lake, Glacier National Park

We arrived in St. Mary early this evening.  It's at the East Entrance of Glacier National Park.  We're staying at a campground just outside the park, Johnson's of St. Mary (http://www.johnsonsofstmary.com/).  It's a quaint little place that's celebrating it's 60th year this year.

Hannah and I explored the campground by bicycle after dinner.  There are beaver ponds here at the campground and the lady in the office said there is a moose cow and her baby that have been frequenting the ponds.  We didn't see them this evening, but maybe tomorrow.

Around sunset (9:30 - 10:00pm here), we took a brief drive into the park.  We saw a large herd of elk and took some really pretty pictures of the lake and mountains.  It's so beautiful here, and tonight was so nice and clear.  A Park Ranger we spoke to said that pretty nights have been rare lately with all the rain they've been having.  We can't wait to get into the park in the morning.

On a different note, I wanted to share this with you all.  We seem to get a lot of "looks" from the locals when we come through their towns in our rig.  I guess part of it is that we tend to like the rural routes so we end up going through a lot of little towns. Apparently most of the big rigs stick to the interstate.  Today we were stopped in a little town in northern Montana where the locals apparently thought we were quite a sight.  Three or four people outside a general store were talking and pointing at us.  And then, the guy on the tracker, pulling his kids on top a shredder.  I don't know if you can see from the picture, but the kids have life jackets on and are sitting on beach towels.  They stopped, went in the store, came out and looked at us like we were pretty unusual, and went on their way.  How funny is that? 

Leaving Cody

Before leaving Cody, Wyoming this afternoon, we went on the Cody Trolley Tour.  The guides told about the history of Cody and Buffalo Bill's influence in this area and world wide.  He was largely responsible for Yellowstone having an East Entrance, which can only be reached by traveling through Cody.  Buffalo Bill spent over $ 700,000 of his own money on establishing this area of Wyoming.  We've had a really great time here and wish we could stay longer.  The Cody Trolley Tour is pet friendly, so Sophie got to go too.

We left Cody around 1:30 this afternoon and just arrived at FAM Camp at Malmstrom AFB in Great Falls, Montana about an hour ago.   It took us longer than expected.  Look at the picture above.  We were on this gravel road for about 30 miles at less than 30 mph.  That's what happens when you haven't told your GPS to avoid minor roads.  Oh well, we learned something and it was a pretty drive. 

We're moving farther north tomorrow to explore Glacier for a few days before going into Canada.

Hope you are all having a great summer. 
                                         Amanda

Buffalo Bill Historical Center

We spent the entire day today at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center here in Cody, Wyoming. (http://www.bbhc.org/home/)  What a great museum.  It's really 5 museums, the Buffalo Bill Museum, Greater Yellowstone Natural History, Plains Indians, Western Art, and Firearms.  It's a good value as well, $45 for the family and that includes admission again tomorrow if you wish.

Everyone's well and having a good time.  We miss you all and will post more later.

Cody, Wyoming

We found a space at Ponderosa Campground here in Cody this morning.  So we'll be here for a couple of days.   Just after lunch we took a river rafting trip with Wyoming River Trips (http://www.wyomingrivertrips.com/).  Our trip went through the Shoshone Canyon and was a solid level 2 - level 3.   The weather was a little cool, in the 60s at the time and the water was pretty cold, but we had a really good time.  Both girls have been asking to go again.

After a nice warm shower, we went downtown to watch the Cody Gunfighters(http://www.codygunfighters.com/).  They are a non-profit group that perform every summer night in front of the Irma Hotel.  Proceeds go to local charities.

Tomorrow we're going to the Cody Museum and possibly the Trolley history tour.

Bear Country USA

Well, time for a little catching up.  We've been pretty busy the past couple of days and I've just now had a chance to post.

Yesterday we visited Bear Country USA in Rapid City, South Dakota.   (http://www.bearcountryusa.com/) We had driven by several times on our way to other places and the girls really wanted to see it.  It's a drive through animal park with a ton a bear. It was pretty good, but not as exciting as seeing them "in the wild." 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiFyF3zs8Og

They did have a walk through area with baby animals that was pretty good. 

After Bear Country, we loaded up the rig and headed back into Wyoming towards Cody.  The first 275ish miles went fast and smooth.  Then we hit the Medicine Wheel Passage.  It's one of the most scenic routes we've taken so far.  Really beautiful but also REALLY SLOW.  The grade was 10% for 9 miles.  Then coming into Cody we encountered a 9 mile stretch of road construction.  That doesn't sound so bad, except that the road was in such poor condition that we had to drive 10-15 mph for the entire 9 miles.  Cost us about an hour.

We finally made it to Cody around 10:00pm and knew we'd have to stay in the WalMart parking lot again since every RV park in town was full.  Cody's a really popular place in the summer.  We've spent a few nights in WalMart parking lots so far (whenever we're just going to nap a few hours and keep driving).  But what a surprise when we pulled into the WalMart in Cody.  We were one of at least 30 or so rigs doing the same thing.  It was like a little community.  Good thing WalMart lets RVers do this.   I'm not sure what we'd do in out of the way places when there's no space in the parks.

Deadwood, South Dakota

 We spent some time in Deadwood, South Dakota today.  It's an old mining town and the place Wild Bill Hickok was killed.  This weekend is Wild Bill Days and there are events taking place all over town.  We watched some of the street events like Dock Dogs Big Air Wave Competition, then ate lunch at Kevin Costner's place Diamond Lil's. 

Main Street, Deadwood, South Dakota

 
Later we went to Sturgis and took in a classic car show and splurged on some really good ice cream.
 
Tomorrow we're just going to catch up on some household chores.  Fun stuff like cleaning and laundry.  Then we'll be ready to hit the road again Monday morning, headed back west towards Bozeman, Montana to meet up with Ron and Nancy before going farther north.
 
 
 

The Black Hills of South Dakota

Yesterday we got an early start and headed south towards Custer State Park.  We stopped in Keystone, South Dakota and did some gold panning.  Not an easy thing.  Katy did pretty well.  But the rest of us, not so good.  Mickey put some "pretty rocks" in his jar so he wouldn't leave empty handed.

From Keystone we drove further south through Custer State Park and into Wind Cave National Park. (http://www.wind.cave.national-park.com/)

Wind Cave National Park is an area of rolling prairies where the grass is so tall in places that you have to watch very closely for the wildlife.  We saw Bison, Prong Horn Antelope, Prairie Dogs, White Tail and Mule Deer.  And then there were the donkeys.  They were all along the road and would have held up traffic for hours if you would have let them.  There are signs everywhere that say "Don't feed the animals."  But I guess the donkeys are so cute that some people can't resist.  Sophie liked barking at them, but not as well as she likes barking at Bison.  We can ask her "Where's the buff?" and she'll stand up at the closest window to try to find one.

  From Wind Cave we drove further south again to Hot Springs, South Dakota.  A very pretty old town with a lot of activities.  (http://www.hotsprings-sd.com/)  While in Hot Springs, we toured the Mammoth Site

( http://www.mammothsite.com/ ).  The girls really enjoyed seeing a working dig site.

 In the evening we went to Mount Rushmore National Memorial. (http://www.nps.gov/moru/index.htm)   We chose to go late in the evening so that we could be there for the lighting of the memorial and the evening ceremony. It was a really nice program with readings from The Declaration of Independence, a movie about patriotism in the US, and recognition of all past and present Veterans in the audience.  We're glad we went late in the day.  What a beautiful site!

On to South Dakota

                      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a_xU2WKGWA
                                                                 Click to see video.

It's been really rainy here.  We left the West Yellowstone area yesterday around 11:00am and traveled along 191 north to I-90.  Along 191 we saw some brave souls kayaking and rafting the white water on the Madison River.  Just after I shot the video, it started to hail.

Our plan was to travel to Hardin, Montana and visit Little Bighorn Battlefield before going farther east to Rapid City, South Dakota.  However, with the pouring rain we wouldn't have been able to see much at Little Bighorn.  So we drove straight through to Rapid City, arriving here about 2:30 this morning.  We took a little nap in the WalMart parking lot before coming out to Ellsworth Air Force Base.  We'll be staying here in the FAM Camp at Ellsworth through the weekend.  The weather is much nicer here, in the 70s today and NO RAIN.

Since we had another long night on the road, we've spent today just exploring the facilities here on base (which are very nice).  They have a great fitness center, indoor and outdoor pools (where Mickey and the girls are now),  a BX where we did a little shopping, and a very nice RV Park.  We plan to see a movie on base tonight then get to bed early for a change.

There are so many things to see in this area.  We chose this route to see Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse, but there are seemingly endless things to do in the Black Hills.  Guess we better get an early start in the morning.

The Books are Here

Quake Lake

Today we went to Quake Lake near West Yellowstone.  Quake Lake is the result of an earthquake in the area in 1959.  The visitors center there is really informative and shows a movie that explains what happened to this area.  http://www.visitmt.com/categories/moreinfo.asp?IDRRecordID=14323&SiteID=1

The girls' homeshooling curriculum arrived this afternoon.  They are both really interested in what this "homeschooling thing" is going to be like.  They each completed a lesson (Spelling for Hannah and History for Katy) as soon as we unpacked the boxes.  They're both excited about having a more flexible schedule and to my surprise they want to work on it over the summer as well. 

Since the books are here, we'll be leaving Island Park, Idaho in the morning and headed to Hardin, Montana where we plan to stay at least one night and visit Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.

Everyone is doing well.  The weather up here is really cool and we've been wearing jeans and coats most of the time.  We've heard it should be warmer in South Dakota and we plan to be there by the end of the week to see Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse. 

Jackson Hole and Grand Teton

Jackson Hole

We went to Jackson Hole yesterday and did a little shopping.  After that we road the tram to the summit of Rendezvous Mountain.  Hannah was a little hesitant at first but really enjoyed it. 

View from the summit.

Rendezvous Mountain

Later we drove through Grand Teton National Park where we saw our first moose.  We also saw a very large grizzly bear.  Grand Teton is beautiful but nothing like Yellowstone.

Moose in the trees at Grand Teton.

We're still waiting for our books to come in, they should be here tomorrow.  Provided they arrive on time, we'll be leaving and heading east a little to see Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse.

Bear at Yellowstone

                                  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwsTanw1b18

We went back to Yellowstone about noon today and were able to see a grizzly bear with her four cubs playing in a field about 400 yards from the road.  Later, we came upon a black bear and were able to get some really good video from about 10 feet away.  What amazing animals.  The girls are having the best time looking for wildlife. 

Tomorrow we're heading south a little to Jackson Hole and Grand Teton.

Yellowstone National Park

After a little rest, we spent the day in Yellowstone. (http://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm) What a gorgeous place!  We came in the West Entrance in West Yellowstone, Montana.  It wasn't long before we saw Bison everywhere along the Madison River.  The girls even had two bison swim across the river right in front of them.  And Mickey was standing near a group of bison when a tree fell. 

                                          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzXPx_CE3Ao
                                                    Click to watch the video.
Then we went South on the Grand Loop to see Fountain Paint Pot and Great Fountain Geyser.  All the thermal areas are just amazing, but they do smell like rotten eggs.  Of course we watched Old Faithful and toured The Old Faithful Inn (built in 1904).  (http://www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com/old-faithful-inn-96.html) 

We took some really nice photos at Kepler Cascades and were fortunate enough to see a black bear chasing an elk in Hayden Valley.

We ended the day by watching the most beautiful sunset as we left the park around 9:30pm.

On our next trip into Yellowstone, possibly tomorrow, we plan to drive the North Loop.

Driving Through Wyoming

Well, we finally got back on the road yesterday around 1:30pm.  The new truck runs and pulls great.  We decided to make up some time by getting as close to West Yellowstone as we could last night.  We made it to Idaho Falls about 1:30 this morning and caught a 4 hours nap in the WalMart parking lot before stocking up and heading on to Red Rock RV Park near Island Park Idaho.  We'll be spending about a week here with Ronnie and Nancy before moving farther north.

The scenery was beautiful through Wyoming and see saw Elk and Antelope.  The grade was pretty steep going into and back out of Jackson Hole, but the truck did great.  The speed limit is pretty slow in much of the mountains, partly due to grade and road work.  We did come up on a wreck about 11:00pm last night.  A small sedan had hit a Bison.  What a site.

The temperature is pleasant here.  It's been in the 50s today.  There's been a little rain, but not too bad.  We plan to just rest up this evening (considering sleep was short last night). 

Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

Our new truck was not quite ready today.  We had to wait for the proper 5th wheel hitch to come in.  So, we went to Rocky Mountain National Park for the day.  It was so beautiful there.  The temperature was in the 50s and 60s.  There was snow in the mountains and the melt is causing the rivers and streams to rush full blast.

We saw elk near Big Horn crossing and the chipmunks along Trail Ridge Road were very friendly.  No, we weren't feeding them.  But they probably smelled the jerky on our hands.  We bought some really good elk jerky for today's snack.

Hopefully the new truck will be ready in the morning, so that we can get back on the road.  If all goes well, we hope to be near Yellow Stone by tomorrow night.

                               Amanda

Truck Trouble

Not a lot to report today, we've had truck trouble.  But, it will be fixed tomorrow.  (Getting a new truck.)  We're trading up to something stouter.  It should be ready by noon or so tomorrow so that we can get back on the road.  Then we'll be headed towards Salt Lake City on our way to West Yellowstone.

Bishop Castle and Pikes Peak

Lake Isabel in San Isabel National Forest

This morning we woke up early, before 6am.  The sun sure comes up early here.  We were out exploring by 8am.  First we headed southwest to Bishop Castle in the San Isabel National Forest.  Jim Bishop has been building the castle since 1969, mostly by himself.  It's a really incredible place.  Katy and I climbed to the top of the tower.  It was a little scary since there aren't a lot of railings of some places, but well worth it.  Encouraging to see what one man can do. 

http://www.coloradoadventure.net/attractions/colorados-most-hidden-attraction-bishop-castle.html

We visited with Michael and D'Ann over lunch at Amanda's Fonda in Colorado Springs before driving to the summit of Pikes Peak. What a beautiful drive.  The temperature at the base was 78 degrees and when we reached the summit it was 55.  The grade was steep and we all got just a little altitude sickness, but it resolved quickly and was well worth it for the experience.  I think the trek down was harder than going up.  But that may be because I was driving on the way down.  I did learn a lot about down shifting. 

                                                                           On the way up Pikes Peak Highway

At the summit.

View from the summit.

http://www.pikes-peak.com/page/122.aspx

After a wonderful day of exploring, we stopped to stock up on groceries before heading back to the camp ground.  We'll be traveling farther north tomorrow.  Maybe as far as Wyoming.

                                   Amanda

North to Colorado

Today we traveled northwest through the Oklahoma panhandle and into Colorado. We're spending the weekend in the Pueblo area, before moving farther north on Monday.  Pretty much just sightseeing from the truck today, as we tried to get as far north as we could before time to stop for the night.

Learned something today about turn rounds under I-25 (at least in this part of Colorado).  You don't want to go under I-25 pulling this rig.  Of course, I was driving again.  You can see from the picture, that it's a "one lane tunnel".  Not only that, the clearance isn't marked. We were too tall for this one and Mickey had to back us out.

The girls are really good travelers.  In the truck they keep themselves occupied watching the scenery, listening to music, watching DVDs, and pestering their parents (but not too bad).  They've really been great!

Of course after all day in the truck, they need some kid time.  So we're trying to stay at campgrounds that have swimming pools and other activities.  The campground we're at right now has a pool and a jumping pillow.  The girls love it.

Sophie's doing good too.  She spends all day with her people, which is exactly what she likes.  She also likes "people food" A LOT. 

                                  Amanda

Geocaching and Texas

We were out late tonight.  Just got back from seeing Texas at the Palo Duro Canyon State Park Amphitheater.  It was fabulous.  Great performers and such a beautiful setting.  All four of us really enjoyed it.  A must do if you're in this area.

Earlier today, we went geocaching again, with much more success than yesterday.  Looked for 3 different caches and found 2 of them.  It's really fun.  People are so creative.  We found one micro cache and one that was disguised as a rock. 

And the prairie dogs are so cute.  They're everywhere.  Which means they are probably a menace like squirrels back home.  But they're still interesting to watch.

Northward bound in the morning.

                                    Amanda
                                                         

Cadillac Ranch and Palo Duro Canyon

Today we did a little shopping, early.  Hannah needed a camera.  Then we headed west on I-40 to Cadillac Ranch (http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220 ). 

The girls had a blast.  Not many places you can see Cadillacs planted in a field or add graffiti to something and it be OK.  I don't know if it's like this everyday, but there were even spray paint cans sitting around for you to use.

We tried to find a geocache near the ranch, but it was gone.  The last person that posted said the container was missing and all that remained was a log book on the ground.  We didn't even find that.  It's disappointing when you don't find anything.  But, it's fun and we'll keep playing.

*********************************************************************

Later in the day, we visited Palo Duro Canyon State Park (http://www.palodurocanyon.com/).  What a beautiful place.  Second largest to the Grand Canyon.  Not at all what you expect out here where the earth's so flat you can see the curvature.  We'll go back to the park tomorrow evening to see Texas.  Then, moving north on Saturday.  Not sure where yet.  So visit the site again soon.

                                                                               

Mickey, Amanda, Katy, & Hannah