Don't Fence Me In

Road side poetry at a rest-stop in Montana.

From Seattle, we traveled east on Interstate 90. As we crossed the Columbia River in Eastern Washington, we spotted the Wild Horse Monument, 15 life-sized sculptures of galloping mustangs.

We continued on to Idaho, where we drove a scenic byway around beautiful Coeur d'Alene Lake. My mom told me later that my grandparents had gotten married here. The Late Great Gaga always did have great taste.

Our resting spot for the night was the charming college town of Missoula, Montana. Should you ever find yourself in Missoula, do yourself a favor and eat dinner at the Riverside Cafe. Their rhubarb pound cake wins for best dessert of the trip.

Walking along the Clark Fork River in Missoula.

The next day, we set out for Keystone, South Dakota, a 10+ hour drive away. My goal was to get us to the town just outside Mount Rushmore so that we could beat the crowds and the heat by viewing the monument first thing the following morning. This was, I think, a mistake. I wish now that we had added at least another day to the trip here and wandered south to see Yellowstone National Park. Someday, perhaps, we will get back and see the wilds and rivers of Montana not visible from the highway.

Instead we pressed on, stopping for BBQ brisket sandwiches in the quaint resort town of Bozeman. In the afternoon, we visited Little Big Horn National Park, otherwise known as Custer's Last Stand.

Last Stand Hill

From there, we took what we thought would be a short cut on the 212 highway through the Cheyenne reservation. 

Small Town America

The route turned into the loneliest stretch of road we had ever seen. For miles and miles, there were no cars in ahead of or behind us. There were no services either, and we were grateful we had filled up the tank before switching highways.

Lonesome Road

Antelope!

Until the cows come home.

In the evening, as we came into South Dakota, we started passing through small towns again.

Our stop for the night. (Thank God, no.)

We rolled into our motel at 11:00 p.m., grateful for a shower and comfortable bed. At 7:30 a.m. the next morning, we drove to the Mt. Rushmore Memorial. We arrived so early that the staff were still power-washing the walkways. We had the viewing platform to ourselves as we watched the light bounce from the granite faces.

Our next stop was Sioux Falls, South Dakota, a mere five hours away. We'd get there in the early afternoon, relax, stretch our feet a little, and grab a steak dinner somewhere. It was going to be great.

Next time: car trouble!