THURSDAY, JULY 19, 2012
Today is a travel day. Russ does all the driving, and I stay alert, to see whatever comes along. We are in territory that is new to both of us, and we don't want to miss anything. Our total mileage for today was 191 miles via US Hwy 191/287 North, which took us through GALLATIN National Forest. We stopped at Earthquake Lake Visitors Center which will not be officially open until 2013.
A Ranger at Earthquake did say that there had been an Earthquake of 7.5 on the Richter scale,
on August 17, 1959, and they still have massive evidence of it, in that area. We could see some of the effects. I only wish we had taken photos as we drove along the Earthquake Lake of dead treetops projecting out of the water. You can see just a few in the view I did take from the Visitors Center.
This entire hillside came rumbling down the Valley in 20 seconds, and changed the face
of the topography forever. You can read more at: www.fs.fed.us/r1/gallatin . I need to
take the time to do that too.
By 1 PM, we got onto Interstate 90 just after Cardwell, MT, and started up Homestake Pass to an elevation of 6,375. At 6,393 ft. we crossed the Continental Divide again, and ended our day in BUTTE, MT.
We had the joy of meeting Bob and Marsha Lesko who also blog, and shared some hints with us about the places they had been, that were ahead of us. We followed their advice and made sure to try some of the local Huckleberries. Rather than pie, we had them fresh in our breakfast one morning, and as Huckleberry Vinegrette on salad at two different restaurants in Glacier National Park.
I was surprised to see the Huckleberries
more red than blue/black
but these were definitely ripe and sweet.
I had to take a picture of this lovely salad,
at Many Glacier Hotel's Ptarmigan Dining Room,
with the
Huckleberry Vinegrette
on the side. The dressing was so good that I ordered
a similar dressing another day at Eddie's in Apgar Village.
FRIDAY, JULY 20, 2012
DAY 33
We broke camp early this morning because we had a long day of travel ahead of us. In fact, we drove 240 miles between 9 AM and 5 PM. We began on Interstate 90, then Rt. 141 North, and then Montana 200 West to Rt. 83 North.
We kept seeing White Crosses, and the Montana map informed us
that each White Cross represented a fatality.
They erected the metal White Crosses in an effort to
decrease the number of deaths on their roads.
However, it became evident that accidents can and do happen
frequently, when the speed limits increase.
In many places along the Montana highways,
the speed limit is 70 MPH.
I began counting the White Crosses
while Russ was counting the number of vehicles
with missing headlights.
In ten minutes, I counted five different deaths.
In just one hour, I counted 25 deaths.
That is very thought provoking.
One sight had five, and within another mile,
another five on the opposite side of the road.
Finally, we pulled into a corner gas station to fill up,
and on their front lawn was a White Cross and
a display paying loving tribute to someone's
21 year old son.
I had to take a picture
because it was a stunning
reminder of that young man's
untimely death.
I found myself praying for his
family and all the other
families of victims represented
by the White Crosses.
The display included two Miller Light cans,
a pack of cigarettes, two photos
showing him with his dog, and
most likely his girl friend,
a jack knife, and flowers.
You can write your own story.
A message on the Montana map says:
" Learn from those who passed this way.
White markers show fatalities and serve as a reminder to drive safely,
drive sober and wear seatbelts."
The American Legion has more about this
at: www.mtlegion.org
We are so thankful that we did not become one of the White Crosses,
on a Montana highway. We had a tire blow out, just before noon,
We heard an explosion, and I asked Russ what that noise was?
He didn't know and continued to drive.
He realized shortly, that it our rear trailer tire,
on the road side had blown. Folks later stopped by
to talk and told us they had heard the explosion
clear out on Alfa Lake where they were in their boat.
Two folks who were biking along the road,
immediately came to see how they could help.
Another young man stopped his Jeep and trailer to
see what he could do. They all offered encouragement,
and told us of a safe place to pull into to get off the
main highway. We were within 1/2 mile of Alfa Lake
Recreational facility. The campground Host placed
a call for AAA in a nearby town. Within two hours
we had had our picnic lunch, and the tire was changed,
and we were ON THE ROAD AGAIN.
By the time we had moved the trailer off the main
highway, and down into the Alfa Lake campground,
the tire was in shreds. We were blessed to have
a good spare, and were able to replace it with
another good spare, thanks to the service
station having a used tire in our size.
Thank God for the Angels who
came to our rescue.
The two on the bike? They returned, to see how we were doing, and
gifted us with the Huckleberries
we had for our breakfast the next day.
God is so GOOD!
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