Superior Montana - I drove further than I expected to today. The drive up the Gorge was beautiful. I then turned off onto I-82 to 395 up to I-90.
I had been to Spokane once before when I was but a lad around 50 years ago. We had taken a western vacation where we hit Jackson Hole and Yellowstone. We were poor, but we had a car and camping equipment. Dad drove over the Idaho/Washington border to Spokane, so we could say we had been in that state. We camped out in Idaho in a place called Dennamora (sp). My sister said it was at Coeur D'Alene. All I remember is that it was cold. I mean really cold. We heated rocks, put them in socks, and put them in our sleeping bags.
The drive through Idaho was excellent. I'm about 70 miles west of Missoula, Montana. Wouldn't it be neat if I had an interactive map of my progress so you could see where I was every night?
I'm staying in a dump. It does have Wifi. I could of made it to Missoula, but with the time change, that would have put me there after 6:30 and I wanted to make sure I got a room for the night.
My tentative plans for tomorrow are to pick up I-94 at Billings and take it to North Dakota. I wanted to add another state to those I have driven in. At the end of this trip, there will only be two of the lower 48 I haven't driven in yet: Michigan and Minnesota. I'm hoping to get them next year.
At the first chance after entering North Dakota, I'll head south to Mt. Rushmore. That will probably be Saturday. The traffic will probably suck.
Oh. I almost forgot. Jeremy, I stopped at a Burger King in Spokane. I didn't see Jane working there. Had I realized earlier that I was gonna go through Spokane, I would have tried to get in touch with Margi.
Posted by denny at August 9, 2007 11:00 PMSTOP AT CUSTER BATTLEFIELD!!!
It's EZ from Billings.
You'll be surprised by the 'alternative history' when you get there.
Posted by: DanS. on August 9, 2007 11:43 PMWhy not Minnesota this trip? You will be coming east on 90 from the hills? Minnesota is only a fgew miles past the I-29 turn. Pipestone, is only fifty miles north and has some interesting history to view. I plan to be there Saturday.
Posted by: Jeremy on August 9, 2007 11:45 PMTime for you to adopt a dogs attitude, If you can't eat it or screw it the piss on it and walk away. I forgot, you already have that attitude. Sounds like a great trip and I agree with the previous comment, Catch Minnesota on this trip. Spent a few years in 'Why not Minot' N.D. The only thing between Minot and the North Pole is a three strand barb wire fence, and two strands of it are broken.
Posted by: Scrapiron on August 10, 2007 12:00 AMi've also heard, be sure to go south off I94 and see the Custer Battlefield. the Black Hills of So Dakota are very beautiful, and Rushmore is excellent.
Posted by: paul on August 10, 2007 12:08 AMJeremy - I'm cutting down to Nebraska (I might go right by where Teresa Big Boobs lives. Don't tell her.) and then to Iowa and down into Missouri to St. Louis. Minnesota is out of the way. I'm thinking of doing a Mississippi River trip next year where I drive from Nawlins up to Minnesota hugging the river as much as I can. Up the Great River Road. I can get Michigan on that trip.
Scrapiron - I have a good friend who grew up in Minot or a town nearby. I've missed summer. It's winter there already.
Posted by: Denny on August 10, 2007 12:09 AMNo it is NOT!! I just got off the phone with my good-pal in Minot and he relates it was 101 degrees there today.
Also, having driven the length of the Great River Road, you MIGHT catch a portion of U.P. Michigan, but that isn't Michigan!!!
Posted by: DanS. on August 10, 2007 12:50 AMI can remember fishing with my Pop's in Jackson Hole. I can't remember where exactly, but I remember the river rushing by at scary speeds. I was probably 10 yards from the bank with my Zebco.
Isn't Jackson Hole the birthplace of the Jackalope? I was too young to remember the details.
On a serious note:
I still blame Bush for the extinction of the Jackalope.
"I still blame Bush for the extinction of the Jackalope."
My dad has a pair of them living in his backyard in Cheyenne WY and I saw one being chased by a bobcat across the 4th fairway at the golf course Tuesday evening.
Trust me, they are not extinct.
Posted by: David on August 10, 2007 02:01 AMDenny, if you are going to the Black Hills, stay on 90 at Billings. 90 goes right thru Rapid City (passing thru Sturgis of Harley fame), while 94 goes due east from Billings thru Miles City, Bismarck to Fargo then to the Twin Cities. The Black Hills are in South Dakota, not North. 90 also goes through Minnesota and you can catch the "Road of the Saints" that runs from St Paul to St Louis. 90 crosses it somewhere around the Rochester/Austin MN area. And the Custer Battlefield is worth the stop
Posted by: Rick on August 10, 2007 02:34 AMYou missed seeing Jane? well damn it any way. I'd have loved a pic of her serving you your fries and Whopper. Of course, you'd be a fool to eat anything she laid her hands on.
Posted by: Jeremy on August 10, 2007 02:50 AMDavid-
No matter what, Bush killed off the Jackalope, and he should be Impeached for it. Bush lied, the Jackalope died...
Bush lied? and Denny should just pass thru here and get it over with! Damn it!
Come on, you can't be that a feared of the size of my tomatoes!
No really, get this leg over with while the weather is hot, it's either hot or cold here-get it out of the way already-you can compare the lowlander trip next year to my cooking and hostality hahaha!
I'll send GPS info to your car...
Denny, If you want to stick your toe into ND by coming from the West on 94, you'll want to hang a right and head South at Belfield. Stay on highway 85 until you meed up with interstate 90 at Spearfish. There is going to be motorcycles everywhere you are going in SD. The Sturgis Rally is this week. Stay on 90 to Rapid City. The drive from Belfield to Spearfish is a great chance to test the "seek" button on your radio. There is a stretch of highway where you can drive for an hour and it will not stop on a station! We are talking wide open spaces here. I live in Bismarck and have made this drive lots of times. Have fun, watch out for the cycles.
Posted by: Mark on August 10, 2007 08:37 AMSame is true headed south out of the hills. I only got one station last time, and it was native talk radio. The guy wanted to have a second greasy grass, AKA battle of the little bighorn. Had that all the way past Chadron.
What will be your itinery headed accross Nebraska?
Will you be spending a night in Lincoln, or Omaha?
Too bad you're not stopping in Michigan, especially the upper penninsula..it's beautiful there this time of year. And if you went down through Dee-troit, you could have visited the burial place of the N-word!!!! Maybe next time.
Posted by: Jacob on August 10, 2007 10:01 AMThe Crazy Horse Memorial, over 50 years in the making, is a must see in the Black Hills. Only about 20 minutes from Mount Rushmore, it is a mountain carving that dwarfs Rushmore.
And best of all - they have refused all offers of gummint money. That's right - it's privately financed by contributions.
Posted by: Tom M. on August 10, 2007 11:36 AMSo close and yet so far! You could have made it to my mom's place. She makes it to Missoula fairly frequently. Oh, well ... next trip?
Posted by: Peggy U on August 10, 2007 12:14 PMWord of warning about driving through the Hills on Saturday. That will be the last day of the Rally and the traffic will bew horrific. The temperatures are reckoned to be 101-103 all thorugh the weekend. You could cut off the Rapid city route by going through Pringle, then to Hot Springs and down to Nebraska by way of 71.
Crazy Horse will still be there next time you drive through. And if you would like a tour of the Hot Springs area when you get here, I would be glad to do that for you!
BTW, the Black Hills are also part of Wyoming and Nebraska. Although we all refer to them as being in South Dakota due to all the tourism here, there are some awsome places in northern Nebraska--and don't forget Devil's Tower in Wyoming.
Posted by: Shirley on August 10, 2007 02:04 PMBeware of the Moonbats in Missoula. That city can give San Fran a run for moonbat capital.
Posted by: Tanzfleck on August 10, 2007 03:09 PMLisaKay - Maybe when I make my Mississippi River tour.
Posted by: Denny on August 10, 2007 07:55 PMSorry I missed you, too. Next time you're in Spokane, send up a flare. I'll make pie. :)
Posted by: Margi on September 6, 2007 10:06 PM