The Big Sky of Montana

I woke up to the glory of Montana... rugged mountain peaks at the edges of open meadows of wildflowers and golden grasses; hills of juniper forest and sage brush; mule deer and pronghorns (mistakenly labeled antelope) grazing in the meadows; a reveille of early morning birdsong and chatter; and the big sky of Montana embracing the whole scene. My spirit breathed a big sigh...ahhh - so good to be back! As I drove along the Madison, I was treated to the sight of several flotillas of white pelicans gliding along the river and fishing the eddies. I love these big birds - so elegant as they float the current or fly in formation a few feet above the water.



I arrived in Belgrade to gas up at Flying J and take a long, hot shower. These truck stops have clean, private bathrooms with showers and I take advantage when I can. Another stop in Bozeman to stock up on healthy food at the Community Food Co-op. Next stop... Big Timber!!

Mormon Crickets

These crickets are enormous... fat, reddish-black and about 3 inches long. I took Hwy 278 from Eureka to Carlin, NV and there were tens of thousands on some stretches of the road - sometimes literally a few inches of squished or scurrying critters covering the road. They stink when smashed, and my wheel wells are now coated with cricket guts - totally gross.

Filled my tank at Flying J truck stop in Wells, NV, which earned me credits towards a shower at the next gas-up, then headed up Hwy 93 to Idaho. Took Hwy 20 at Idaho Falls, then 87 to 287 and into Montana. It was a long day of driving because I wanted to wake up Sunday in Montana. I pulled in at dusk to a 'Fishing Access' spot along the Madison River about 35 miles south of Ennis, MT.

I love sleeping in the upper bunk of my rig. My bed is cozy with a wool fleece mattress pad, flannel sheets and a down comforter. It was windy and cool at the river and I zipped open the window in front of my face so I could feel the breeze coming in through the screen. I dozed off listening to the sound of the river, comfy in my nest and feeling the wind blowing over my face and through my hair...paradise.

Heading for Montana

I'm going to Big Sky country again! I talked to Cassandra and the studio is available for me to stay in when I arrive in Big Timber. She has planned a camping trip to the Crazies - leaving next Tuesday. Sounds like 6 or 8 of us will be going - a fun way to spend time with my gal-pals.

I decided to drive up Hwy 88 through Jackson and over Carson Pass. I spent a day and night boondocking near Red Lake, a few miles east of Carson Pass. I love this area, having spent many seasons cross-country skiing all around the vicinity. It's interesting to see the mountain in her summer garb. I found a lovely spot next to a babbling creek, with yellow and purple flowers adorning the hill in front of me. An idyllic campsite EXCEPT... the mosquitos! I got out to take a pee and, in that short time, ended up with about a half dozen bites on my butt.

This was a perfect opportunity to test my new compact screen room. I quickly set it up and furnished it with my chair, a small table, water bottle, a novel, binoculars, and Sibley's bird book. What a joy to be sitting in there enjoying the sights and sounds of nature while the mosquitos and flies were bashing themselves on the screen a couple feet away.

Last night (Friday 7/15) I camped at the free campgound at the Hickison Petroglyph site off Hwy 50 between Austin and Eureka, NV. The temperature driving through the desert was in the 100's and the air is very humid here with a delicious, pungent scent of sage. It was sultry and cloudy coming over Hickison pass and occasional flashes of lightning brightened the sky.

ANWR Next June!

I'm very excited about my recently made plans to join a few other women for a trip to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge next June. This is very dear to my heart because the refuge is under threat from the current administration to start oil drilling there - which will of course negatively impact the ecosystem. I've written many letters of protest over the past several years to keep this from happening, so I feel very honored to be able to experience this special place. We will spend the first eight days backpacking the Brooks Range during the caribou migration, then the next 10 days will be rafting the Kongakut River. It is only a Class III river, which is fine because we can focus more on viewing wildlife.

Since I don't have the same stamina I had when I was younger, I'm planning ways to lighten my usual 45-50 pound pack to about 30-35 pounds. I need to replace some of my older, heavier equipment so I've been researching gear on the internet and spending hours in REI and other camping stores (Yes, I'm a gear-head).

Gail and I went hiking on Mt. Tam recently and I borrowed her partner's hiking poles to try out on the steep, uneven trail. I was amazed how much easier it is to hike with two poles (I usually use a single pole.) and can see how my knees will also be less impacted while backpacking, especially when traveling downhill. I stopped at the REI sale on the way home and bought the same pair of poles - the Leki Super Makalu.

The Purple Cast

My sister had foot surgery in June and is on crutches with a non weight-bearing cast for a month, so I spent a lot of the past 2 weeks helping her out at home. Well...I'll be selfish and say that it's been great having her confined like this because I've enjoyed spending so much time with her. Barbara's life is so busy with work and family (and I'm traveling most of the time) that we rarely get to spend one-on-one time together.

When I took her to have the original white cast changed, she had a choice of colors for the new one and now has a beautiful purple cast. Cool!

While hanging out in the Bay Area with Sissy, I spent several nights 'stealth camping' at the Berkeley marina. In the mornings I took walks around the marina and along the trails at Cesar Chavez Park - a great way to start the day.

Sportsmobile Rally 2005

Every year Alan and Liz Feld, owners of Sportsmobile-West in Fresno, host a rally for those of us who have the 4x4 version. Sometimes it is held in beautiful locations like Moab, UT or Silverton, CO where we take our rigs on gnarly trails to experience what these big vans can do and gain confidence learning how to handle our rigs in various compromising situations. This year the 4-day event was in Hungry Valley, CA and was mostly a classroom environment, though we each went through practical maneuvers on the 4x4 course behind the campground.

Seminars included information on self-rescue using winches and jacks; shocks, axles and air compressors; tire repair and airing down for certain off-road conditions; and even cooking on the road (not literally).

I enjoyed visiting with old friends and meeting new ones. It's always fun to tour each others rigs and see some of the custom innovations and hear about interesting places to visit or nice locations for camping in the boonies.

Alan and Liz 'trick out' a new rig each year for promotional purposes and this is their current SMB creation - the 'Ultimate Adventure Vehicle'.