Our first night in the USA was spent at Lewis & Clark campground in Shelby, MT. From there we traveled on Saturday to Three Forks, MT where we stayed until Monday. It’s named Three Forks because three rivers come together to form the headwaters of the Missouri River. Enjoyed their museum and their pizza - as good as Jake’s in Mankato, MN! On Monday we left and headed to Hardin, MT for one night and in the morning took highway 212 to Spearfish, SD. Highway 212 is a good reminder of what the old west looked like. Small towns quite far apart and wide open spaces in between! Better watch your fuel gauge going that route!
On Wednesday, August 28, we drove to the Vore Buffalo Jump about 20 miles into Wyoming. It is a natural sink hole that was used by various plains Indian tribes as a bison trap from about 1550-1800. The layers of well preserved bones and artifacts found in the buffalo jump give archaeologists a unique view into a time of rapid changes in Indian culture. So far they have gone down only 4 levels and have found 400 buffalo skeletons, a bear, dogs/wolves. They estimate that when they have finished the dig they will have found 1000 bison skeletons! The Buffalo Jump is only open during the summer, and I’d highly suggest you take the guided tour!
We camped one night in West Des Moines, and one night in Mitchell, SD before arriving in Amana for the Labor Day Weekend. More Amana pancakes and Amana Bakery pastries! There was a dog show going on at the campground all weekend, and so lots of dogs, and some of the preps were fascinating. Those dogs were brushed, combed, and pampered before their turns in the rings.
Sunday, September 8, 2019
Oh Canada!
August 5 we crossed into Canada from North Dakota and spent the night in Regina, Saskatchewan. Had some difficulty with the phone (no, Verizon, we couldn’t just carry on as usual!). It took about half an hour on the campground land line to get our phone Canada ready. The second night we stayed outside Saskatoon and on the 7th arrived at our destination - Camrose, Alberta. We spent 14 days with Jack’s cousins and enjoyed the Tim Horton’s. In fact, they even got to know us and asked us about the US!
Some differences between the US and Canada: They are on the metric system so fuel is in liters and temps are in Celsius. It’s good to have a conversion app on your phone. Diesel fuel cost us roughly $4.40/gallon.
Canadians do not use pennies - their smallest coin is a nickel. To handle this, they round up or down, depending on your bill. They also do not have paper money under $5.00. They have a $1 coin called a “loonie” and a $2 coin called a “toonie”.
When we get fuel, we say we’re going to the “gas station” or filling station. They go to a “gas bar”.
Do not plan to cross the border until you’ve checked what you can bring into Canada or into the USA. Depending on the mood of the crossing guard you may have to donate any fruits, veggies, meat, etc. They aren’t too keen on your guns or drugs, either.
We camped in Calgary on August 22, and crossed into the USA on the 23rd at Sweet Grass, MT.
Some differences between the US and Canada: They are on the metric system so fuel is in liters and temps are in Celsius. It’s good to have a conversion app on your phone. Diesel fuel cost us roughly $4.40/gallon.
Canadians do not use pennies - their smallest coin is a nickel. To handle this, they round up or down, depending on your bill. They also do not have paper money under $5.00. They have a $1 coin called a “loonie” and a $2 coin called a “toonie”.
When we get fuel, we say we’re going to the “gas station” or filling station. They go to a “gas bar”.
Do not plan to cross the border until you’ve checked what you can bring into Canada or into the USA. Depending on the mood of the crossing guard you may have to donate any fruits, veggies, meat, etc. They aren’t too keen on your guns or drugs, either.
We camped in Calgary on August 22, and crossed into the USA on the 23rd at Sweet Grass, MT.
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