Medora, ND

We arrived in Medora on Monday afternoon in rain and temps in the LOW 60's. After setting up at the Red Tail Campground, we decided to go to the Chateau de Mores State Historic Site. The town of Medora was founded in 1883 by a 24-year-old French nobleman, the Marquis de Mores. He named the town for his bride, the former Medora von Hoffman, daughter of a wealthy NY City banker. With the financial backing from his father-in-law, he founded the town of Medora, built a meat packing plant, a hotel, stores, and a large home, the Chateau de Mores overlooking his new town. His new home has 26 rooms and he imported wine and mineral water from France. Medora was an ardent hunter and when not entertaining friends from the East and the Continent, liked to hunt. All the Marquis' enterprises ended in financial failure, so the Marquis and Marquise and their children returned to France. The house was kept up by caretakers and in 1936 it was given to the State of ND. A good portion of the furnishings remained in the house (including the French wine and mineral waters!) and it was interesting to visit. Medora built the St. Mary Catholic Church in Medora, and it is the oldest Catholic Church still being used in North Dakota.

Today we debated about going to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, as it was very cloudy and was threatening rain as you can see from the picture of us by the National Park sign. We went in and spent an hour at the visitor's center and toured the relocated Roosevelt Maltese Cross Cabin. By that time the sun was out and the dark clouds were traded for white fluffy ones. We spent 3 hours driving the 35 mile road, stopping often for pictures such as the one of the Little Missouri River I've included. That one was taken from the ridge of the trail after a short hike to the edge. Jack likes to hang on the edge like a mountain goat. I prefer to stand several feet AWAY from the edge! Got back to the trailer about 2:00, ate a light lunch and then went to the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame. They kicked us out at 5 when they closed.

The town of Medora is definitely a tourist town; no fast food outlets (Jack's got withdrawals), only one gas station (we just found it today), and tons of souvenir shops, fudge shops, and antique stores. The closest true grocery stores (not convenience stores) are in Beach, 25 miles to the west, and Dickinson which is 30 miles to the east. We still have more to explore, and 3 more days to do it!

Great Falls, MT

We've been in Great Falls since Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday we found the Visitor's Center and signed up for a 2-hour historic tour of the city. The first hour appeared to be a commercial for the Chamber of Commerce. Finally after the first hour, the tour got more interesting. We learned that GF is called the "electric city" and can understand why! All 5 of the falls named by Lewis and Clark have been reduced to a trickle as dams have been erected and the water harnessed to provide the electricity for the city. What a disappointment!

After the trolly tour we drove out to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center to learn about L&C in this area of Montana. We were treated to a Ken Burns movie on Lewis and Clark and the second was of the L&C portage around the falls and then a 20 minute talk by the National Park Service on Charles Russell and his painting. A short distance down the road we saw the Giant Springs where the water pushes up from 400+ feet below the surface. The water is clear and a beautiful blue. It forms the shortest river in the US - the ROE River which is 201 feet long. It is said that it takes 54 years for the water to soak into the ground in the mountains and resurface here at the Springs. We ate supper at the Makenzie River Pizza Company -- very good!

On Thursday we drove to Ulm, about 15 miles from GF to see the Indian Pishkun (First People's Buffalo Jump) and then down to Hardie Creek to see Tower State Park, where Lewis climbed the bluff to see the mountains the Corp of Discovery would have to cross. When we got back to GF we stopped at the County Historical Society Museum and saw more of the history of the area -- the smelter, the Indian schools, and another display on Glacier National Park.

Today we spent the day at the Charles Russell Museum, home and studio. Charlie Russell was born to society in St. Louis, but was enchanted by the life in the west after hearing the stories of his great uncles. At the age of 16 he went west and worked on the range as a cowboy. He'd always had a skill with drawing, so he would cowpunch at night and draw during the day. His pictures hang in all the major art galleries in the US, and his statue is in the US Capitol. His museum has an extensive catalog of his works, and the studio is just the way it was when he was alive. The house was saved from condemnation by the Garden Club, and the building has been furnished with period pieces.

We will spend tomorrow in the campground and prepare for our trip to North Dakota. Will add more from Medora, ND. We'll arrive there on Monday. We'll spend Sunday night in Glendive, MT.

Helena, Part 2

Sunday we had breakfast and drove 18 miles north of Helena to take a 2-hour tour to see Gates of the Mountains. The Gates of the Mountains is a name which Meriwether Lewis gave to canyon walls which protrude into the Missouri River from opposite directions so closely to each other that they appear to open and close like gates when approached by boats. We didn't see any wildlife other than ospreys and one eagle. The scenery was beautiful and the boat captain pointed out many interesting rock formations and told about several forest fires that have occurred in the area.

After the tour we drove back into Helena and had lunch, and then decided to tour the state Capitol. We were just in time for the 2 p.m. tour, and to our delight, the tour guide was the same man that we had met on Saturday when we toured the old Governor's Mansion! The Capitol was restored during 1999-2000 ad is beautiful. It was built in 1902 and the same plans were used for the South Dakota Capitol! Charles Russell's 25' x 12' painting of Lewis and Clark meeting with the Salish Indians to trade for horses is considered his best work. It's official title is Lewis and Clark Meeting Indians at Ross' Hole. It was so large that the roof of his studio had to be raised to accommodate the mural. When we're in Great Falls later this week, I'm looking forward to visiting his studio.

Today we spent 5 hours exploring the Montana State Museum. There were several exhibit halls: One on Glacier National Park, the works of Charles Russell, the Indian cultures of the state, and one on the history of Montana, and Big Medicine, the white buffalo. My favorites were the exhibits on Glacier Park and the Charles Russell exhibit. There were oils, pencil sketches, water colors, and sculptures showing his talent. Of special interest were 12 linen privacy screens that were used at his cabin in Glacier which had his sketches on them, and each summer his friends signed the screen, and many drew pictures as well. One name of interest to me was a man whose last name was Krebs.....

Tomorrow we move 81 miles north to Great Falls.

Helena, Montana

We arrived in Helena on Friday afternoon and after setting up the trailer we drove the six miles into Helena to see where the various historical sites were located so today we would know where we were going.

This morning we took the one-hour train tour of the historical sites and got ideas of other places to revisit after the train tour. The train tour would have been more helpful if the people sitting right behind us would have listened to the tour info instead of planning their lunch, the kids' naps, the best friend's problems, etc. Very rude! I don't think Jack and I heard but perhaps of what was said. :-(

From the train we drove over to the old Governor's Mansion for a tour of the house. Very nice house -- we saw all 3 floors of the house, and heard the history of the first governor to live there. It seems the first 5 governors were very wealthy and had their own mansions, so the state had to scramble to find this house when a middle class governor was elected who didn't have a house suitable for the entertainment that would be required. The house was occupied by the governors until 1959 when a new mansion was built.

We went downtown to the walking mall and ate lunch at a place called Parrots. It's been in business since 1922 and they make their own ice cream and dip their own chocolates. They have a soda fountain, so I enjoyed a chocolate soda and Jack had a huckleberry malt. YUM.

Attended Mass at the Cathedral of St. Helena tonight and were awed by the beauty of the church. After Mass we went back in and took pictures.

Polson/Flathead Lake, MT

Arrived here early on Monday afternoon. We have a beautiful grassy site with a great view of the Flathead Lake. We spent the afternoon sitting in the shade reading and watching a crew wash the 5th wheel trailer at the next site. Two of the crew were teen girls, and they giggled and gabbed their way around 2/3 of the trailer. Had a campfire Monday night but the marshmallows were so old they wouldn't even brown! Note to self: BUY NEW MARSHMALLOWS!

Tuesday we left Polson at 7 and drove up to Glacier National Park. We drove the Going-To-The-Sun road from the West entrance all the way to the East Entrance at St. Mary's. It's a 50+ mile trip from one end of the park to the other. It took us about 3.5 hours, as we stopped often to take pictures. To add to the problem, there is a lot of construction occurring with traffic taking turns on the narrow, one lane road. I hate heights, and hugging the right side of the road with no guard rails caused many white-knuckled moments! We wanted to stop at the Logan Pass Visitor's Center on the Continental Divide, but the parking lot was jammed. If we come again next summer, we'll arrive at 7 a.m. and head there first! The drive back from the East Entrance to the West Entrance didn't take nearly as long.

Today we visited two museums -- Miracle of America Museum in the morning/early afternoon and the Polson Flathead Museum in the afternoon. The first museum had loads of materials, but they were not displayed well, and it boasted 35 buildings outside. We were disappointed in the condition of the exhibits and found the museum has evolved into a dumping ground for everyone's parents' castoffs. The Polson Museum while smaller, was much better organized.

Missoula, MT #3

Saturday we went downtown and went to see the Missoula carousel. It is the fastest carousel I've ever seen! I think those ponies thought they were in the Kentucky Derby! I wanted to ride, but didn't, as it was so fast that I feared the onset of vertigo. The story of the carousel is really awesome.

In 1991 a Missoula cabinet-maker named Chuck Kaparich made a promise to the City Council that he would build a carousel for Missoula IF the city would give it a home and promise that no one would ever take it apart. He had already carved 4 ponies, and had purchased an antique frame in pieces. The Council agreed, and Kaparich's dream of a carousel became the dream of the community. He taught others to carve the ponies and mechanics started restoring the 16,066 pieces of the frame and motor. Stained glass artists and painters were recruited, and on May 27, 1995 the carousel was opened in it's permanent brick home. It has 38 ponies, 14 gargoyles, two chariots, and a band organ. The band organ is the largest band organ in continuous use in the United States. Now the volunteers carve ponies for other carousels and local not-for-profit organizations, and restore ponies for antique carousels. The mechanical crew donates time to keep the machine in tip-top shape.

In 2001 4000 volunteers gathered to Create Dragon Hollow Play area next to the carousel.

They accomplished their task in just 9 DAYS! A 3-headed dragon guards a castle and the play area features an obstacle course, swings, slides, phone systems, musical instruments as well as a totland for children under 5.

The complex is in a beautiful grassy park on the banks of a fast-moving river and adjacent to a walking path. It's a very active place on a Saturday morning!!!

We stayed in camp today -- cleaning the inside and outside of the trailer. It sparkles! We leave tomorrow for Polson. We've truly enjoyed the Missoula area!

Missoula, MT #2

Wednesday was Senior Day at the Western Montana Fair in Missoula. Jack and I took our driver's licenses and some $$ and headed for the fair. We were disappointed we weren't challenged when we said we were seniors. That's why we had our licenses with us :-( Guess we look like Seniors now. At any rate, we got in free, if deflated. The fair was definitely agricultural. The exhibit buildings were either 4-H, Extension, or FFA. I must admit, those 10 year old girls can sew and quilt! We walked through the photography, culinary, floral and craft exhibits as well. Besides the livestock there was also a large carnival and a rodeo. We treated ourselves to over-priced corn dogs and a Diet Coke for lunch ($10.00!!!). We shared a table with a lady from North Dakota who had just moved here to live with her daughter. She's 97 years old and we enjoyed visiting with her. Around 2:30 we started for the truck and back to the trailer.

Yesterday we completed our tour of the Fort Missoula Museum and then went to the Montana Military History museum for a few hours. The museum was quite extensive -- Revolutionary War to Afghanistan. By the time two hours were up, my eyes were crossed! Luckily Jack couldn't absorb any more either, so we stopped at Target and then came home.

Today is Friday the 13th -- and we stayed close to camp. It didn't get above 68 today, and it started out wet and cloudy. The forecast was for 1-3 inches of snow in Glacier at the 7000 foot level. Wonder if they got it. We went to breakfast and then washed a couple loads in the camp laundromat and after lunch got groceries.

We plan to explore the Carousel for Missoula tomorrow and will likely stay in camp on Sunday and then Monday we leave for Polson, MT for several days. While there we'll go up to Glacier National Park.