Caroline and I talked about taking a vacation to the Black Hills, while Sean and Ashley talked about Glacier. Seemed like we could combine the two and make it work. We did and it did, although we crammed a lot into two weeks.
Decatur, IL, USA
Hit the road around noon following the RTM Tri. North on US51 to Bloomington, then I-39 north to Wisconsin.
Tomah, WI 54660, USA
Overnight at the Hampton Inn in Tomah.
Up early and on the road. Ashley's wishlist included a stop at the Mall of America.
Traffic was heavy due to the All Star game in Minneapolis but we made it out anyway. Overnight in Alexandria before moving westward.
One BIG buffalo. Nice little place to stretch along an otherwise monotonous drive.
Got off the interstate at Bismarck and drove west on Old Hwy 10 before we came across Salem Sue. Back on I-94 we stopped at the Gladstone exit and saw of the sculptures on the Enchanted Highway.
And we finally arrive in Dickinson for the night.
via Theodore Roosevelt Natl Park Rd
629 1st St W, Havre, Mt 59501, USA
Beautiful visit to TR Nat. Park South Unit. Nice view of the canyon from the Badlands Overlook on I-94 and the loop road was equally amazing. Can't wait to come back and spend more time. Oh, well, let's move west to Montana. Our reservations in Havre were messed up so...
we moved on to Shelby. Motel was a welcome sight after a long day on the road. There was also a nice veteran's memorial on the hill behind the motel. Even better, we were only an hour or so from Glacier.
East Glacier Park Village, Mt, USA
After leaving Shelby, we headed up toward the east park entrance to check things out.
St Mary, Mt 59411, USA
A nice lunch at a place overlooking St.Mary lake where we had our first taste of huckleberries. Ummm, good! Then back toward the Grand Lodge taking SR49/Looking Glass Road through the mountains - quite the experience for a boy from the flat land.
A stop at Two Medicine Lake and a short trek to a nice waterfall before we finally arrived. No TV or air conditioning, but really didn't need it. A little pricey, but worth the experience. However, Sean might disagree.
Going-to-the-Sun Road
Boys and girls, this is what we came for. Up and at it early. Didn't feel quite as adventurous, so we went through Browning to get to St.Mary. So much to see in Glacier and lots of trails. Started up a mountain and turned around because there was too much snow. Beautiful views around every turn.
Going-to-the-Sun Road
Boys and girls, this is what we came for. Up and at it early. Didn't feel quite as adventurous, so we went through Browning to get to St.Mary. So much to see in Glacier and lots of trails. Started up a mountain and turned around because there was too much snow. Beautiful views around every turn.
The air on the west side of Glacier was smoky. Forest fires in Washington and Idaho sort of took away some of the luster.
Looking for a place to eat lunch, we came across this nice little gem. Fresh baked breads and lots meat on the sandwiches.
Ashley had been here when she was younger and wanted to see again. We were a little ahead of schedule and decided to visit before going to the hotel.
Well, we made it through another day. Nice meal at an old railroad warehouse before calling it a night.
The drive was a little longer than anticipated. Stopped in Billings for lunch at a Fuddrucker's before going south toward Wyoming. The stop at Little Bighorn wasn't quite what I expected. The quiet commands a lot of respect for those who died on both sides.