560 miles: camped at Lewis and Clark State Park, Williston, NDWell, day 5 at Glacier started just like all the others, RAIN! Not a heavy rain, just a cold drizzle. Zoey and I were packed and on the road by 7:00 AM. I decided to take US Route 2 east. Route 2 is a 2 lane road that parallels Interstate 94. I liked the idea of traveling a slower paced road (even though the speed limit is 70) with less traffic than the Interstate. Also, I think the country side is prettier, with fewer billboards, shopping malls, and truck stops.
Route 2 quickly transitioned out of the Rocky Mountains of Glacier Park to rollin
g prairie. It's easy to see why they call Montana "Big Sky Country." There are no trees or mountains on the horizon to block your view. All you see is sky. The agriculture varies from irrigated hay, to beef grazing, to dry land wheat. In fact, the combine crews were present. Nobody was combining because of the recent rains, but at farms and motels you could find trucks with combines and headers, along with the grain trucks all parked. They were just waiting for some dryer weather.I decided I wanted to try a State Park Campground tonight. All of the private ones o
ut here are parks just created in a hay field, with no shade or view. All the big rig RV's want to have pull through sites with no trees to block their satellite reception. Lewis and Clark was 20 miles off the main drag, but it is well worth it. The campground is less that a third full, and sits right on the shores of Lake Sakakawea. There was no cell service here, but would you believe, they had WIFI. Now that's a State Park I can live with. This lake is a reservoir created on the Missouri River, and is named after the Indian guide, Sakakawea who aided Lewis and Clark. It is the third largest man made lake in the United States, after Lake Meade and Lake Powell. Cool.My goal is to explore the Theodore Roosevelt National Park Monday.
Stay tuned.......
Amen to your first paragraph. A dream of mine--probably in retirement, at this point--is to drive "around" the U.S. without ever setting tire on an Interstate Highway. I maintain that the Interstate Highway System is one of the worst things to ever happen to this country! Once that infrastructure was in place, Family Vacations became more about the destination than they did the journey, and something very important was lost. It was the beginning of the end of a way of Life in this country, and I'm not sure it was a step FORWARD.
ReplyDeleteI really loved North Dakota. Wild and lonely and gorgeous. Do stop at the Corn Palace if you haven't missed it. It's a goof.
ReplyDeleteMy dream also is to avoid the Interstates. But I too will have to wait until retirement to do it. Have you read the book "Blue Highways" by William Least Heat-Moon. He does what we are dreaming about.
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