Washington State

Crossed the border into Washington State.  We have several places to visit here including 3 national parks.  Better get started.

50,000 Silver Dollar Bar, Haugan, MT

There is a bar, restaurant, gift shop, casino, in Haugan, MT, that has 50,000 silver dollars hanging on boards all over in the bar.  It is one of those things that you just have to stop and see...so we did.

Glacier National Park, northwest Montana

Glacier National Park in northwest Montana was spectacular.  Rugged mountains, waterfalls, glaciers, wildlife and the famous Going to the Sun Road.  We saw two bears while we were there: one black bear and one grizzly bear.  We also saw elk and a fox.  We even managed to get a picture of the grizzly bear who was posing alongside the road and generally holding up traffic.  We also visited two areas of the park that you access by going outside the park and then coming back in.  There were called Many Glacier and Two Medicine.  The photos we took do not begin to show the breathtaking beauty of Glacier NP. 

Red bus tour

Lodge at Many Glacier

Grizzly bear along the road

This waterfall came out from under the rock

General store at Two Medicine, already closed for the season.

Big Hole National Battlefield, Wisdom, MT

Big Hole National Battlefield in Widsom, MT is a place created to honor all who died on this battlefield, both US soldiers and Nez Perce warriors and families.  The battle was short, just one day, but the loss of life was great with 90 Nez Perce and 31 soldiers and volunteers perishing.

Diagram of the battle drawn on the back of an animal hide

The battlefield

Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site, Deer Lodge, MT

Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS in Montana is still a working ranch.  It was interesting to look around the ranch and see the bunkhouse, the chuck wagon, and many other ranch buildings and equipment.  Ranching was and is a way of life in so many western states.  Although the way that ranchers raise cattle now differs from the way it was accomplished 100 years ago, it is still a lot of hands on work for the cowboys and ranchers.

Farm house

Farm house

Chuck wagon

Bunkhouse

Another State--Idaho

Click off another state on our quest to visit all 48 states.  IDAHO.

Little Bighorn National Monument, Montana

The Little Bighorn National Monument in Montana is a place of set aside to remember the battle between Lt. Col. George A. Custer and the 7th Calvary and the Lakota and Cheyenne tribes.  Here 263 soldiers in the US Army died fighting several thousand Lakota and Cheyenne warriors.  The battle is often referred to as Custer's last stand.  The monument has memorials to both the US Army soldiers and the Indian Warriors.  It is a monument to two groups of people who both fought for what was right for their people.  In the end, neither side won, because the tribes ended up on the reservations and the US Army suffered a great loss of life. 

Hill where Custer and his men died

Memorial to Lakota and Cheyenne Warriors