Day 24 - TRNP - North Unit, Walford City, ND to Glasgow, MT

So, Walford City, ND is a boom town.  Instead of a gold rush, they are experiencing an oil rush.  The Bakken oil field may end up being bigger than Prudoe Bay and the boom is on.    Lots of young workers have shown up in their pickups to work and the community is dealing with it as best they can by providing housing in the form of trailer/rv parks in numbers you can’t quite believe.  As we continued north towards Williston, ND, it only got worse.  More and more and more oil boom.  To be fair, we saw lots of signs of how it’s helping the community -- lovely new city parks with new playground equipment show clearly how the financial life of the whole community is being lifted up but the social changes must be quite a shock.  

Housing and services in North Dakota

New housing springing up all over the place -- some of it nicer than others; none of it substantial

Big signs about the "Housing" -- these are a bunch of small, white trailers

We were relieved to turn west and cross into Montana.  The boom hasn’t hit there (yet?) and we were back to quite ranchland and tiny ranch towns again. We were traveling on a Sunday and guess what . . . Nothing but nothing is open on a Sunday.  Even driveins and diners are usually closed on Sundays.  

We were so glad to find that Scoops Drivein in Culbertson, MT was open that we didn’t even mind waiting for a table and our food.  Everyone was there.  I know it’s the day of rest and all but the local restaurants are missing a bet . . . The few that are open clean up on Sundays!  

We drove through the Fort Peck Indian Reservation -- their biggest town is Wolf Point which is home to a famous rodeo . . . That my mom remembers going to back in the day!  It’s this coming weekend but, no, we aren’t staying around to watch it! 

We pulled in to Glasgow and checked out two of the three campgrounds in town.  We ended up choosing the Cottonwood Inn & RV Park because it had 50 amp service so we could run our air conditioning (it’s 98 during the day here) and it had a pool for the kids!  

We got settled, got the AC running, and headed out to explore town.  We couldn’t find the Penny’s where my mom glanced at the bank of TVs and learned about JFK’s assassination but we did enjoy the charming downtown.  Then, we headed north to where the Glasgow Air Force Base used to be.  

I was born in Glasgow, MT in March of 1964.  My father, Jack Donaldson, was stationed there with a fighter wing for about 3 years.  My mother, a young bride, had two kids, 17 months apart.  We left when I was around 3 and my dad was transferred to a base in England.  I don’t remember living in Glasgow but I’ve got images in my head from pictures that we saw.  

I didn’t know what to expect.  I’ve driven around the abandoned parts of Fort Ord near Monterey (here are some pictures I took there -- http://www.flickr.com/photos/lizalee/sets/72157630507181648/ ) but I know the weather is much harsher in Montana than in Monterey!  We thought there was a decent chance that nothing would be there.  But, as we got close to where we thought it was, we saw some buildings and trees and sure enough, there it is.  A town in the middle of the prairie -- it’s been renamed St Marie, Montana and there are people living out there trying to make a go of it.  

I say trying because they aren’t completely successful.  Evidently, the developers who bought the buildings from the Air Force ran out of funding and a lot of the buildings are not lived in.  There are two homeowners associations and much of the property is well cared for but much of it is completely abandoned and falling to ruin.  We saw swallows flying into buildings with missing doors and zipping out of sight down hallways.  

Tower at former Glasgow AFB

This is the hospital where I was born in 1964

Love the post-modern detailing on the front door

Some of the houses are in better repair and many are being lived in

Avenue H - we lived on this street when I was born

Avenue H housing

We drove around for a while and then drove back to where we had cell service and I called my mom to find out if she could remember addresses . . . Just one street name.  We lived on Avenue H for awhile.  We did find that street and took some pictures but . . .  Who knows.  We found the hospital where I was born.  It’s abandoned and falling apart.  The runway, hangers, tower, and similar buildings are being used by Boeing as a research facility so they are in good repair.  

We found a resident who talked to us about it and was as nice as he could be.  He recommended a couple of restaurants in town and we ended up eating at Eugene’s Pizza which was established in 1962 -- wonder if I was ever there as a child.  The owners are really nice brothers who made me feel like an honored native daughter!  Everyone we’ve talked to here has been great.  

Day 23 - TRNP - North Unit, Walford City, ND

We had a leisurely morning.  We weren’t sure what we were going to do.  There is a 2 hour scenic drive through the South Unit - where we were - and we thought we might do that drive and then stay one more night there but ultimately we decided to pack up after we did the drive and then go to the North Unit near Walford City, ND.  

The park campground doesn’t have electric hookups and allows campers to run their generators.  To be fair, we ran ours for 10 minutes to brew my coffee but one of our neighbors ran their generator all day and well past the 8pm cut-off time.  We hoped it would be quieter at the northern unit.  

The drive was beautiful -- we saw some lovely scenery, wild horse (near our campsite!) and buffalo in the distance.  

Wild Horse in our campground.  Bison roam there too but I'm kind of glad we saw the horses!

It's not as dangerous as it looks but she likes to climb to the top!  Future Peak Bagger?

Father and son exploring . . . 

The Bad Lands of North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Another wild horse at TRNP - South Unit

Then we headed north.  

North Dakota is experiencing an oil boom and it is changing the nature of the state.  There are definitely good changes and not so good ones.  It’s fascinating to drive along this lovely ranch land and see an oil well working away.  More troubling are the huge gas burn-offs lighting up the sky, visible for miles.  We drove north seeing more and more signs of the changing nature of North Dakota. 

What the frac?

We definitely made the right call on going to the North Unit though -- it was quieter and prettier than the busier South Unit (which is right on Highway 94).  We enjoyed their loop drive.  Ruth and I went into Walford City to by groceries and we settled in for a quiet night of playing cards.  Cribbage is our family game of choice and this time, the girls won.  Unlike when the boys win, we did not get a stuff skunk and “spray” it at the losers!  

Day 22 - Devils Tower National Monument, WY to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Medora, ND

New territory today.  We left Devils Tower and drove out through some of the prettiest country I’ve ever seen along the Belle Fourche river in eastern Wyoming towards South Dakota.  We headed north when we reached the town of Belle Fourche and made our way to North Dakota.  A new state for us!  Hurray!

Drizzly, overcast day as we headed north . . . no complaints from the heat-weary Millers

Greg had read about an interesting byway and we decided it would be worth a detour to see the Enchanted Highway.  The story is that the tiny ranch town of Regent, North Dakota was dying.  A farmer in the area decided he could do something about it.  He got his community together and created The Enchanted Highway -- a series of giant statues along the road leading to their town.  

If you are ever in North Dakota . . . Go see it and spend a little money in Regent.  http://www.enchantedhighway.net/

Unfortunately, I had some technical issues and my photographs have disappeared.  I only have a couple that I took on my iPhone to post on Facebook . . . I’m very sad!

We continued on towards Theodore Roosevelt National Park and Medora, North Dakota.  This park contains the Badlands of the North.  It was where Teddy Roosevelt had his two ranching operations:  The Maltese Cross Ranch and the Elkhorn Ranch.  He got a lot of his ideas about conservation as he watched the herds of buffalo disappear from the otherwise wild land near his ranches.  There are buffalo and wild horses and even some Longhorn cattle within the park now just like when Teddy was there.  

We had dinner in Medora -- a very touristy town at the entrance to the park.  When we got back, we went to the ranger talk on Travels with TR.  It was really interesting to learn more about what adventures he’d had as a younger man that led to his being who was as an adult and as president.  

Watch out for the giant Pheasants near Regent, ND! 

Day 21 -- Devils Tower National Monument, WY

Greg was taking advantage of the campground’s WIFI to get some work done today so we did some serious lazing around today but eventually, we roused ourselves to go up to the monument and Greg and the kids walked the 1 mile base of the tower.  Well, Gage ran it (22 minutes) and Greg and Ruth walked it (44 min).  

I sat and people watched.  Families are interesting organisms.  Some of them work really well and some of them don’t!  Wow! 

After dinner, Greg and the kids went to see Close Encounters of the Third Kind at the campground restaurant while I stayed behind to shower and do laundry.  Well, that was the plan.  

An unexpected thunderstorm changed some of that as I had to quickly pack up a bunch of stuff when the rain went on and on and on . . .  Gorgeous lightning and powerful thunder.  My favorite part was when I was moving our chairs out of the rain and the canopy dumped a gallon of cold rainwater on my head.  That's a waker-upper . . . and that was after my shower!  

I hope the rain helped put the fires out though!

#708 during thunderstorm at Devils Tower KOA

All my photos of Devils Tower are gone, too.  Not fun.

Day 20 - Badlands National Park (SD) to Devils Tower National Monument (WY)

Happy 4^th of July!  No fireworks for us this year -- too much fire danger.  Ironically, if we’d stayed at Badlands, we could have gone to a great small town rodeo at Interior (just outside the park) and a fireworks show.  

We are heading on though and making our way to another favorite spot -- Devils Tower National Monument.  

The drive was insanely windy and by the time we got to Rapid City, Greg was pretty tired of fighting the steady headwind and gusts so we took a break.  Rapid City is the gateway to the Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, and Custer State Park.  There are a LOT of tourist traps in the area.  We’d heard about Bear Country USA -- a drive through animal park and decided it would be a fun way to wait out the wind.  

I’d love to show you some amazing shots that I took of some amazing animals like wolves, bears, big horn sheep, elk, rocky mountain goats, and more but . . . My computer ate the photographs and they are simply gone.  (Sadness!)  Suffice that it was really fun and we’d go back again.  (I'll scour Gage's pictures and Greg's and see if there is anything that I can salvage from what they did!)

We had lunch at Famous Dave’s and then continued on to Devils Tower National Monument -- without any wind!  Yay!

There is a really nice KOA campground at the edge of the park and we love staying there.  

Once we got settled in, the kids were able to swim, ride their bikes, play on the merry-go-round, and just have fun.  We hung out and read and relaxed.  

In the evening, the entertainment started.  We aren’t Joiners so we didn’t go over to the patio area for the free entertainment and bbq but we could hear the singing from our site.  It was karaoke . . . Some of the singers were okay and some where just not.  Wow.  

Happy 4^th -- I always miss Boulder Creek with it’s amazing 4^th of July parade but I love that we are out seeing America and what makes it great on our nation’s birthday!  That’s good, too!

Welcome to Wyoming!

Day 19 - Badlands National Park, SD

Prairie Wild Flowers and Grasses

Our 2^nd day in Badlands dawned hot and promised to stay hot.  We went looking for places to climb rocks and a neat drive to do.  Greg and the kids climbed at several locations around the park but their favorite is the first one you come to when you approach Badlands from the east -- it’s a great spot with lots of climbing opportunities.

At Badlands, they say that you can climb where ever you want . . . You can’t do as much damage as the next rainstorm.  So, climb we did.  

After that, we went back to the campsite for lunch and then took off on a drive that one of the rangers had mentioned to an isolated part of the park.  We took off on the same dirt road we’d seen the Big Horn Sheep on and then kept on going.  We ended up at an area called Sheep Mountain -- it was beautiful and isolated.  My favorite part was when the road just ended at a cliff.  Yup, end of the road indeed! 

We attended another ranger program that night -- this time it was about native americans and the origins and meaning of the prairie dance.  Fascinating talk.  

Ruth likes to climb to the top!

Do you feel my stress?  

Prairie Dog!!!

American Bison!

Prairie sunsets are amazing!

The Millers return to The Badlands!

The moon -- a cherry moon to the natives in the area -- rose bright red from smoke caused by wildfires in the nearby Black Hills.  We were sad to learn about some of the fire fighters dying when their plane went down fighting these fires.  It’s a tough summer for fire. 

Day 18 -- Sidney, NE to Valentine, NE

We hit the road early as it was already getting warm.  The drive up Nebraska from South to North is beautiful but it was very, very hot.  

Chappell, NE's grain elevator!  

We stopped for lunch at a little rest stop that felt like it had been forgotten by time.  Shade, greenery, and a persistent butterfly who was convinced that my colorful shirt was a field of flowers.  

A wayside along a byway . . . felt like it was forgotten by time

Valentine was also a stop of ours two years ago.  We found it by accident and it -- and Cabela’s -- became sort of gold standards for us.  Inexpensive, nice campgrounds with clean bathrooms and nice people running them.  

It was blistering when we got here but we got the AC running and set our chairs up in the shade of a tree.  We had lots of water and then had a yummy dinner.  After dinner, we drove into the town of Valentine and explored.  Valentine is a pretty neat little midwestern town -- amazing city park by the river, Dairy Freeze with great milkshakes, lots of neat and tidy houses, and very nice people. 

Moon over Valentine, NE