Friday, April 30, 2010

We have been relaxing this week; didn't do anything exciting. The RV had to go into the shop and Billings could do it faster and was closer, so we took it there on Monday. Billings is the largest town in Montana, with more than 100,000 people. That is much more than we have been used to seeing. Before you even reach there you can see this dark building from very far away. It is the 23 story Crowne Plaza which is the tallest freestanding brick building in the world. We visited the rim (a rock walled bluff) which is a high section of rimrock that runs the length of the town and then some. From here you can see all of the city and three mountain ranges: the Pryors, the Bighorns and the majestic Beartooths. The Bighorn Mountains are known for the Battle of Little Bighorn where Custer lost his fight with the Indians. Billings airport is also located here. This is the same airport that we flew into 16 years ago when we visited Yellowstone Park in March to ride snowmobiles and stay at Buffalo Bill Cody's Hunting Lodge.
We wanted to visit the Peter Yegen, Jr. Yellowstone Museum which is located across from the airport. It is housed in a 104 year old log cabin and was visited by Teddy Roosevelt and Buffalo Bill Cody. The brochure said it has a vintage steam engine on the grounds and a stuffed two-headed calf which we wanted to see. But they were closed on Sundays and Mondays. Today is Monday.
The town of Billings was named for the owner of the railroad, Frederick Billings in the 1880s. It started as a railroad town, became a booming oil town and now is the progressive medical center for all of eastern Montana, the Dakotas and Wyoming. All around the town are fields of pasture land and wheat. You see cattle and horses everywhere. We were surprised by the direction of the Yellowstone River. It flows east not west. And it flows through Billings also. Almost everywhere we have traveled recently we see the Yellowstone River. We had no idea it was such a large river.
I called Pop Pop's cousin, Mel Gerholdt, while we were here because he lives relatively close to Billings, in Buffalo, Wyoming; but it was actually a three and a half hour drive. Out here to get anyplace you have to drive far. At the rented house we are 23 miles from Livingston which has only 2 grocery stores. Mel was excited to hear from me and we will try to visit him when we pick up the RV. But it will have to be an overnight trip.
Tuesday we stayed around the town of Livingston since we drove so far yesterday. We checked out different fishing places. Daddy went to talk to a fishing guide and that guide spun his yarn for an hour. He couldn't get away. Then Daddy took a hike up the Pine Creek mountain for three and a half miles. Up there it's still snow on the ground. He had a ball. He said you could see this house from way up there.
Wednesday we went into Bozeman to do some shopping and go to the movies. In Livingston the only movies are Clash of the Titans and Hot Tub. We wanted something different. The Back Up Plan was the movie we wanted to see, but the light bulb in the projector was burned out; so they let us watch Date Night for free. They had really good popcorn. Then I went to Joanns and Daddy went to Sears and Barnes and Nobles. Then we went back to see The Back Up Plan, cute movie. When we got out the sky looked really weird to the west. It's a full moon, but there are so many clouds, the moon is highlighting them. We ate a small supper at the Montana Ale House. Had to try it to see how it differed from Mandarin Ale House. It's in an old railroad warehouse and it's done up nicely. I ordered 1 pound of steamed mussels which were awesome. Daddy ordered an Alaskan King Crab crabcake. He said it was really good. The restaurant flies in all fresh seafood. I can't wait to go back there.
Thursday morning it started snowing a really fine snow that was not really sticking. (I guess that's why the sky looked strange last night.) But it kept up all day and by nightfall, it started sticking. This valley sits so low that it stays warmer than the surrounding towns and mountains. Friday morning it is still snowing, but it is so fine that there is only one and a half inches on the porch. It doesn't stop the birds or horses or dogs. They are outside acting as if it never snowed. Now, the alpacas, I watched the rancher have to shoo them out of their barn. When he wasn't watching, they went back in. You would think with their thick fur they wouldn't mind the snow.
Yellowstone Park was to have gotten 10" of snow. Ours has all melted away. You can still see it in the mountain tops, but not here in the valley. In fact, it is in the lower 60s now. At Great Falls, which is about 275 miles northwest of us, they have power outages; but we are fine here. Tomorrow we will find out how much fell in Bozeman when we pick up Jonathan at the airport. He will get in just before the running of the Kentucky Derby. Tonight we are going to Chico Springs to eat dinner and play shuffleboard. They also have a live band tonight, 30-ot-Hicks New@Chico-Livingston, Montana's Own Homegrown Roots Rock Band. Wonder what they'll be like. The last time we were there, it was standing room only, which is odd for a saloon so far out in the sticks. There is nothing anywhere around them.