Red Lodge, Montana

Saturday 1 August

Really got left to it today, totally sucked in by Yellowstone, and all the stuff to experience there.

Grand Teton Natl Park

Leaving Jackson Hole, it was first north through Grand Teton National Park

nice morning, jackets on, mid 50sF

then into Yellowstone Park and crossing the continental divide a couple of times.

With 000's of others, did the tourist thing and waited 40 mins for Old Faithful to do its iconic display

to the accompanying oo's and ah's

not sure in my memory, but I think Pohutu on a good day would be bigger.

The Yellowstone caldera's roughly 30mls diameter, and there isnt one defined thermal field

(it could all go again one day too)

You follow the roads around and get a look at several different ones, I managed 3.

Old Faithful

Yellowstone

On  Marley's advice I took the middle loop road and was rewarded with seeing a herd of bison, 150 to 200 cows and calves

they were too far from the road for a good pic, but the bull in the pic attached was very obliging being so close

and causing whats called in park parlance, an "ani-jam"

where all the rubber-neckers tailgate each other for a close look.

There were several bulls, I saw about 8, off on their own, as the one in the pic was

and wonder if they were the unsuccessful young males.

I was late out of the park, and too late to catch the Wild Bill museum at Cody

and not enough time for a stop at the Alma, a saloon named after Buffalo Bill's daughter.

Chief Joseph Scenic Drive

So it was off over Chief Joseph Scenic drive, and Bear Tooth, both carded in the Great Rides of America

in a bit of a hurry, as it was 6pm and 100 odd mls of mountain road to negotiate before dark

but I was in one of those occasional zen states where man and machine were in nice harmony

and even with several photo stops, I did make Red Lodge before dark.

The road at Beartooth Pass

The roadside bumf boards are great, quite explanatory about geological stuff

so I learned that the rock up here is 3.3 billion years old

was pushed up 55 million years ago

then honed to its current shape by the IceAge 100,000 years ago

Bear Tooth Pass is 11,000' asl, so I put my jacket on.

From Yellowstone to Cody I was in shirt sleeves, and Wyoming and Montana being no helmet law states, I wrapped my cooler tie around my head like a regular injun, and went for it.

Pretty convenient with so many gawk stops, and, well, I've done it for 50 years round the farm

no big deal, but you do take a little extra care.

Final deliberation on the practice is, its an open invitation to sun-stroke and windburn on the highway

and my helmet, with its air vents, has proved ok in the up to 104F tasted so far.

The former Chief Joseph Drive's top was a little lower, round 8000'

so here I am following the Nez Perce trail 3 days so far, at 65mph av

and these guys were doing it on foot and horse, oldies, women and children, with the soldiers after them.

I saw a poem line about the pursuing army, "40 miles a day, on a can of beans, and hay"

This pic of the canyon, is where Chief Joseph did his famous manouvre

wheeling their 2000 horses round in a huge circle, scattering them, then bringing them back in

to confuse the army scouts

then dropping the whole fleeing caboodle down into the canyon and doubling back, to get clean away.

There's a message on a plaque before the climb, from a current leader of today's Nez Perce

saying something like we want you to enjoy this passing and remember in respect, our people, and what they did

just incredible when you see the country

master horsemen

when they fled the curtailed reservation back in Washinton, they had also substantial farmed cattle herds built up from the time of the initial treaty

havent seen what happened to them, but I guess the honkies got down on them too

what a bunch of pricks...

I mean, what were the gold prospectors doing poking their noses onto the reservation in the first place.

Red Lodge gets its name from the Crow indians who lived there

they painted their tepees red

the place got opened up when the rail line got there in 1890

coal-mining was its main industry till 1932, i guess the coal ran out

in 1936 tourists started arriving in numbers, the locals got some dough from central govt

actually, the Montana blokes did, and punched the road up the hill in 1936

but gee, I wouldnt like to do it in any vehicle of that vintage.

Like Jackson Hole, the place was rocking with bikers

actually, I got a "santa isnt real" moment at Jackson

I always thought the Hole in the Wall gang, from kids cowboy story days, hung out in a narrow canyon there

but when I enquired, I just got a blank look.

Also found an old mounted newspaper in an art shop, about Alan Ladd filming the movie "Shane", there in Jackson in the 50's

and a local woman who got a bit part as one of the main kids

I saw that movie, Alan Ladd did the famous pistol twirl before holstering up

Lee Heflin was the honest farmer who got the woman, and Shane rode off into the sunset after shooting up the baddie

while the woman's kid ran after Shane because he liked him better, but tripped in a puddle

and Shane got away.

Saw in another shop who obviously have access to the negative

a framed print of the Two Bill's 1907 "Wild West Show" ensemble, soldiers, real indian chiefs, civilians, cowboys...

you can get one for $4500

Cheers