When you spend two long days in an automobile with someone, you get to know them pretty well. Doug and I left on November 12th for the 1,130 mile journey to Montana for a sweet visit with my firstborn and his precious family. Over the course of a couple of days, there was a lot of conversation and just as much laughter. Thankfully, we have like tastes in music and enjoyed it at a volume we could actually hear! We both sing along with the music and that’s fun. We also have similar tastes in reading material and we both like mysteries…which made listening to a couple of books on tape enjoyable. When we took breaks, we were anxious to get back to the mystery to pick up where we left off. I think that I can honestly say the time and the miles actually flew by.
For the most part, we were blessed with good weather, marvelous scenery and light snow! The funny photo below was one of several cute “photo ops” at the Wyoming Welcome Center. I confess the one of me on horseback was funnier but won’t be published! 😉
We loved our time with my son and his family. One day we drove about two hours to the Patagonia Outlet in Dillon, Montana. Patagonia is expensive but a terrific 40% off sale made their prices look a whole lot better! It was a beautiful drive with awesome scenery along the way…including several impressive Montana ranches! On the way, we also made a stop at Montana Wheat Bakery & Deli for lunch and a visit to the bakery & gift shop. On the evening before we left for the return trip home, Doug treated us all to pizza at the MacKenzie River Pizza Company in downtown Bozeman. We had such a good time, but all too soon it was time to say goodbye. I miss them all already!
On the return trip, we took the two-lane road through the Black Hills of South Dakota which made for some beautiful and interesting scenery. We stopped for a break to check out a very neat place, the Spearfish Canyon Lodge. It reminded me very much of the lodge in the movie Christmas in Connecticut. It would be a great place for a winter vacation with all the snowy trails and snow mobiles for rent! It would also be a great place to meet the family for a fun vacation in the Summer. It is not far from Mount Rushmore, our next stop on the trip and only 2.5 miles from where the film Dances With Wolves was filmed.
I must be one of the few remaining people on earth who had not seen Mount Rushmore – along with Doug. It is an inspiring, captivating place. A place borne in the heart of a dreamer and sculptor. To say it leaves an impression on you is an understatement. Seeing it with snow covering the mountains made it extra special I think. Not to mention the fact that on that bitter cold windy afternoon, we were two of only a handful of people in the entire park.
Enjoy the slide show below of our visit and our journey back home…
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One Comment
Janet
Enjoyed reading and seeing the photos! Makes me want to make a trip out west. The only time I’ve been out there was during a family vacation back when I was in college. You’re right about Mt. Rushmore–seeing it in person really makes an impression! Glad you had such a nice time.