Early Summer and Heading Out West

When we returned home in late fall of 2017, the Captain decided to build a pad for our rig so we wouldn't have it sitting in our driveway.  We had quite a few trees removed from part of our land next to our house and called in a local contractor to do the dirt work.  He had a great idea as to where we should place the pad so we agreed and the work began.  The intention was to build up the ground, put a surface on it, and then build a cover on the port for the rig.  Well the contractor underestimated the height of the pad or overestimated his abilities and we wound up with a pad that started eroding as soon as we had the first rain.  The contractor then recommended a company that could build a retaining wall to keep the pad from eroding into the lake.  We hired out the work for the retaining wall which couldn't start until February, and then we got in the rig and took our annual winter trip to Texas.  

This picture shows the retaining wall that was built while we were in Texas.  Our good neighbor, Gary, watched over the project for us and when it was finished he sent us pictures and said we better be planning on building a really nice cover for the rig because the retaining wall turned out  gorgeous. 

When we returned home in the spring another company came in and built the rig shelter.

It took them less than a day and these men walked all over the roof area with ease.

Rather than try to seed the yard around the pad or put down sod, we had a sprinkler system put in and then hydro-seeded the land.  When it was finished we had used four different contractors but the hydro-seeders were the most amazing.

We started getting grass coming up in four days.

While all this was going on we were planning and preparing for our big adventure to Alaska.  Well, actually, the Captain was doing most of the planning and I just stayed out of his way.  We had one other event before we left for the summer and that was the graduation of our grandson, Lee, from high school. 

Lee graduated with honors and is headed to The Citadel which is a military college in Charleston, South Carolina.

Grandma and Grandpa with the new graduate.  Good job Lee, we are very proud of you and love you a lot.

The day after Lee's graduation we left for our summer trip heading out towards Montana.

Lulu all packed up and ready to go.

The Captain so excited to go on this trip! 

We headed up towards Tennessee through Nashville.

I didn't know he was still performing.

The Grand Old Opry is in the suburbs of Nashville and can be seen from the interstate.  We decided that would be a fun city to explore some day.  They even have an RV park right alongside the Opry House.

Heading through Kentucky and crossing the mighty Ohio River.

It was very wide and full.

A canal used for irrigation in Illinois right next to the Mississippi River.

Crossing the Mississippi River into Missouri.

We drove through Missouri and crossed the Missouri River heading into Kansas City.

Like all the other rivers we saw, they were all full and flowing.

The skyline of Kansas City.

The building in the front is the home of the Kansas City Royals and behind it you can see Arrowhead Stadium.

Worlds of Fun Amusement Park in Kansas City.

Beautiful metal sculptures on a bridge over the interstate near Omaha, Nebraska.

Omaha in the background.

Driving through South Dakota we hit some rain but it wasn't too bad.  The traffic was very light.

I thought the only state with an 80 mph speed limit was Texas. 

This is Main Street seen from the interstate in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Right next to Main Street is this huge pit that they are still excavating.  According to the info we read, the owner of this pit has 11 more years to work it and then they figure it will be tapped out.  There are several other pits in the area and this is a big business for the town.

We noticed the interstate roads had a rust tinge to the pavement.  This is from the type of rock they pull from the pits. 

We stopped at a rest park and cultural center on the interstate in South Dakota and it was amazing.

This stop honored the Native Americans in South Dakota. The tepee is made from concrete posts and is illuminated at night. 

The rest stop overlooks Lake Francis Case created by damming part of the Missouri River.  There are walking trails behind the rest stop which gave the pups a chance to run and play.

Lewis and Clark Bridge crosses over the lake. 

This magnificent sculpture is called, "Dignity of Earth and Sky".

The colored panels glow when the sun shines through them and it can be seen from the interstate.  This was the nicest rest area we have ever seen.

Work was being done on the interstate and 10-15 mile sections have been completely ripped out to rebuild again.

The grassy lands of South Dakota.

A small view of the Badlands.

All along the interstate there were signs advertising this place of business.

We had heard about Wall Drug in South Dakota and knew it was the "mecca" for experienced RVers.  So we fought through the heavy traffic to reach the town.

The Captain had made reservations for us to spend the night in Wall, SD, and it turned out our RV park was right next door to the famous town so we had to check it out since we are 'experienced RVers' now.

The RV park was even kind enough to cut a path through the grass surrounding the park so we could walk over to the town.  We did have to cross over several sections of railroad track though.

The railroad tracks had a rather large warning sign but no one paid attention.

Walking to downtown Wall, South Dakota, from the RV park.

All but three buildings on the main street are owned by Wall Drug.

Free parking courtesy of Wall Drug is everywhere.

You can walk from one store into the next without going outside to make sure you see everything Wall Drug has to offer.

The Captain made friends quickly.

Maybe a little too quickly.

There was even a Cowboy Chapel available.

This sculpture called 'Enemy Territory' by Harvey Rattey was selling for $22.000.

As big as this enterprise is, the actual Wall Drug that began in 1931 is very tiny with only one pharmacist on duty and still filling prescriptions today.

Anything you want or need they have.  Most of it is touristy stuff and the few items we liked were overpriced so we got through the shops quickly.

After walking both sides of the street we finally found this one to be the best.

I had a great beer called Buffalo Sweat and the Captain had a Lord Grizzly.  What more does one need.

After leaving Wall, South Dakota (never to return again), we headed into Wyoming.

The Bighorn Mountain Range and our first sign of snow.

Views were lush and beautiful because of all the rain this spring.

Stopping for diesel.  As we traveled West the prices got higher.

We spent the night at an RV park called 7th Ranch in Wyoming.  We had stayed here once before and liked it so much we stopped again.  It is about 3 miles off the interstate and you have to go down part of a dirt road.

Behind the park are walking trails and a great place to exercise the pups and by this time they were tired of days of driving and needed to get out and run.  

The next day we made it into Montana and drove through Billings.  It's a good sized city with lots of oil refining and a bustling economy. 

The Absaroka Range coming into view.

This beautiful snow-capped range is called the Crazy  Mountains.

Our first wild animal.  They are called pocket gophers.

This is one of the farms called Wheat Montana.  It is a huge operation that owns many of the wheat fields in the state.  They also sell breads and other wheat products throughout the West.

A section of Canyon Ferry Lake where the Captain used to spend the weekends with his family when he was growing up.  It's not too far outside of Helena.

We spent several days in Helena to visit with Brett's mom and several relatives.  We had been on the road for a week so it was  nice to take a break and relax.  We had a great time and several meals together, washed our filthy car, and had planned on washing the rig but the weather did not cooperate.  The day we got there was sunny and in the 80's but a front was coming in.  We woke up to temperatures in the 40's with highs in the 50's and wind and rain.  So we mostly chilled out and had a good time visiting.

Having pasties (a Montana favorite) with cousins Ed and Pam, Brett's mom Joyce, cousin Susie, and the animated one who monopolized the conversation (guess who that was).   Had a GREAT time!  Pam gave us a going away gift of homemade zucchini bread and pumpkin muffins.  Yummy!  The gal can cook.

Sunset in Helena, Montana.

We left the next day and headed towards Canada to begin the big adventure.  The Captain was sooo excited.  I was worried about crossing the border.  The pups were tired of being in the rig.......To be continued!  Peace!