July 4, 2000
Happy Independence Day! Hope you had a bar-b-cued hot dog or some other fantastic celebration!
We're parked about 100 or 150 yards from the railroad tracks in a truck stop/casino just East of Missoula, MT, on Hwy I-90. Barby's still sleeping, but the trains going by blowing their horns at the crossing and the trucks leaving have rousted me out at my normal 5 AM. From here we take Hwy 12 toward Moscow, ID, where we'll be attending the Life on Wheels Conference for a week starting Sunday 7/9/00. By getting there a bit early we can poke around playing tourist for a few days, fill the freshwater tank, empty the sewer tanks and get ready to "dry camp" for the week.
And the railroad is between us and the freeway -- that straight line running across from left to right before the hill.
Lucky Lil's Casino. Lots of casinos around, and usually plenty of free overnight parking. We got here too late to even visit, and left before breakfast so can't tell you what the inside of the place looks like.
I'd really better take a little time here and fill you in on what's been going on since June 23. That seems like years ago!
And now it's July 5, and we're in Moscow, ID, at the University of Idaho for our Life on Wheels conference. By golly, this retirement/RV lifestyle is one busy deal!
But before I get carried away telling you the exciting afternoon/evening we had for the 4th of July, let me get back to the rally in Gillette, WY.
These are a few of the rigs in attendance, from our roof.
And these are a bunch more. There was another parking lot full as well. There were 890 rigs in attendance, and about 2000 people. The next rally we're going to in Gillette on the 17th has 5,600 rigs registered with some 12,000+ people expected. We may not stay for that rally very long. Neither of us feel like the facility, nice as it is, can handle that many people. In the background you can see the covered bleachers where the full sized race track and arena are. We had some welcoming ceremonies there, a fun rodeo with a clown that was wired for sound and was a riot, and a sheep/cattle dog demo another night, complete with trick riders. The inside theater was used for the rest of the entertainment that included some little known but very talented musicians. The grandstands were about 3/4 full with our group and we had to have different colored tickets for the theater seating and the show's all had to repeat to accommodate us. I have no idea how 12,000 people will be served. Like I said, we'll keep an open mind until we experience it.
We arrived two days early so we could take in some tours. The first day was the Devils Tower and the town of Deadwood.
In order to make us feel right at home, it was raining off and on, and a bit cool. I actually had on long pants and shoes for the first time in quite a while. Felt funny, and my feet didn't like being in shoes one little bit! I have a blister on one heel that is still healing that I picked up walking the American River bike trail in Sacramento. Really got a good one!
The "rubble" at the bottom of the tower where Barby is standing is real interesting and full of critters. I took some shots of orange, green, blue and black lichens that were growing on different places on the rocks, but they didn't turn out. I'm taking the digital photography classes next week, and hope to be able to improve my skill. Not going to be hard to do!!
This is about as good a shot as I could get of the bear's claw marks on the tower. You see, many, many moons ago, there were these 7 Indian siblings playing together. One boy and his 6 sisters. Pretty soon the brother began to metamorphosize into a bear. The frightened sisters climbed onto the biggest rock they could find, and after praying to the proper spirits, the rock grew and grew to protect them from the bear who by this time had grown to gigantic proportions. The marks in this rock are from his claws as he attempted to get to the girls. The girls in the meantime had begun a metamorphosis themselves, and were taken into the heavens and are now the stars of the big dipper. Can you name them? Our incredible guide could. All of them. And I may not even have the correct number of sisters!!
Wyoming is the only state in the Union that has never had any glaciers come through and re-arrange the scenery. Thus, it's a mecca for geologists and paleontologists, and others interested in studying the strata of the earth. Our tour guide on this trip was a school teacher and talked non-stop about the area. Most fascinating tour we've ever taken, and the wealth of information was mind boggling. Wyoming is producing energy products all over the place. Coal, oil, natural gas, and just recently methane. There are no temporary lodgings anywhere and there is a major housing boom because of all the well digging crews coming in to drill for Methane. And the antelope that Barb gets all excited about spotting don't care one whit about all the activity around them. I did find I was a bit irritated when I learned that we the taxpayers, are paying the landowners (through our federal government) to not pump their oil. Seems that it's being held in "reserve" in case the Saudi's don't want to take our money any more. Interesting.
I call this our "slug tree" because it reminded me of just that. A major slug crawling over the rock. Actually, it's a twisted, burned stump of some kind that Barb wanted me to take a picture of. The Ponderosa Pine in the background is the most popular tree in this area, and the cones were apparently a favorite of the squirrels that lived around there. I kept my eye out for a pika, since I know they like this sort of terrain, but no luck. Apparently we weren't at a high enough altitude at 5,500 feet. High enough to get me to puffing when we climbed any hills!
Deadwood turned out to be a bust as far as we were concerned. We'd read about the history of the "wild west" that Deadwood is such a part of, and expected to find artifacts. What we found instead was a mini-Las Vegas. Rather disappointing in many respects, and the buffet line had run out of chicken by the time we got to get in line. Do I sound like a grouchy old tourist? Well, the rain didn't help any either. The tour guide saved the day by telling stories about the area, and continuing to point out different geological formations and wildlife. He knew stories about the range wars, the Indian conflicts, and the homesteaders.
That afternoon or the next, I can't remember, we ran around on the mini-bikes checking out the area.
Remember I mentioned the coal? This is a truck that got retired because a bigger/better one was built. That's Barb by the tire. This truck and a bunch of other mining type stuff was located near the Cam-Plex where the Gillette Rally is being held. I just noticed the date on the picture, and it must have been the day before the tour that we went wandering. We're retired, remember? We don't have to remember what day it is. So there! Neener, neener!
A drilling rig and an old railroad engine are behind the mini-bikes and another tire.
At these rallies a variety of peripheral activities take place. The most fun perhaps is meeting people.
This couple is Dean and Bettye Kennedy. They are the grandparents of my youngest niece. My younger brother's daughter by an ex-wife. Brother Bill has an incredible ability to make and keep friends, and among them are his ex-in-laws. The last time we saw the Kennedy's we were living on our boat in Seattle, and they'd come from their home in San Antonio to see Bill and Joyce's new son sometime in 1976 or 1977. Sadly, Matthew the son was a SIDS baby. Anyway, when Bill's next wife Pamela died in 1997, he took a trip through the U.S. and went through San Antonio. Since he had Amelia, his daughter, with him, they stopped to see Dean and Bettye. Bill slept in their motorhome, and recognized the brand as being the same as ours. Bill knew they were coming to the rally, and we were able to find them and renew our friendship. They are fantastic folks, and have been very, very active in the club in the past. It was a kick to go anywhere with them, because we'd get to meet all kinds of people. Dean was a friend of one of the vendors, and I was able to get a real good deal on a gadget I had to have. It's a unit that installs on the wheel inside the tire and sends pressure and temperature information to the receiver in the cab of the truck. Great aid to knowing what's going on with my 6 inside tires. Yup, 4 on the trailer and 2 on the truck.
And while we're talking about gadgets, this is a shot of another one. (Some seminars were more expensive than others!) A satellite dish that automatically finds the correct satellite whenever we turn it on. Saves marriages. No more yelling back and forth with Barb from wherever I'm setting up the portable dish. Actually, I'd invested in a small meter that helped a lot. It just wasn't fun to use in the rain or the heat, or re-set a dozen times when the wind was blowing.
This couple from Nebraska, Virgil & Darlene Roush (I think that's the correct spelling of their last name -- can't find their card at the moment) had been eyeing me during a lunch on a tour. As we were leaving, he'd stopped me and asked my name and heritage. Seems there's a preacher in his hometown that is a look-alike. Poor guy. Anyway, we took this picture so they could take it back with them. And then for the rest of the rally, it seemed like we ran into them everywere, at meal time, at seminars, and at vendor booths, etc. We really got a kick out of watching for them.
The next day we took a tour of a buffalo ranch. On the surface, the tour looked rather dull. One big critter looks pretty much like another one to me. The draw for Barb was the fact that it's springtime and there'd be little buffalo to see, and for me it was the promise of buffalo burgers for lunch.
Bob the guide. Fortunately, he had his eyes open more than closed for the tour. We were in a beat up old bus that was appropriate for the surroundings. The group had piled into two busses and a van, and off over the desert we went. Again, we were amazed at the talent of the guide. Not only did he keep the bus from rolling off the cliff, but he was a wealth of information about the "American Bison" as he preferred to call these animals. Seems that buffalo is a nick-name for the bison. This particular ranch is trying hard to make the bison industry rival the cattle industry. Their marketing gimmicks have to be seen to be believed.
These guys (and gals) were mooching for handouts. Each vehicle had plastic pails with these bison pellets in them. Not buffalo chips. Those are the results of ingesting the bison pellets. The pellets are made up of a bunch of whatever it is these critters like to munch on as a treat and look like bison-sized rabbit pellets. And by the way, this van isn't one of the marketing gimmicks. That brown side is a replacement for the side that one of the animals had removed! These are big animals.
Now, if you give the photographer the benefit of the doubt, and use your imagination a little bit, you can see the Bison pellet on the tongue, about to disappear. The pink strap with the black spots is the strap Barb uses to keep track of her sunglasses. Her head is using up the upper right hand corner of the picture, and the bison's head is using up most the access of the door to the bus.
One of the most fascinating bits of trivia I picked up from Bob-the-guide was the fact that these animals can jump over anything they can get their chin over. Not quite high enough to clear the van, but close enough for me!!
This cow is a "friend" of the ranch owner, who's put one of the pellets in his mouth and is getting a "kiss" from his "friend". Right. Like I said, this guy is really into marketing his product. The cows wouldn't let their calves come between them and the busses. Very protective mothers, and they particularly hate coyotes. The guide hadn't seen a coyote on the ranch for years. At 35 MPH these bison can really go, and they can out-corner a horse. No wonder the coyotes go chase the sheep someplace else. So long as there's not a Llama with the herd of sheep. They chase the coyote away as well. Like I said, this guy Bob was a wealth of information. Almost as good as the school teacher the day before.
And of course, the place was full of the little guys that Barb was looking for.
My favorite was the winner of the Don King look-alike contest.
No, those aren't freckles. Those are flies, and I'm going to remember this picture the very next time I'm complaining about the bugs.
You say you want one for your very own? Well, just step up to the wall and make your selection. If it represents a bison, or if it used to be a bison, we've got it, yessiree.
When we were into boating, the term "deadhead" had an entirely different meaning. These skulls were painted, unpainted, beaded, carved, and anything else your vivid imagination might think of. Notice the roof. Or rather, the ceiling. The ranch buildings were incredibly sturdy and well kept. And lunch was all it had been promised it would be. Both Barb and I prefer moose and other game to beef, and I think that bison is right up there with the game for flavor and lack of chemicals, etc.
And of course, a Jackalope that every body knows is abundant in these parts.
And this was a new one for me. I couldn't find any tag, and the cashier was too busy to engage in any factual conversation, so I just had to assume for our purposes here that I was looking at some form of Jackbirdalope. Or is it a Birdjackalope? I really couldn't tell, and of course the Audubon Field Guide is never very good with the real rare species. Maybe I should have looked in the North American Small Mammal guide. But not being able to tell the gender, much less if there were any mammillary glands anywhere, I just took the picture to prove I'd seen one if I ever hear of anybody trying to lie about its existence. Now I'm on the lookout for Sasquatch. A live one, I hope.
From Gillette, WY, we went to Billings, MT, to get the generator worked on.
What with some 15,000 to 25,000 (depending on who you were talking to) motorcycles expected in Billings for the holiday Wing Ding as the Honda Gold Wing club event is called, we were lucky to get into any park at all. This one was clean and neat, although a bit older. Which means the spaces were small.
But not too small. See? We missed the tree. By at least 4".
Getting the generator worked on in Billings, MT. Moby Dick is a little heavy for most floor jacks, but getting it him on a block isn't hard. Gave the technician plenty of room to crawl under and room for me to peek under.
Everybody knows Barb is from Lowell. Of course, the Lowell she's from is in MA, and we're a fair distance from that one. Don't know what happened to somebody that caused the population to diminish, and didn't take the time to find out. Place was full of motorcycles heading to Billings and we were interested in getting to Moscow.
And now we're parked on the campus of the University of Moscow, Idaho, in one of their parking lots with the rest of the early birds and the volunteers who will be working the conference. We were driving around town yesterday afternoon looking for a campground or Wal-Mart or whatever, and decided we'd find the University in the process, and since we saw RV's parked, we drove in. The chief parking guy is the same guy that was our instructor when we got stuck in the sand, and we were made to feel quite welcome. I guess the story about the sand is pretty much out among the instructors, as several have introduced themselves and wanted to take a look at the only rig to ever get stuck during a driver training school.
The barn isn't nearly as neat as the ones my mother painted for us, but it did make us think of her. Hi, mom!
This is the parking lot where we "worked" as attendants. See "Joys" for the details. The big motorhome wasn't there at the time, but it's sitting right where we were.
That's us hiding behind the motorhome, with the truck peeking out. Maybe you can see the blue bag the Porta-Bote lives in. The big building in the back will be used during the conference for the several group activities planned. The showers are located about a block the other side of it. We really enjoyed the mini-bikes this morning, you can bet!
This is one way to meet new people, and lots of dogs seem to enjoy it as well. Personally, I'm not sure my back could do what's required to travel with a dog. The other husbands must have the same trouble. The idea of bending over with a plastic bag over my hand to pick up what the dog left behind just won't work for me. Yet. We love dogs, but would probably prefer a cat for convenience sake, and besides, we love them too. For now, traveling petless is just fine with us.
There's more to tell, of course. There always is. If you don't want to know how the clock works, don't ask me what time it is. Hello, Steve Wilkins! Barb is ready to go shopping, and I really want to get at least this much off my computer, so bye for now.