Day 11

We've named this blurry animal "Bighoof"

Montana Saga- Day 11

Alan writes:

Our day started early in Bozeman with us on the road by 9:30.  I know that doesn’t sound early but Mimi regularly takes about 4-6 hours making certain that her posts are professional travel magazine worthy.  Last night we were up until about 2AM Montana time just so everything would be right.  Any-way, as I was saying, we started early.  We headed west on Hwy 84 until it joined 287 south.  On Hwy 287 we saw more beautiful scenery- I don’t think   I can come up with better words!  We had lunch in a little motel/café/bar called the Sportsman’s Lodge.  I have learned that every establishment has a casino attached to it.  This must be the Montana equivalent of state lotteries but it is a lot less “under the radar” and, I think, cheapens the state.  I guess the old west had 10 saloons for drinking and gambling for every church so maybe this is an improvement.  Enough editorializing!  We drove on until Hwy 287 joined Hwy 191 where we turned north.  Our planned destination was to get back to Livingston by nightfall.  On the way we took two excursions down gravel roads that provided access to various trailheads.  On the first of these, Beaver Creek, Mimi saw her first moose.  I saw it with her but we never got a good opportunity to frame it and shoot it.  You can look at the photograph and tell it’s something.  You’ll have to take our word that it’s a moose.  Going up the second road she saw a red fox, this one a lot huskier and fluffier than the one on the plains above Browning.  Alas, this picture was blurry (like Bigfoot!) because someone interfered with the camera.  OK, I interfered with the camera.  Let me just say, for the record, that you don’t want to mess with a professional correspondent’s camera.  You could get thrown down on the Wal-Mart floor again!  We headed back onto Hwy 191 toward Livingston but decided to take another diversion to Big Sky, a sort of town/resort whose main feature is their winter skiing. Here Mimi saw her first elk of the day. Yes, you’re getting the picture- Mimi sees every wild animal first.  Every day she says her mind and eyes are tired from the intense focus she brings to scouring the land for animals.  Scouring is her word.  She abrasively rubs the land with her eyes until the wildlife has no choice but to emerge.  It’s amazing!  At this point we made a command decision that traveling back to Livingston was not really necessary so we decided to stay at a neat guest ranch called the “320.”  We ate supper at their last of the season “pig-picking” and enjoyed some bluegrass music played by a local trio.  Now it is bedtime.  There is a small, literally ‘babbling”, brook outside our back window so sleep should not be a problem. Tomorrow we head into Yellowstone.  

Mimi says:

Loved our trips down gravel roads today but really expected to meet some bears ... and they are hiding expertly well.

Buffalo

Lunch at the Sportsman's Lodge

D.P. and Mike would've loved this Patty Melt! YUM!

"Pig pickin' " at the 320 Guest Ranch.

Bluebird Sky bluegrass

Bear warnings at every turn... but they don't really exist.