Kicking back in the Radon Room at the Free Enterprise Health Mine, Boulder MT.Here's a photo a a rock just down the road from the mine. The picture doesn't quite capture the essential bullfrogness of this rock, but it gives you an idea. 
We spent a couple of hours at the mine before heading south toward Yellowstone a little after noon. Rather than drive due south and hitting the park at the west entrance in Idaho, we jogged east on Interstate 90, through Bozeman and Livingston, then south on Route 89 along the Yellowstone River. We took a back road to the east of the river, through mountain valleys and past huge ranches, most of which seemed to be for sale. Either the ranching business has gone to hell or all the hollywood stars with Montana retreats have fallen on hard times. At right is a picture of Devil's Slide, not really a landslide, but a chunck of soft sandstone that originally lay horizontally before being 
thrust up and then eroded into this odd looking chute. I caught a river raft going by. We're at somewhere between five and six thousand feet above sea level. We checked in at a TravelLodge in Gardiner, right at the Park Entrance. We're right in the middle of town on the 4th floor with a balcony overlooking the edge of the park just across the river. I took Annie for a roll around town and had pizza at a local watering hole, then we went to the annual Gardiner Rodeo, a rather typical small time affair with local ropers, barrel racers and bronc-riders. Several of the team ropers (head and heel roping) were female, quite a change from the last rodeos I saw in the early 
'70s. They also had an event called break-away roping, an all female event which is like regular calf roping, but instead of leaping off her horse to throw and tie the calf, the rope is tied to the saddle horn with a string and as soon as the string breaks, the clock stops. (this may make sense to some of you... or maybe not) With the bleachers non-wheelchair accessible, we were on the ground right at the fence, just a couple of feet away from the thundering hooves. Annie got quite an introduction to rodeo. One of the bulls charged the fence in front of us when someone leaned through to take a picture. An exciting end to another great day. Tomorrow we'll head into the park, then on south toward Pinedale, where I plan to stop and see George Ditton, who played bass in my band back in the early '70s at the Cowboy Bar. His brother and sister-in-law live in Homer and his niece, Dianne Ditton is renting our place for the summer. I hadn't talked to him in 37 years until I called him earlier today. He's playing for a birthday party at the Pinedale Senior Center Sunday. Well, guess what I just figured out. You can click on any picture and see it all blown up. The details, especially with some of the flower and scenery pictures is really great. The next thing we're going to learn how to do is set up a slideshow as part of the Blog. But don't expect anything too soon--we don't want to hurt ourselves...Traveled yesterday with Vince Gilbert and The Bobs (a so-weird but so-wonderful acapella group) and the ubitquitous country music stations on the radio. I loved the rodeo, especially watching women not much younger than me rope those little steers. Snaps everywhere, and pointy toes on most. Travelling through these rolling cuts between mountains, you just could imagine seeing Indians on painted ponies at the top of the ridges looking down at Lewis and Clark, or the first wagon trains and, as David said, remarking "...Well, there goes the neighborhood..."
We spent a couple of hours at the mine before heading south toward Yellowstone a little after noon. Rather than drive due south and hitting the park at the west entrance in Idaho, we jogged east on Interstate 90, through Bozeman and Livingston, then south on Route 89 along the Yellowstone River. We took a back road to the east of the river, through mountain valleys and past huge ranches, most of which seemed to be for sale. Either the ranching business has gone to hell or all the hollywood stars with Montana retreats have fallen on hard times. At right is a picture of Devil's Slide, not really a landslide, but a chunck of soft sandstone that originally lay horizontally before being 
thrust up and then eroded into this odd looking chute. I caught a river raft going by. We're at somewhere between five and six thousand feet above sea level. We checked in at a TravelLodge in Gardiner, right at the Park Entrance. We're right in the middle of town on the 4th floor with a balcony overlooking the edge of the park just across the river. I took Annie for a roll around town and had pizza at a local watering hole, then we went to the annual Gardiner Rodeo, a rather typical small time affair with local ropers, barrel racers and bronc-riders. Several of the team ropers (head and heel roping) were female, quite a change from the last rodeos I saw in the early 
'70s. They also had an event called break-away roping, an all female event which is like regular calf roping, but instead of leaping off her horse to throw and tie the calf, the rope is tied to the saddle horn with a string and as soon as the string breaks, the clock stops. (this may make sense to some of you... or maybe not) With the bleachers non-wheelchair accessible, we were on the ground right at the fence, just a couple of feet away from the thundering hooves. Annie got quite an introduction to rodeo. One of the bulls charged the fence in front of us when someone leaned through to take a picture. An exciting end to another great day. Tomorrow we'll head into the park, then on south toward Pinedale, where I plan to stop and see George Ditton, who played bass in my band back in the early '70s at the Cowboy Bar. His brother and sister-in-law live in Homer and his niece, Dianne Ditton is renting our place for the summer. I hadn't talked to him in 37 years until I called him earlier today. He's playing for a birthday party at the Pinedale Senior Center Sunday. Well, guess what I just figured out. You can click on any picture and see it all blown up. The details, especially with some of the flower and scenery pictures is really great. The next thing we're going to learn how to do is set up a slideshow as part of the Blog. But don't expect anything too soon--we don't want to hurt ourselves...Traveled yesterday with Vince Gilbert and The Bobs (a so-weird but so-wonderful acapella group) and the ubitquitous country music stations on the radio. I loved the rodeo, especially watching women not much younger than me rope those little steers. Snaps everywhere, and pointy toes on most. Travelling through these rolling cuts between mountains, you just could imagine seeing Indians on painted ponies at the top of the ridges looking down at Lewis and Clark, or the first wagon trains and, as David said, remarking "...Well, there goes the neighborhood..."
1 comment:
Just read blog start to just outside Yellowstone. Really enjoyed. Will keep reading. Good Luck and God Bless.
Post a Comment