Friday, May 1/2015

Our final destination for today was the farm.  We had finally made it to Saskatoon and we were both glad of that.  We are sooo much closer to our final stop in Leoville.
The weather cooperated all day, well, except for the wind but we made good time and arrived in time to catch the last two periods of the hockey game.
Bernie had a previous engagement with one of the neighbours so John and I had another quiet evening.  Gloria was still away but was scheduled to fly home tomorrow.
Hogan was glad to be back on the lush green grass of the farm and wasted no time in exploring the yard.  Even the cats did not bother with him.  They knew he was not a viable threat!!
Once the hockey game was over, it was time to head back to the camper and call it a night.  We both fell asleep to the peace and quiet of the farm.  Life is Good!!

Heading out, HWY 4 N

Our spot for a week or so

Thursday, April 30/2015

Today we are packing up and getting ready to cross into Canada.
Last night's thunderstorm is only a memory now but it still remains a bit "wet" outside as Hogan's paws are attesting!!
We have less than 100 miles to travel to the border so were not in much of a hurry this morning.  There were several campers still heading towards the Missouri River for their once a year paddlefish season.  Along with the campers, came the fish and game wardens and sure enough..... one paid us a visit!!
The "boys" had seen that the quads had no "hard plates" and came to see what stickers we had.  John had his Utah sticker displayed (I did not) and although it was expired, they were glad to see it.  I was in the process of showing them our insurance when I mentioned that we were loading up and moving out.  Upon hearing this, they no longer thought it was necessary to see our  insurance!!  We had a nice chat with them and they in turn gave us a map of the area.
With that, we packed up and headed for the border.
We stopped for fuel in Malta and grabbed a case of beer and some ice.  The border crossing was next and that went smoothly.  I really do think it matters when one has all the required paper work in place and ready for inspection.  The guard checked Hogan's rabies papers and looked in the trailer then looked at our passports.  He didn't even bother to scan them!!  Then, it was good day, have a safe trip and be careful with the lousy road ahead!!
Our usual spot in the gravel pit was occupied so we continued on to the the Town of Val Marie where we parked in their campground for the night and enjoyed a windy, but quiet evening.
We had not been in the campground for 15  minutes before "Tammy" arrived to apologize that the campground was not quite ready for us as the toilets were not available but the power was on.   We paid the town $10.00 for the night and were happy to do so.

Heading out

Crossing into Canada

Saskatchewan....Naturally

The farmers are on the land

Our spot for the night

Another nice sunset, with the town church in the view

Marie and Hogan all cozy.  The wind was relentless!!

Wednesday, April 29/2015

It was beautifully quiet this morning and if fact,  was very quiet all night.  The birds are singing and all seems well in this neck of the woods.  It was so nice to hear a meadowlark last evening singing its little heart out in an evergreen tree yesterday and it sounds like he is at it again this morning.
The sun is shining and it looks like a great day for a quad ride.

Our ride today

We started off our ride today by taking the trail right beside the truck.  It was a rather adventurous trail that we hoped would lead us to the edge of the Missouri River and hopefully follow its shore line.  Unfortunately, the trail ended with a NO VEHICLES sign.  This area has been closed to all public access as a result of the Refuge status.  We then climbed out of the valley, back to the truck and headed down the road in the same direction that all the campers were headed.  There were nothing but NO VEHICLE signs along the road for about 6 miles then, we saw a TRAVEL PERMITTED ON NUMBERED TRAILS ONLY sign and headed up the trail.

Old homestead we found

The Missouri River

Beverage

The trail took us along a very high ridge amongst huge pine trees and juniper scrub.  The trail was a combination of sand and grasslands with a little rock thrown in for good measure.
The weather was so very warm and sunny and it was a great day for a ride.

Missouri River

Some great views

Fixing a flat

At one point, we stopped for a refreshment and found that John's rear tire was once again.....flat and in need of repair.  We managed to find some shade and four plugs later..... the tire was repaired and holding air (for now anyway!!)  Perhaps it will hold until we get back to the truck.

From pines to prairie

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The views from the ridge were nothing but incredible with the Missouri River winding its way through the valley.  It was Paddlefish season and the fisherman were many.  They are allowed to catch only one fish per season.

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The grasslands along the river banks is off limits to vehicles and it looks as if that may be a good thing as it would be quite marshy at times.  This area is all protected for the flora and fauna.  It is a great elk viewing area and the last time John and I were here, we saw great herds of them dining in the lowlands.  I am sure they know they have no worries here in the Refuge.
We put on about 80 kms today before we got back to the truck and all in all it was a great ride.  I had no idea that I was being bitten by numerous little bugs (black flies/mosquitoes/no see ems!!  Who knows) and when I got back to the truck, my forehead and hairline was covered in bites.  Jesus.....I looked like I had the POX!!  What the hell!!  I did not even feel the little buggers biting!!
We spent the rest of the evening watching hockey and watching a rather nasty thunderstorm roll in.  It was accompanied by lots of wind and an incredible display of lightening.  The rain stayed in the valley mostly although we did get a bit on the hill where we were parked.
We went to sleep lulled by the soft rain hitting the camper roof and it was rather soothing after the ride.  I think I am going to be sore tomorrow!!

Another great ride

Tuesday, April 28/2015

I awoke to sunshine this morning.  I looked out the windows and there were 4 blackbirds on the ground scrounging for dead grass and such.  It looks like the nest building is well under way for these little feathered creatures.
I wonder if we will get any tree swallows nesting in our bird houses this year.  We must remember to turn one of the houses around as I think that was the issue last year when the yard was invaded by campers.  One camper was just too close for comfort and the birds abandoned their nest.  That was a bummer too as there were eggs in the nest.
Today, we will be camping in Northern Montana up near the Missouri River.  We found a neat little spot to boondock and will be only a short distance to the border.  It looks like we will be in Canada on Wednesday.
Our travels today were once again, uneventful.  We arrived at our camp spot  in good time and had lots of sunshine to enjoy.  The adult beverages came out and we slowly but surely reduced our numbers of beer so that we were in line with what is allowed across the border.
While we were sitting outside, John decided to get the quads out and stay for one more day here to explore some of the trail system along the river.  We have to be back in Canada on April 30th so we do have an extra day!!  We are less than 100 miles from the border at present.
Hogan enjoyed the evening as well although he had to be careful as there were all kinds of ground cactus around as I soon discovered when one of the little darlings made itself known to my foot!! Geez, I thought we left those damn things behind us!!  I spent he next 5 minutes picking thorns out of the sole of my flip flop!!
The evening was lovely and we did sit in the trailer with the campfire in a can once the sun went down.
I had some spaghetti sauce simmering on the stove so supper was pretty much done.  All that was needed was to boil the spaghetti, eat and go to bed and that is exactly what we did!!

Our spot for a couple days

Hogan chillin

Another good day

Monday, April 27/2015

Heading out

This Marmot had to see us off

The tunnels through Wind River Canyon

We headed off again today hoping for another good day's travel.  It was indeed and once again we made a lot of miles. We will be sleeping in Montana tonight and that means that we will be in the last state we need to travel through before crossing into Canada. Home sweet Home is getting closer!!

Train tunnel in this one

Before we hit Montana however, we had to finish off Wind River Canyon and that meant going through a series of three tunnels.  They are pretty neat and are always fun to do.  Even the train has to enter into a few of these to navigate this canyon.

                                                                                                                                                                  The scenery is incredible and one just can not even fathom the millions of years old rock that makes up this canyon.  It truly is a marvel.

Wind River - this river meanders through the canyon
where eventually it joins to the Big Horn River at a
place called Wedding of the Waters.

Montana - someone missed the "Welcome to Montana" sign
Not mentioning any names as to who that was!!

Our spot for the night - nestled amongst the cottonwood trees
at Laurel, Montana

Beverage

Earlier today, we stopped at a little campground in a small town and were lucky enough to be able to fill up with water and dump our holding tanks.  The best part of this was....it was free!!  Now that is my kind of town!!  Had we not had to shop, we would have gladly paid the $20.00 camp fee and stayed there for the night.  It even had electricity!!
We arrived at Laurel, Montana (which sits just outside of Billings) in time to hit to local Walmart store for some last minute shopping items.  With that done, we drove to the local campground (which has been closed every time we get here) and parked for the night.  It is a wonderful little area that lies along side the Yellowstone River and is nestled amongst the huge cottonwood trees.
The birds were enjoying the lovely Spring weather, the squirrels were frolicking in the grass and Hogan was in his glory chasing both of them.  I don't think he is missing all the little thorns and poky things of Arizona!!
As one can see from the pictures, we did partake in a few "red" beer (as they call them in Arizona) and sat in the evening sunshine and simply enjoyed the rest of the day.
John got out the BBQ and commenced to cooking our supper.  While the potato was cooking, him and Hogan went for a little walk while I lay down on the couch and tried to get rid of a nagging headache. Upon their return, my headache was pretty much gone and the last of our chicken was cooked.  Apparently, no poultry is allowed across the border this year as there has been an outbreak of Avian Flu in a few states down here so,  Canada has closed its borders to the import of poultry and anything with poultry in it.  It is a good thing that I did not buy any extra dog food down here as I am sure that it contains chicken.  The little bit that I have left in the bag will probably be confiscated at the border!! We have about 4 eggs left so they should be gone by the time we hit Canada so no worry there.
With supper done, it was time to head in and catch the last of the hockey game and then I was more than ready for bed.  I climbed in and never heard another sound after that,  Hell, I don't even remember John coming to bed and apparently watching TV!!
Life is good!!

Sunday, April 26/2015

We awoke to sunshine this morning so that is a very good thing.  Hopefully all the bad weather that this alert brings with it will somehow just pass us by.

Heading out - and the weather looks rather questionable

We did get into a bit of rain but that was all.  Once we headed north from Rawlins, Wyoming we were pretty much in the clear.

Clouds engulfing the mountains

This weather system followed us all day and the clouds and the rain were not too far away.  Our travel for the most part was uneventful and, we did manage to avoid the one lone antelope that was standing on the side of the road deciding whether or not to cross.  Fortunately he decided to just stay put and that was a very good thing!!

US 789 WY North

Wind River Canyon is always a joy to drive however it was, as usual, windy.  No surprise there.  We decided to stop for the night at one of the many campgrounds that dot the way.   The hockey game was to start soon and one cannot be missing the drop of the puck.  Of course John and I are cheering for different teams so that makes the games even more interesting.

You just can not beat this kind of scenery.
How blessed we are to be able to see this.

Our spot for the night

The marmots were out in full force when we arrived at the campground and Hogan was more than happy to cause them a bit of grief.  Of course they did not stray too far from their dens and once Hogan started coming towards them, they quickly sought refuge!!  Silly things, they had no idea that he was probably more fearful of them and their high pitched chirp than they were of him.  It was rather amusing though!!

Wind River Canyon

The Marmots are out (he is sitting on the rock)

Wind River 

 All in all, it was yet another good day of travel.  We made good time and the weather for the most part cooperated and the truck is running great!!