Getting to Custer, SD
9/15 - Today we left Yellowstone after spending 11 days getting to know the entire park. We pretty much drove the entire "grand loop".
Today we left Yellowstone lake and drove north through two wildlife zones: Hayden and Lamar Valleys. We saw quite a few bison. One was doing circles in the river, which, upon further Googling, turns out to be a bad thing - brought on by either neurological issues, infection, or extreme physical distress.
Other bison seemed happier and we saw more crossing the road to get to greener grass on the other side.
Our last viewing area was the Tower Falls and the volcanic formations nearby
before we left via the Northeast Entrance.
Not long after that we entered Montana
on our way to Cooke City
where we stayed in the best place in town - the Super 8 Motel
Evidently you need to be careful of roof avalanches.
We "dined" at the Beartooth Cafe which was also the "best" place in town
9/16 - Getting to Billings via Beartooth Pass to swap cars
Breakfast was at the coffee shop which got the best reviews in town . That's a spinach/egg on top of an everything "bagel" and coffee.
Just out of town we were informed there were cows on the road.
Sometime after leaving Cooke City we crossed back into Wyoming before turning on to Route 212 and crossing the dangerous Beartooth Pass. The pass reaches 10,947 feet in Wyoming, making it the highest elevation paved highway in both Wyoming and the Northern Rockies. Late CBS News correspondent Charles Kuralt famously called the route "the most beautiful drive in America". It is open only about 5 months of the year due to severe winter weather and high snow fall. We were extremely lucky with the weather.
There was a wonderful mirror lake
Near the top was a shop at "the top of the world"
Finally we got to the top of the pass
and then walked up to a view at the highest part of the pass - over 11,000 feet. The wind was quite strong. I didn't realize how far or how rocky the walk would be in my slip-ons. I put them totally on for the way down.
Just after this point it was all downhill and we finally saw the bear's tooth
On the way down from the pass, we stopped for the view. (Can you see the bunny?). On the photo to the left, you can see the road we travel as we descend through the pass.
and took advantage of a coffee at a popcorn food truck - the guy must have been making a mint.
We had a moment when the elk decided to run out in front of the car. Neither we, nor the elk, were harmed, but it was close.
Just after the pass we crossed back into Montana. My shirt (a gift from a neighbor) says "Can't. Going to Montana. Bye."
We carry on to billings where we exchange the car for the next part of our drive. In Billings we spend the night in the luxurious Hampton Suites (a Hilton property). Finally, a room big enough for us and all our stuff.
I will say that we had a wonderful Thai meal near our hotel in a strip mall. Probably the best food in several weeks. That's summer rolls and tofu pho.
9/17 - We traversed 3 states today - Montana, Wyoming, and South Dakota.
Our first stop was the Little Big Horn Battlefield.
I didn't expect it to make such an impression, but it was quite poignant to see the grave markers in the fields showing where the bodies lay.
Custer has been re-buried in West Point.
Lunch was in Broadus
where we ended up in a dive bar called Big Sky for lunch. This place got the best reviews in town, but I never thought I could get nauseous after having a salad.
After a few more hours of driving through the plains, we got to the Black Hills and gold country. Finally we got to Custer, South Dakota.
and got to our AirBnB which is, quite literally, the smallest house ever
Somehow, everything is crammed into a place that is probably less than 500 sq feet.
The toilet is hidden behind a door that has to be open in order to enter the shower room.
But the views are nice (those are deer in the yard).
We are here for 4 nights. Stay tuned to see if Chris and I don't kill each other before the next entry.....
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