Battle of the Little Big Horn--Hardin, Montana

After a day of traveling through Montana, we arrived at Hardin a few miles from the historic site of this famous battle. That night we were treated to an electrical storm of in the distance. It was very entertaining until we found out it was headed our way when the local TV station interrupted its normal broadcast to warn of a severe thunderstorm headed toward Hardin with 60 mph + winds and quarter size hail. We pulled in the slides and waited. Fortunately, no hail just wind, rain and a spectacular lightening display by mother nature. When we figure out how to put video clips on this site we will show you a sample of the lightening.












The next day was beautiful and we visited the site of "Custer's Last Stand". Being able to walk and travel (by car) the battle ground, along with roadside displays with illustrations you really got a feel for the battle and how it played out. The bottom line--Custer was a fool, or didn't know better--he had 200 + men against an estimated 8,000 Indians; and he attacked them.












On the day we visited the site, with puffy clouds and a brilliant blue sky you know why Montana is known as "Big Sky Country".

We're on the move!!

Since last we posted we have been on the move. Our first stop was in Pendleton, Oregon.


We visited the Pendleton Mills and the Pendleton Underground. The Blankets and clothing were beautiful but the clothes were too expensive and we already have a blanket for the coach. We were unable to tour the mill as they don't have tours on Saturdays.









The underground was created by the Chinese who were not allowed to be out after sundown. In order to travel from place to place they dug tunnels. Since some things were already in the basements of buildings their work was eased a bit. Over the years the underground housed Chinese laundries, opium dens, card rooms, saloons, speak easys and even an ice cream parlor. In addition there was a meat market that used the basement to make ice to keep their meats fresh. For those that wanted some excitement, the town boasted no less than 34 saloons and 18 bordellos. The bordellos were not closed until 1953 when a new Presbyterian minister came to town and for six months wrote down all the names of visitors he saw entering the houses of ill repute. He then went to the City Council and threatened to publish all the names unless they closed the houses down. They did so that night at a special meeting--obviously most of the council were probably on the list.




We continued along the Lewis and Clark Trail to Orofino, Idaho on the Nez Perce Reservation. We had a beautiful camp site on the Clearwater River. Lewis and Clark were looking for the Columbia River to make their way to the Pacific. They asked the Indians if this was the big water of the Columbia, and the Indians said "no". In actuality the Clearwater River empties into the Snake River which then empties into the Columbia.













We visited a few stops marked as Historical Sites. From this site (where the Nez Perce helped the Lewis and Clark expedition build canoes for their voyage) you can see the Dworshak Dam. It is the highest straight-axis, concrete gravity dam in North America. The lake the dam creates is 54 miles long.








After a couple of day in Orofino, we headed out down highway 12 towards Missoula, Montana (this also the Lewis and Clark trail). Almost all the way we were accompanied by the Clearwater River alongside the road. One spectacular sight after another of awesome rapids. Just as surfing is popular on the West Coast, riding the rapids is the sport of most young people here. Highway 12 climbs through the Bitteroot Mountains before dropping you at Missoula's doorstep. When you consider that Lewis and Clark started their trip on August 31, 1803 from Pittsburgh, you have to have a tremendous amount of admiration for their courage in embarking on such a journey.

It ain't exactly camping!