Gates of the Mountains

After spending the night in Butte, we drove up to Helena for lunch before heading to Gates of the Mountains for a boat tour on the Missouri River. Driving in the first thing you see is a lake.

Lake as you arrive at Gates of the Mountains

The boat had both covered and open deck seating. Betty managed to get a prime seat in the front row of the covered area right next to the captain and tour guide. I actually stood on the deck in back so I could move from side to side to take photos. Even if you were seated, the captain was very good about turning the boat back and forth so people on both the starboard and port side of the boat got to see everything.

Betty coming back onto the open deck to tell me something

Entrance sign for Gates of the Mountains Recreational Area

The captain was very skilled at maneuvering the boat so close to the cliff sides that you could almost reach out and touch them. He was also multitasking by simultaneously giving us very interesting commentary.

A view of the Gates of the Mountains

The captain pointed out various rock formations, described various plant life, talked about the animals, and gave the colorful history of the place. He spoke almost non-stop on the trip downstream, but did go silent for a short period on the return trip to just let us take in the view.

Monster in the cliffs

Pictographs

It looks like a  moss, but is actually a member of the rose family
Kelseya uniflora 

The captain also pointed out all the birds. For my birder friends, here are a few I was able to photograph. I also saw several blue belted kingfishers, but since they rarely sit still, I was not able to photograph one.

Young bald eagle, probably 3 years old
Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Bald eagles nest

Osprey nest

Osprey
Pandion haliaetus

Great blue heron
Ardea herodias

Wandering through a ghost town

A short distance outside of Dillon is Bannack State Park. The park is an abandoned mining town that was established in 1862 when gold was discovered in Grasshopper Creek.

Grasshopper Creek

While most people had left by the 1950s, the last resident didn't leave until the 1970s. One can wander through many of the 60+ buildings, while others you can just look through the windows.

Bannack, an abandon mining town

Betty wandering through the bachelor housing

carriage house

Hotel in Bannack

Oven in Bannack hotel

Masonic temple upstairs & one-room school house downstairs

Joe in Barrack jail

For my birder friends, here is a magpie I spotted on one of the building rooftops.

Magpie on the roof of an abandoned building in Barrack State Park

There was a very large sign on the door to the visitor's center saying rattlesnakes have been seen around the buildings. Betty didn't notice the sign, and I probably shouldn't have mentioned it to her.

Dillon, MT

Our first stop in Montana was in Dillon, a small college town south of Butte. After a nice lunch at Sparky's Garage Bar & Grill, we picked up some brochures at the visitor's center before heading down the street to the Beaverhead County Museum.

Old truck outside Sparky's Garage Bar & Grill

The museum was only $2 for seniors, and well worth the price. It looks small from the outside, but it packs a lot into a small amount of space.

Beaverhead County Museum in Dillon, MT

Old phone switchboard

Betty in the saddle

A Cadillac vacuum sweeper

There is a story behind Betty's time in the saddle, but you will have to ask her about it.

The exhibits are not limited to the ones inside the museum. Also on the grounds are several other buildings to explore including a one-room log cabin, and one-room school house, and a train depot. The latter houses some exhibits of its own, and the remainder of the depot has been converted to a small theatre.

Betty outside one-room log cabin

Inside the one-room school house

The old train depot that is now a museum and theatre

Driving in Montana

We have now left Montana and entered "big sky country". When driving in most states, I often find myself going a bit over the speed limit as the roads are built to handle faster driving. In Montana, I sometimes find the posted speed limit higher than I feel comfortable driving. Maybe it is just me getting more cautious in my old age.

One the reason to drive slow is there is a lot of open range in Montana, and cows are free to cross the road. Driving 70 or 80 mph when you might need to stop quickly to avoid hitting a cow is a risk. Fortunately, many of the roads are long and flat, so you will see the cows in plenty of time to stop. Also, the cows seem well trained to look both ways before crossing the road.

Cattle on the road in Montana

More cattle on the road in Montana

Betty took these pictures and at least a dozen more. I kept saying they are only cows. I want a picture of bison, bears, or wolves crossing the road. We have bison pictures, just not crossing the road. We have yet to see a bear. We saw what I think was a wolf run across the road, but Betty's camera was not turned on, and it happened so fast we didn't get a photo.

The other thing about Montana, cell service is mostly confined to the cities and small towns. Much of the driving we did was across miles and miles of beautiful rolling hills with the Rocky Mountains in the distance. It was a cell phone desert. Occasionally you would see a sign indicating there was a "cell phone turn out" where theoretically one could find a signal. We never stopped at one of these. Of course if my Prius broke down, I might have had to hike to one of these spots to try to reach AAA as we could go for long stretches without seeing a soul on the road.

Craters of the Moon

After seeing some photos taken at Craters of the Moon, I have wanted to visit this National Monument. I finally made it.

Joe at Craters of the Moon

Betty at Craters of the Moon

It is hard to capture how extensive the lava fields are at Craters, but this is my attempt.

Lava fields extend for miles at Craters of the Moon

Most places in the park require you stay on a paved path and not climb on the lava. One of the exceptions is Inferno Cone, a cinder cone where you are allowed to climb to the top.

Betty part way up Inferno Cone

The other place you are allowed to go off-trail is when going through the lava tubes. We hiked out to one of them called Indian Tunnel. Once we got there Betty decided to sit this one out as it was a bit rough. Even I didn't go all the way through the lava tube. At one point you had to scramble over a hugh pile of boulders that was created when the roof of the tube collapsed, so I decided to turn back. Betty took this photo of me getting ready to enter the lava tube.

Joe entering Indian Tunnel lava tube

Betty did climb to the top of one of the spatter cones.

Betty on the trail to the top of a spatter cone

Spatter Cone trail from a distance

Not all of the lava is barren. In some places there is quite a bit of vegetation that has taken root. Here is an example of a field of dwarf buckwheat.

Field of dwarf buckwheat
Eriogonum ovalifolium

Closeup of dwarf buckwheat
Eriogonum ovalifolium

On our way out of Craters of the Moon we came across this roadside sculpture. The artist used the laser made measurements of a laval tube to create this.

Roadside artwork based on a real lava tube

It was getting late by the time we were ready to leave Craters of the Moon, and the only nearby town is Arco. There are less than 1000 people living in Arco. The town's claim to fame is being the first town in the world to get its electricity from a nuclear power plant starting back in 1955. We spent the night there before heading to our next stop, Dillon, Montana.

Twin Falls Idaho

It was late in the day by the time we arrived at Twin Falls. You enter the city by crossing the Perrine Bridge over the Snake River Canyon.

Perrine Bridge leading to Twin Falls, Idaho

View of the Snake River from the Perrine Bridge

The next morning after breakfast we gassed up the Prius and bought a couple sandwiches at the Twin Falls Sandwich Company before heading out to see the Shoshone Falls. After driving down a very narrow, cliffside road, I realized my Garmin GPS had messed up and taken us to the wrong side of the river. The clue was when we hit a dead end with a sign saying you need to go to the other side. I guess we weren't the first ones to get lost.

We were a little worried that we wouldn't see much since the descriptions of the falls talk about the reduced water flow toward the end of the summer. If this was reduced water flow, then I would like to see the falls when the snow melt is happening.

Shoshone Falls

You don't have anything for perspective in the above photo. The falls is 212 feet high, which is 45 feet higher than Niagara Falls. The falls is part of a hydroelectric dam. Below I have pulled back so you can see one of the buildings involved in the power station. This helps give you a sense of how large the falls is.

Shoshone Falls

Here is a photo looking downstream from the waterfalls.

The Snake River just below the Shoshone Falls

After viewing the falls, we started our drive towards Craters of the Moon National Monument. After spending time getting lost trying to find the waterfalls, we didn't make it to Craters to have our picnic lunch. Instead we stopped in a small town called Richfield (population about 500) where we found a couple of picnic tables under an apple tree. This time we checked out the picnic bench to make sure it was stable. We also decided to sit on opposite sides just to be sure. Click on the second picture below to get a larger view and note all the apples on the ground behind me.

Water tower in Richfield, ID

Joe enjoying lunch under the apple tree in Richfield, ID

After we finished our lunch, Betty stopped in the local store to ask if she could use the bathroom. They directed her to one, but it was in their personal residence -- one of the nice things about small towns.

Golden Spike National Historic Site

Our last stop in Utah was the Golden Spike National Historic Site located at Promontory Summit. This is the site where the golden spike ceremony took place connecting the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific railroads to complete the transcontinental railroad.

Marker at the site where the Central Pacific & Union Pacific transcontinental railroads were linked

The golden spike was removed immediately after the ceremony and replaced with a standard iron spike. The golden spike is now located back at Stanford's museum. Leland Stanford was head of Central Pacific Railroad at the time, and his brother-in-law, David Hewes, donated it to Stanford University in 1898.

We arrived just in time to see the two steam engine replicas put on their last show for the day before they are parked for the night in the Engine House.

Jupiter wood burning steam engine

Betty & Joe next to the Union Pacific 119 coat burning steam engine