The Almost Intrepid Adventures of LibraryAnn: Traveler's Rest

King pin

Traveler's Rest is the name of the last camp Lewis and Clark made before crossing the Bitterroots from east to west searching for the Pacific Ocean. Traveler's rest is what we took for two days after crossing the Bitterroots to head back east. We are at the Big Timber KOA, having run the gauntlet and being ready to shift gears into vacation mode.

The KOA is about 10 miles out of the actual town of Big Timber. They both lie in a rolling plain full of horse farms with rugged mountains on each horizon. The KOA is about 6 miles from the I-90 exit but the campground is still right on the highway. Just across the highway is a very active rail line. It's been really fun hearing the trains day and night. I've seen trains as long as 135 cars requiring 4 big diesel engines. We are either increasingly deaf or crazy tired (or both) because the noise has actually been more pleasure than problem and we've

Big Timber Grand Hotel

had no trouble sleeping.

What we did have trouble with was unhooking the trailer. Day one here has been a day of rest and learning the equipment. We've sorted all the accouterments we brought from the Scamp and all those left by the previous Escape owners. We've tried to optimize which to use and how to pack. We've watched videos and re-read the owner's manual. But the big job was mastering the 5th wheel hitch. We watched the videos, consulted the checklists and could not get the latch to open enough to release the kingpin. Kudos again to our friends at Americamp, we sent them a picture and they coached us over the phone until the latch opened and we were free.

McLeod Street, Big Timber

To celebrate, Ruthie treated me to

carry out from the Big Timber Grand Hotel. I had a handsome Montana steak on top of a garden salad, made even better by the day's accomplishments. A restful end to our day of rest.

Day two has been spent at Yellowstone National Park. When I was about 8, my grandfather drove my sister and I from Indiana to the Seattle World's Fair via Yellowstone and home through the Canadian Rockies. We won't mention how long ago that was but there was a mixture of the familiar and the totally new as we drove through the park today. Yellowstone is the first of the American national parks, established in 1872, and some claim the first national park in the world. It is home to some amazing geothermal features and remarkable contrasts--among them, cool mountain rivers and boiling springs. The park is huge and we only had time to visit a few places. Rather than attempt to describe them, I'll leave you with some pictures below. Remember, they can be enlarged by clicking on them. Tomorrow we head to Billings for an oil change and will plan our final leg home tomorrow night from Rapid City, SD.