This route provides us with everything Montana has to offer, gorgeous ranchland, beautiful cattle and grasses.
I'm hoping that I will soon be able to post some wildlife pictures. We have seen some antelope, sandhill cranes and one small deer walking on the edge of the Missouri River in downtown Great Falls, but I was slow on the shutter. I guess it's a good thing I wasn't a cowboy.
I found my eye drawn to the rocky outcroppings as we climbed in elevation.
As we enter the Little Belt Mountains, we watch the ranch land fade into the distance. We climb the windy road reaching Show Down Ski Area at 7500 feet. A temperature drop from 90 degrees yesterday to a breezy 45 degrees makes the light drizzle resemble snow, causing a hasty retreat to the back of the Hawk for long pants. Fisher lifts her nose with ears back and takes in the cold air, reacting like a lung patient placed on oxygen. Her pleasure is hugely apparent! Getting her back into the Hawk requires opening the precious Begging Strips being saved for a dreaded Fisher "escape".
Those of you who know me well, also know that I love all things with age to them. This is not a recent interest brought on by by own increasing age, but rather one that I inherited from my antique obsessed folks. It's not a bad liking, but does cause for a somewhat cluttered house! Montana, in comparison to VT, or to the Eastern US is a relatively new state. I'm not sure where they rank, but I do remember enough history to recall the wagon trains heading West with its many promises. As Bucky and I rolled along, I was continually drawn to photographing the weathered structures I see. Each seems to have a story to tell, but no voice with which to do so. No doubt the folks living within the towns where these buildings stand could speak volumes about them. Maybe Bucky and I need to slow down and spend some time with the folks of Broadview, Checkboard or Twodot Montana.
