We had a later breakfast knowing that time was on our side. We ate after 9am and then did a final pack of absolutely everything before checking out bang on 11am. Our first job was to mail the Mifi device back to the company which meant we needed to know where we could find a FedEx office.
We asked at reception and got told that there was a FedEx drop point in the town. Just follow the road and you'll see the post box. The lady also taped the box for us so it was ready to go. We thanked her and then packed the car and set off.
We then drove in to town and around the town looking for this drop box but couldn't find it. We could find post office ones and UPS but not FedEx. Ann went into the visitor centre and asked. The bloke was fairly vague and then he made Ann sign the visitor book. We looked were he suggested but to no avail. I had Googled the night before and saw something about a shop in the town that had something to do with FedEx but I couldn't remember the name of it. We eventually did a sweep around and then spotted the shop. It had a small FedEx sign in the window. I went in and dropped of the box. Sorted.
We stopped for gas as it would be cheaper to do it here and then hit the road. We travelled nearly all the way to the airport but stopped just short. Picked up a Subway and then looked for somewhere nice to eat it. I saw a lake nearby so we went to find it. We found it but the down side was we couldn't get near it to sit and eat. Eventually we parked up on the side of the road and ate it there.
We finished the last few miles to the airport, stopping for fuel to top the tank up, before heading to the rental car return. When the lady asked us if everything was ok with the car we mentioned the crap stereo. She gave us $150 off the price.
We handed back the car and then caught the bus to the terminal. Checked in and went through security and then sat and waited. The plane was late in, so we were late leaving. Passed the time by watching the ground crew work out the window.
Eventually we boarded. Sat in the one above scum class section. Got a menu for the meal and metal cutlery. Flight passed by fairly quickly and we managed to pick up time, landing only about five minutes late. Breezed through passport control and collected our cases before having to walk what seemed like 8 miles to the bus station. Eventually got there and boarded the RailAir bus back to Reading. Traffic was great except in Reading itself. Eventually got to the station. Sat in Costa for half an hour before heading to the platform. It was busy with hipsters arriving for the Reading Festival.
Train arrived on time. Got on. It was fairly quiet. Before we knew it we were arriving at Totnes. No one checked our tickets over the entire journey from Reading. Got off, so did the rest of the train. Our cab was nowhere to been seen. We were just about to phone the company when it turned up. As we left the station we saw a lorry nearly plough into a car that just decided to pull out. Within twenty minutes we were pulling up in Ermington.
Nipped out to get some food. Had mashed potato for tea as we always do on our return.
Watched Everton progress in the Europa League.
Now very tired. Been awake for 32 hours. Ann has gone to bed.
States visited - 12
Total states visited - 48
Miles driven - 6214
Total miles driven over four trips - 18600
Thursday, 24 August 2017
Tuesday, 22 August 2017
Day Twenty Eight
Up at 8.15am despite not wanting to get out of bed. Still knackered from yesterday. Knocked up dad and the three of us went down to breakfast. It was quite busy. I cooked myself a chocolate chip waffle. Went and joined Ann and dad at a table. I found out later in the day that when they first sat down a bloke appeared and said he was sitting there despite there being nothing to indicate this.
At 9.15am, I met dad and Paul in the lobby and Paul drove us to Lincoln airport just down the road. We checked dad in and then said our goodbyes to him. It is an odd feeling to say goodbye to someone who wasn't there at the start of your holiday and isn't there at the end either. We had arrived quite early as the flight wasn't due to take off until 11.15am. Being the loving, caring sons we are, we left him at the airport and drove back to the hotel.
Check out was at 11am and agreed with Paul we would check out then and say our goodbyes as well. We met in the car park and had a natter. I discovered I could start the car using the keyfob from outside the car. By the time we thought about going it was time for dad's plane to take off, so we decided to wait in the hotel car park and see if we could see it.
It eventually took off at about 11.45am. We saw it. Here it is.
We hoped he was on board and hadn't been distracted in the airport telling someone about the eclipse.
We said goodbye and set off west on I-80, stopping for some fuel and supplies before we got properly underway.
Then we drove. And kept driving. After 148 miles we made it back to the point we had rejoined the road yesterday after the eclipse. I asked Ann if we could turn off and go back to visit the place we watched it from. She said no. So we kept driving. Eventually we got hungry having been moving for about 3 hours so we stopped.
Headed in to a little town called Cozad which was just off the interstate. Found a little café called The Daily Scoop. Unfortunately they weren't doing food on a Tuesday, but it looked nice so we stayed anyway. Had drinks and homemade biscuits.
Whilst sitting there Ann found a booklet about the town. We decided to have a wander around when we left the café. Saw some things.
Unfortunately the Pony Express Station was moved to here from somewhere else which was a little disappointing as we thought it was stood in its original position. We then saw a marker for the 100th meridian, which the railroad company wanted to reach and celebrated doing so.
We then got going again and drove the last 115 miles to Ogallala. We changed time zones back to mountain time. When we arrived the sat nav took us to a place but we couldn't see the Holiday Inn Express we were staying in. I looked on Google Maps and found it on the other side of the freeway. We drove over and parked up. Got all the stuff from the car bagged up and went in. The woman said she had no record of our booking. You may think this was odd but it made some sense to us. I'll explain.
When Ann booked the hotel months ago, she booked the Holiday Inn Express in Ogallala. Then not long before we flew out, she had an email saying that the hotel was no longer part of Holiday Inn Express chain but as the booking was with the hotel and paid for we would be still be ok to stay there. We could of course cancel if we wanted. We didn't cancel. The only thing was they didn't say what the hotel was now called but we presumed it would still look a bit like a Holiday Inn.
To make things more complicated, unbeknown to us Holiday Inn Express have just built a brand new hotel in Ogallala. So the sat nav took us to the right hotel, we just didn't know it. Then the Holiday Inn which we thought just still had the signs on it was the new one.
We drove back to the old one which is now called The Lonesome Dove Lodge. Went in and checked we were booked in. We were. Hoorah.
Checked in and lugged everything in with us ready to sort out before driving to the airport tomorrow.
Couldn't find anywhere we wanted to eat so headed to Walmart. Ann got a sandwich and I got some milk to take back and use on the last of the cereal we have lugged around the USA.
Headed back and ate in our room. Now going to sleep and will pack everything up in the morning before setting off at 11am back to Denver.
States visited - 12
Tiredness rating - 1000
At 9.15am, I met dad and Paul in the lobby and Paul drove us to Lincoln airport just down the road. We checked dad in and then said our goodbyes to him. It is an odd feeling to say goodbye to someone who wasn't there at the start of your holiday and isn't there at the end either. We had arrived quite early as the flight wasn't due to take off until 11.15am. Being the loving, caring sons we are, we left him at the airport and drove back to the hotel.
Check out was at 11am and agreed with Paul we would check out then and say our goodbyes as well. We met in the car park and had a natter. I discovered I could start the car using the keyfob from outside the car. By the time we thought about going it was time for dad's plane to take off, so we decided to wait in the hotel car park and see if we could see it.
It eventually took off at about 11.45am. We saw it. Here it is.
 |
| Leaving on a jet plane |
We said goodbye and set off west on I-80, stopping for some fuel and supplies before we got properly underway.
Then we drove. And kept driving. After 148 miles we made it back to the point we had rejoined the road yesterday after the eclipse. I asked Ann if we could turn off and go back to visit the place we watched it from. She said no. So we kept driving. Eventually we got hungry having been moving for about 3 hours so we stopped.
Headed in to a little town called Cozad which was just off the interstate. Found a little café called The Daily Scoop. Unfortunately they weren't doing food on a Tuesday, but it looked nice so we stayed anyway. Had drinks and homemade biscuits.
 |
| Scoop shack |
 |
| Murial |
 |
| Pony Express Station |
 |
| 100 degrees west |
When Ann booked the hotel months ago, she booked the Holiday Inn Express in Ogallala. Then not long before we flew out, she had an email saying that the hotel was no longer part of Holiday Inn Express chain but as the booking was with the hotel and paid for we would be still be ok to stay there. We could of course cancel if we wanted. We didn't cancel. The only thing was they didn't say what the hotel was now called but we presumed it would still look a bit like a Holiday Inn.
To make things more complicated, unbeknown to us Holiday Inn Express have just built a brand new hotel in Ogallala. So the sat nav took us to the right hotel, we just didn't know it. Then the Holiday Inn which we thought just still had the signs on it was the new one.
We drove back to the old one which is now called The Lonesome Dove Lodge. Went in and checked we were booked in. We were. Hoorah.
Checked in and lugged everything in with us ready to sort out before driving to the airport tomorrow.
Couldn't find anywhere we wanted to eat so headed to Walmart. Ann got a sandwich and I got some milk to take back and use on the last of the cereal we have lugged around the USA.
Headed back and ate in our room. Now going to sleep and will pack everything up in the morning before setting off at 11am back to Denver.
States visited - 12
Tiredness rating - 1000
Monday, 21 August 2017
Day Twenty Seven
Up early. Very early. 5.20am to be precise. Woke up to thunder storms out the window. Initial plan was to be ready by 6am, but we had notification whilst getting ready that it had been revised to 6.15pm. Got ready, went downstairs, got in car. Lincoln itself was liable to be in cloud so we needed to drive west. Not as far as we thought last night, but we still needed to get away from the mass of cloud which would be over eastern Nebraska.
Our first target was Grand Island, roughly ninety miles west along I-80. We drove and kept going, only stopping briefly at a rest stop so Paul could triple check he had his camera. He did. We took both cars in case one broke down or something, so we could still get somewhere. Highlight of the first part of the trip was seeing camels looking out the back of a lorry.
We reached the travel plaza at Grand Island and grabbed some breakfast and used the facilities. More studies were done of the meteorological maps and a decision had to be made. Continue west on the Interstate or head a little north and hit Highway 2. We chose the latter and got on Highway 2. The good news about this was we got to go though the outskirts of Hazard. Anyone who knows their 90s soft rock trivia will know that is town that Richard Marx sang about in the hit(?) of the same name. Had it on the iPod ready and pressed play as we passed the town.
And here it is to save you looking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdmHHoI9beM
We stopped again at Custer's Last Stop in Ansley. Again we used the facilities and got some supplies and some final double checking happened. We then headed south on Highway 183 hoping to find a nice gravel track to head up and park up. We passed lots of people parked at the side of various roads. Eventually we headed up Cumro Road and pulled into Road 451.
It was a perfect spot. We could see other people down the road but we had our own piece of Nebraska to view this event. And the sky was perfect. Lovely blue sky with just a hint of whispy cirrus. Paul and Helen's trusty work on the various maps got us to the ultimate spot to witness it. We parked up and set ourselves up. Sun cream was needed as it was getting toasty, cameras were prepared and drinks were guzzled. And we waited.
I inflated our orange chairs and stuffed them back into the car so they didn't blow away. We kept the cars running so the air con would keep them cool enabling us to dart in and out when necessary. We also posed for a team photograph.
And then just as predicted the moon moved into the top right corner of the sun and it began. We looked at it. Took some photos. Gradually it got further over. An old woman pulled up in a truck and dad took it upon himself to go and chat with her. Then a man turned up in another truck. Neither of them seemed fussed about the eclipse. Eventually when dad let them, they left.
We could start to make moon shaped shadows on the floor using our fingers.
The moment grew gradually ever closer. The tension was palpable. Our view was fabulous.
And then we got ourselves set as we counted down the last couple of minutes. The temperature dropped, the light changed to an almost silver quality. The cries of here comes the shadow erupted and as I turned ungracefully in my orange chair I could see the darkness coming. The next two and a half minutes were just incredible. From the cows automatically leaving as if it was the end of the day, to the crickets starting to chirp, to the spectacular aurora and light that was on display. I tried to cram in as much as I could into the time. I took photos of it, filmed it, took photos of people watching it, took a photo of a donkey watching it and managed to watch it myself. Here is some of that stuff.
And then a sliver of light started to appear and I took one last shot. I am so glad I waited until the last possible second.
And then as the sliver got bigger the light came back almost instantly. The cows didn't. We stood around generally in astonishment for a while and gradually watched it disappear away. We gave it a good half hour before we packed up and headed south towards I-80.
We stopped at the Travel Plaza at Elm Creek for lunch. As we sat an old man in dirty clothes came and started talking to us. Ann let out an 'Oh, god!' as he did. I don't think she realised it had left her brain and made its way to her mouth. He spoke mostly about nothing. Then just as he was about to walk off, dad started a new line of chat thus encouraging him to sit down at the table with us. It was a little awkward as we were trying to eat, so weren't saying much and he had nothing to say. Eventually he left. Then just as we were about to leave a man saw my NASA t shirt and started chatting. He was not as strange as the first guy. He had driven up from Texas and managed to find a backyard to camp in on HomeAway as all the motels were charging massive prices. We were lucky we booked months ago as our two nights is less than the price of one night booked now.
We eventually got back into the car park. I tried to watch the second half of Man City v Everton, but poor signal and annoying websites prevented that. Eventually we left and drove the 164 miles back to Lincoln. Traffic was heavy but moved at a decent speed for most of the way. We did see one accident and one car perpendicular to the road which was odd.
Made it back and then relaxed for a while, catching up with the eclipse gossip from across the country.
Headed out for dinner at 7.30pm. Paul and Helen wanted to introduce dad to Applebee's, their favourite restaurant of choice. The service was a little bit better than IHOP the night before, but still not up to the usual USA standard. To be fair, everywhere is very busy due to the celestial event. As we left the restaurant we were greeted with another thunderstorm in the distance.
Tomorrow we head back past where we were today as we make the return trip to Denver. Just two days left. Very sad but what a great way to finish the trip.
States visited - 12
Eclipses seen - 1
Camel watch - high
Our first target was Grand Island, roughly ninety miles west along I-80. We drove and kept going, only stopping briefly at a rest stop so Paul could triple check he had his camera. He did. We took both cars in case one broke down or something, so we could still get somewhere. Highlight of the first part of the trip was seeing camels looking out the back of a lorry.
We reached the travel plaza at Grand Island and grabbed some breakfast and used the facilities. More studies were done of the meteorological maps and a decision had to be made. Continue west on the Interstate or head a little north and hit Highway 2. We chose the latter and got on Highway 2. The good news about this was we got to go though the outskirts of Hazard. Anyone who knows their 90s soft rock trivia will know that is town that Richard Marx sang about in the hit(?) of the same name. Had it on the iPod ready and pressed play as we passed the town.
And here it is to save you looking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdmHHoI9beM
We stopped again at Custer's Last Stop in Ansley. Again we used the facilities and got some supplies and some final double checking happened. We then headed south on Highway 183 hoping to find a nice gravel track to head up and park up. We passed lots of people parked at the side of various roads. Eventually we headed up Cumro Road and pulled into Road 451.
It was a perfect spot. We could see other people down the road but we had our own piece of Nebraska to view this event. And the sky was perfect. Lovely blue sky with just a hint of whispy cirrus. Paul and Helen's trusty work on the various maps got us to the ultimate spot to witness it. We parked up and set ourselves up. Sun cream was needed as it was getting toasty, cameras were prepared and drinks were guzzled. And we waited.
I inflated our orange chairs and stuffed them back into the car so they didn't blow away. We kept the cars running so the air con would keep them cool enabling us to dart in and out when necessary. We also posed for a team photograph.
 |
| Eclipse Stalkers |
We could start to make moon shaped shadows on the floor using our fingers.
 |
| Can you see moons the where the fingers cross? |
And then we got ourselves set as we counted down the last couple of minutes. The temperature dropped, the light changed to an almost silver quality. The cries of here comes the shadow erupted and as I turned ungracefully in my orange chair I could see the darkness coming. The next two and a half minutes were just incredible. From the cows automatically leaving as if it was the end of the day, to the crickets starting to chirp, to the spectacular aurora and light that was on display. I tried to cram in as much as I could into the time. I took photos of it, filmed it, took photos of people watching it, took a photo of a donkey watching it and managed to watch it myself. Here is some of that stuff.
 |
| Blurry onlookers |
 |
| Aurora and Mercury |
And then a sliver of light started to appear and I took one last shot. I am so glad I waited until the last possible second.
 |
| The money shot |
We stopped at the Travel Plaza at Elm Creek for lunch. As we sat an old man in dirty clothes came and started talking to us. Ann let out an 'Oh, god!' as he did. I don't think she realised it had left her brain and made its way to her mouth. He spoke mostly about nothing. Then just as he was about to walk off, dad started a new line of chat thus encouraging him to sit down at the table with us. It was a little awkward as we were trying to eat, so weren't saying much and he had nothing to say. Eventually he left. Then just as we were about to leave a man saw my NASA t shirt and started chatting. He was not as strange as the first guy. He had driven up from Texas and managed to find a backyard to camp in on HomeAway as all the motels were charging massive prices. We were lucky we booked months ago as our two nights is less than the price of one night booked now.
We eventually got back into the car park. I tried to watch the second half of Man City v Everton, but poor signal and annoying websites prevented that. Eventually we left and drove the 164 miles back to Lincoln. Traffic was heavy but moved at a decent speed for most of the way. We did see one accident and one car perpendicular to the road which was odd.
Made it back and then relaxed for a while, catching up with the eclipse gossip from across the country.
Headed out for dinner at 7.30pm. Paul and Helen wanted to introduce dad to Applebee's, their favourite restaurant of choice. The service was a little bit better than IHOP the night before, but still not up to the usual USA standard. To be fair, everywhere is very busy due to the celestial event. As we left the restaurant we were greeted with another thunderstorm in the distance.
Tomorrow we head back past where we were today as we make the return trip to Denver. Just two days left. Very sad but what a great way to finish the trip.
States visited - 12
Eclipses seen - 1
Camel watch - high
Sunday, 20 August 2017
Day Twenty Six
Was planning to have a swim at 6am before breakfast at 7.15am but didn't wake up until nearly 6.30am so didn't bother. Had breakfast though.
We were in the car and underway by 8.30am heading south on I-29. We stopped for gas on the way and then turned off the interstate at Sioux City, passing briefly into Iowa before going in to Nebraska and took Highway 77 southwards towards Lincoln. Passed through the town of Wahoo. Wahoo!
Arrived at the hotel in Lincoln just after 12pm and then sat and waited in the car park. Then another white SUV arrived with Paul and Helen in it. Said hello. We couldn't check in until 3pm so had time to fill. I practised taking photos of the sun ready for tomorrow.
We then drove to Subway for lunch. Followed that by going to the world's busiest Walmart in order to buy some inflatable chairs ready for sitting in tomorrow. Headed back to the hotel and although we were early they let us check in. We all did and dumped our stuff in our rooms. I tried out the inflatable chairs unsuccessfully.
We reconvened and headed out to here http://www.museumofamericanspeed.com/default.dlp
When we got there we thought it was very quiet. That's because it is shut on a Sunday. Dad decided to climb in the car outside the museum as a protest.
We sat in the car and decided what to do next. In the end we went to downtown Lincoln and stopped in here http://www.ivannacone.com/
Ate ice cream. It was nice. Had a quick look around downtown Lincoln. Saw the old station. There was a big train outside it.
We then headed back to the hotel and had a late afternoon swim. There were annoying people in there taking up the pool. Managed to get rid of some of them.
We met again at 7.15pm and headed out to IHOP for dinner. Took a while to get seated. Took even longer to get our order taken. Took even longer for the food to arrive. It did eventually and we ate it.
We then headed to https://championsfuncenter.com/ for a five way golf tournament. When we arrived the building lights were on but the course was in darkness and we thought the worst. However it was dark as no one was playing on it. We went in and clubbed up and they turned the lights on.
They kept making announcements about it was shutting in forty minutes, thirty minutes, etc. Had to rush a little bit to catch up some time before relaxing a little on the last two holes.
The battle for second place was heating up and Paul needed a good hole to help his cause.
He stuck it in the hole following the initial rim job leaving him only four behind dad going into the last. Dad then did this.
This opened the door slightly for Paul until this happened.
That meant he only made up one shot on the last.
Scores were:
Knightley RJ - 50
Knightley WR - 54
Knightley RP - 57
Rossington - 60
Roffe- 66
As we left we realised we were the only people left in the entire place. Oh well. The closing messages must have been aimed at us.
We headed back to the hotel and then had a quick team meeting regarding tomorrow. There is cloud about but still uncertainty about exactly where it will be at the crucial time. Plan is to be ready to leave the hotel at 6am. Best get to bed fairly sharpish.
States visited - 12
Total states visited - 48
We were in the car and underway by 8.30am heading south on I-29. We stopped for gas on the way and then turned off the interstate at Sioux City, passing briefly into Iowa before going in to Nebraska and took Highway 77 southwards towards Lincoln. Passed through the town of Wahoo. Wahoo!
Arrived at the hotel in Lincoln just after 12pm and then sat and waited in the car park. Then another white SUV arrived with Paul and Helen in it. Said hello. We couldn't check in until 3pm so had time to fill. I practised taking photos of the sun ready for tomorrow.
 |
| Almost in the middle! |
We reconvened and headed out to here http://www.museumofamericanspeed.com/default.dlp
When we got there we thought it was very quiet. That's because it is shut on a Sunday. Dad decided to climb in the car outside the museum as a protest.
 |
| We tried to leave him there |
Ate ice cream. It was nice. Had a quick look around downtown Lincoln. Saw the old station. There was a big train outside it.
 |
| Big unit |
 |
| Old station |
We met again at 7.15pm and headed out to IHOP for dinner. Took a while to get seated. Took even longer to get our order taken. Took even longer for the food to arrive. It did eventually and we ate it.
We then headed to https://championsfuncenter.com/ for a five way golf tournament. When we arrived the building lights were on but the course was in darkness and we thought the worst. However it was dark as no one was playing on it. We went in and clubbed up and they turned the lights on.
They kept making announcements about it was shutting in forty minutes, thirty minutes, etc. Had to rush a little bit to catch up some time before relaxing a little on the last two holes.
The battle for second place was heating up and Paul needed a good hole to help his cause.
He stuck it in the hole following the initial rim job leaving him only four behind dad going into the last. Dad then did this.
This opened the door slightly for Paul until this happened.
That meant he only made up one shot on the last.
Scores were:
Knightley RJ - 50
Knightley WR - 54
Knightley RP - 57
Rossington - 60
Roffe- 66
As we left we realised we were the only people left in the entire place. Oh well. The closing messages must have been aimed at us.
We headed back to the hotel and then had a quick team meeting regarding tomorrow. There is cloud about but still uncertainty about exactly where it will be at the crucial time. Plan is to be ready to leave the hotel at 6am. Best get to bed fairly sharpish.
States visited - 12
Total states visited - 48
Saturday, 19 August 2017
Day Twenty Five
Today was a day that had two main purposes. One was to get us closer to Lincoln in Nebraska, the other we'll get to in a minute.
We decided on a later breakfast as we had no activities planned for the day and our journey wasn't quite as long as yesterday. The only down side to a later breakfast is that everyone else goes then as well. We ended up sitting on the settee in the lobby as all the tables were full.
We set off just after 11am and within five minutes we had achieved our second objective as we crossed into Minnesota which meant we have now been in every contiguous state in the USA. Only Hawaii and Alaska are left.
We drove for a while in Minnesota before crossing back over the border into North Dakota and joining I-29 south.
We kept driving, crossing back into South Dakota and eventually stopped in Watertown for lunch. We visited a https://www.firehousesubs.com/ for lunch.
We got back on I-29 and cracked on south eventually reaching Sioux Falls just after 3.30pm.
We checked in and hung around for a while before heading out later on.
We went to a Barnes and Noble bookshop as Ann had run out of things to read. Books were bought. We then nipped into Walgreens before we took dad to his first drive in restaurant, Sonic. Food was great although his meal was apparently 7000kcal or something like that. Ann said she wanted to try their frozen custard for dessert until she found out it was about 2000kcal for one serving.
We headed back for a earlier night as we want to get up and moving in the morning in case the traffic is heavy. It's all the TV channels have been saying, the traffic will be really bad due to people traveling to see the eclipse on Monday.
States visited - 10
Total states visited - 48
We decided on a later breakfast as we had no activities planned for the day and our journey wasn't quite as long as yesterday. The only down side to a later breakfast is that everyone else goes then as well. We ended up sitting on the settee in the lobby as all the tables were full.
We set off just after 11am and within five minutes we had achieved our second objective as we crossed into Minnesota which meant we have now been in every contiguous state in the USA. Only Hawaii and Alaska are left.
We drove for a while in Minnesota before crossing back over the border into North Dakota and joining I-29 south.
We kept driving, crossing back into South Dakota and eventually stopped in Watertown for lunch. We visited a https://www.firehousesubs.com/ for lunch.
We got back on I-29 and cracked on south eventually reaching Sioux Falls just after 3.30pm.
We checked in and hung around for a while before heading out later on.
We went to a Barnes and Noble bookshop as Ann had run out of things to read. Books were bought. We then nipped into Walgreens before we took dad to his first drive in restaurant, Sonic. Food was great although his meal was apparently 7000kcal or something like that. Ann said she wanted to try their frozen custard for dessert until she found out it was about 2000kcal for one serving.
We headed back for a earlier night as we want to get up and moving in the morning in case the traffic is heavy. It's all the TV channels have been saying, the traffic will be really bad due to people traveling to see the eclipse on Monday.
States visited - 10
Total states visited - 48
Friday, 18 August 2017
Day Twenty Four
Utter terrible news to start. The swimming pool didn't open until 8am so no chance for a go on the waterslide.
We had breakfast at 7.30am and were ready to leave by 8.50am. Our first stop was just across the interstate from where we were staying - http://dickinsonmuseumcenter.com/
Although there are some different things there we were only really interested in seeing the dinosaurs. There were lots of rocks and crystals at the start before we got to the dinosaurs. Most of the exhibits were just casts of bones as opposed to real ones.
There was one real thing we did see, although it is still being prepared to be displayed, which was a real triceratops skull discovered in Montana.
We gave ourselves an hour to look around and it was plenty of time. We were back in the car with a magnet by 10am. Then we hit the road, I-94 to be exact and headed east across North Dakota. We drove for three hours stopping only briefly to use a rest stop.
We ended up in Subway in Jamestown for lunch. We then fuelled up and then got back on I-94 completing another 90 miles east to Fargo. We also lost an hour due to crossing time zones back into central time. During the afternoon we also found out that Bruce Forsyth had died. Good game, good game.
When we got to Fargo we went straight to http://www.fargoairmuseum.org/ as it shut at 5pm and due to the hour loss it was now 4pm.
Luckily an hour was plenty of time to look around the exhibits. There were planes and a helicopter.
The museum shop was disappointing as there were no magnets. Tragedy. We left and headed to the hotel and checked in before heading out to the Fargo Visitor Centre. There wasn't much there but Ann wanted to see the wood chipper they had.
It was the one from the film 'Fargo'. Hence the interest. The good news was there was a magnet with the chipper on it.
We left the centre and nipped over to IHOP to give dad his first taste of pancake heaven. I think he is a convert.
Our final activity for the day was the third round of the triway golf tournament. We played here http://www.thunderroadfargo.com/
First task was to choose which of the two courses to play. We based it on not at lot as both seemed quite busy. Luckily we didn't have to wait at any hole so played non stop. Ann made a very bright start to the round.
Dad didn't quite have the magic from the previous two rounds.
And shots like this on the back nine didn't help his cause.
The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 49
Knightley WR - 58
Roffe - 65
We then headed back to the hotel and settled in for the night.
States visited - 9
We had breakfast at 7.30am and were ready to leave by 8.50am. Our first stop was just across the interstate from where we were staying - http://dickinsonmuseumcenter.com/
Although there are some different things there we were only really interested in seeing the dinosaurs. There were lots of rocks and crystals at the start before we got to the dinosaurs. Most of the exhibits were just casts of bones as opposed to real ones.
 |
| Dinosaur |
 |
| Another dinosaur |
 |
| Real dino |
We ended up in Subway in Jamestown for lunch. We then fuelled up and then got back on I-94 completing another 90 miles east to Fargo. We also lost an hour due to crossing time zones back into central time. During the afternoon we also found out that Bruce Forsyth had died. Good game, good game.
When we got to Fargo we went straight to http://www.fargoairmuseum.org/ as it shut at 5pm and due to the hour loss it was now 4pm.
Luckily an hour was plenty of time to look around the exhibits. There were planes and a helicopter.
 |
| Huey |
 |
| Big Drone |
 |
| Blue Plane |
 |
| He doesn't look chipper |
We left the centre and nipped over to IHOP to give dad his first taste of pancake heaven. I think he is a convert.
Our final activity for the day was the third round of the triway golf tournament. We played here http://www.thunderroadfargo.com/
First task was to choose which of the two courses to play. We based it on not at lot as both seemed quite busy. Luckily we didn't have to wait at any hole so played non stop. Ann made a very bright start to the round.
Dad didn't quite have the magic from the previous two rounds.
And shots like this on the back nine didn't help his cause.
The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 49
Knightley WR - 58
Roffe - 65
We then headed back to the hotel and settled in for the night.
States visited - 9
Thursday, 17 August 2017
Day Twenty Three
Breakfast at 8.30am and then a leisurely morning until we left at just before 11am.
We set off, stopping for fuel in the US bike capital, Sturgis, before heading northwards. Roads were pretty empty apart from one interesting set of roadwork where we sat still for what seemed like half an hour before we eventually got to move.
I pulled over at 12.55pm in order to make Ann drive. The only reason for this was Everton were kicking off at 1pm Mountain Time. Had problems with 4G so only got to listen as the picture kept freezing but eventually got it to work.
We crossed into North Dakota for the first time ever shortly before stopping for lunch at Subway in Bowman. Managed to watch the final twenty minutes of the game whilst we sat inside.
With the game finished I could get back to driving and we headed north to I-94 before then following it east to Dickinson.
Checked in and had some rest time before heading out for dinner at Country Kitchen. Food was good as was the old fashioned chocolate milkshake.
Back now for an early night before a busy day tomorrow hopefully starting with an early morning swim as there is a waterslide with the pool!
States visited - 9
Total states visited - 47
We set off, stopping for fuel in the US bike capital, Sturgis, before heading northwards. Roads were pretty empty apart from one interesting set of roadwork where we sat still for what seemed like half an hour before we eventually got to move.
I pulled over at 12.55pm in order to make Ann drive. The only reason for this was Everton were kicking off at 1pm Mountain Time. Had problems with 4G so only got to listen as the picture kept freezing but eventually got it to work.
We crossed into North Dakota for the first time ever shortly before stopping for lunch at Subway in Bowman. Managed to watch the final twenty minutes of the game whilst we sat inside.
With the game finished I could get back to driving and we headed north to I-94 before then following it east to Dickinson.
Checked in and had some rest time before heading out for dinner at Country Kitchen. Food was good as was the old fashioned chocolate milkshake.
Back now for an early night before a busy day tomorrow hopefully starting with an early morning swim as there is a waterslide with the pool!
States visited - 9
Total states visited - 47
Wednesday, 16 August 2017
Day Twenty Two
We met for breakfast at 9am. Dad complained that all the food had gone and that the scrambled egg tasted of mashed potato. There was a child with green hair. Not sure why.
We reconvened at about 10.10am to catch the trolley into town. There are two trolleys that do loops and you pay a dollar to get on board. We took it down to the historic main street in Deadwood.
Got off the trolley and walked the length of it. It doesn't look historic. It is full of casinos and bars and shops selling tat. Ann tried to convince me that if you looked beyond the tat and at the buildings you can see the old city. Don't buy it.
We wandered over to the Adams museum. It had stuff from olden times - 150 years ago. There was history of the town, etc. There was a stuffed calf with two heads. Also saw these bad boys.
We went and had a drink and then caught the trolley up to here http://www.brokenbootgoldmine.com/
We paid a smallish fee and put on a hard hat. Then we went into the former gold mine. In actual fact it didn't provide that much gold and was mined mainly for fool's gold. We followed the guide and tried not to smack our head. The guide lit a candle at one point and turned out the light to show us what it was really like to work by candle light. It was quite dark. It should have been darker except Ann had her phone on. The miners used to work in pairs with one candle. One held the chisel, one hit it with a hammer. It was so dark the hitter couldn't see the chisel head, so the holder put his thumb over the end so the nail reflected the candle light. He then counted to three and moved his thumb!
After the tour was over we caught the trolley back to the hotel and ate the remains of last night's pizza for lunch. Then we got the car and drove back towards the town but turned off the main drag to visit the Mount Moriah Cemetery. Deadwood is in a gorge and the cemetery is above the town on one of the sides. We looked around. It had graves. These are the most famous ones there.
You also get to overlook the town from one vantage point. We did.
We then drove back down to the town and killed some time. Then at 6pm it was time for the Deadwood gun show. After Cody's offering we were hoping for something better. It was. There was an actual script. The downside was that script wasn't very long. In fact, the actual show part lasted about two minutes.
The gunshots were very loud and Ann ended up deaf as a post.
When it was over we walked across to Harry's Spaghetti Western Restaurant for dinner. It was very good. You had to choose your pasta type, your sauce and the meat type. Ann had broccoli. Not really a meat type. Afterwards we got ice cream. It was some weird Neapolitan flavour. We watched 'How the West Was Won' whilst we ate.
We then headed back to the hotel, put some warmer clothes on and reconvened at 8pm for another mini golf tournament. The course is actually at our hotel so it was a short walk. It was a good course, very well maintained and led for some exciting golf. It meant Ann got her golfing mojo back.
It also meant dad did this.
Twice.
Despite his double double (Two holes in one in the two rounds we have played since he has been here) he also threw in some fairly average shots as well.
This meant he and Ann battled out for second place. It was a contest that went right down to the last hole. This final hole included the chance to get minus scores. The last shot had a lot riding on it.
The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 39
Roffe - 49
Knightley WR - 49
We then retired to the nineteenth hole for free drinks using a token we got on check in before retiring for the evening.
States visited - 8
We reconvened at about 10.10am to catch the trolley into town. There are two trolleys that do loops and you pay a dollar to get on board. We took it down to the historic main street in Deadwood.
Got off the trolley and walked the length of it. It doesn't look historic. It is full of casinos and bars and shops selling tat. Ann tried to convince me that if you looked beyond the tat and at the buildings you can see the old city. Don't buy it.
 |
| Tat City |
 |
| Mountain Lion |
 |
| Golden Eagle |
We paid a smallish fee and put on a hard hat. Then we went into the former gold mine. In actual fact it didn't provide that much gold and was mined mainly for fool's gold. We followed the guide and tried not to smack our head. The guide lit a candle at one point and turned out the light to show us what it was really like to work by candle light. It was quite dark. It should have been darker except Ann had her phone on. The miners used to work in pairs with one candle. One held the chisel, one hit it with a hammer. It was so dark the hitter couldn't see the chisel head, so the holder put his thumb over the end so the nail reflected the candle light. He then counted to three and moved his thumb!
 |
| Shaft |
 |
| Rocks |
 |
| Wild Bill Hickok |
 |
| Calamity Jane |
 |
| Downtown |
The gunshots were very loud and Ann ended up deaf as a post.
When it was over we walked across to Harry's Spaghetti Western Restaurant for dinner. It was very good. You had to choose your pasta type, your sauce and the meat type. Ann had broccoli. Not really a meat type. Afterwards we got ice cream. It was some weird Neapolitan flavour. We watched 'How the West Was Won' whilst we ate.
We then headed back to the hotel, put some warmer clothes on and reconvened at 8pm for another mini golf tournament. The course is actually at our hotel so it was a short walk. It was a good course, very well maintained and led for some exciting golf. It meant Ann got her golfing mojo back.
It also meant dad did this.
Twice.
Despite his double double (Two holes in one in the two rounds we have played since he has been here) he also threw in some fairly average shots as well.
This meant he and Ann battled out for second place. It was a contest that went right down to the last hole. This final hole included the chance to get minus scores. The last shot had a lot riding on it.
The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 39
Roffe - 49
Knightley WR - 49
We then retired to the nineteenth hole for free drinks using a token we got on check in before retiring for the evening.
States visited - 8
Tuesday, 15 August 2017
Day Twenty One
We were out the cabin, car packed and ready to leave it for the last time by 10am. It was a lovely quiet place and a lovely cabin, it will be missed, although I won't miss the shower. I think I have a crick in my neck after three days with a beam at head height next to the shower head.
We dropped the key back into the mailbox down the road where we found it and headed on east. Soon we reached Bighorn National Forest which is situated along the Bighorn Mountains. Ann pulled over and made me drive as the road got steep and bendy with good old sheer drops. We reached around 2800m above sea level. The view from the top was pretty good
We also saw some wildlife living up there too.
Eventually we had to wind our way down the other side and then kept on across to pick up I-90. After four hours of travel we stopped for lunch at The Breadboard in Buffalo. It was a bit like a subway although slightly more upmarket. Subs were good.
We drove another 133 miles after lunch heading east on I-90 before turning north at Moorcroft. Eventually we reached our first stop.
You may recognise Devils Tower from 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' or the film 'Paul'. If you are Bob, you don't recognise it at all.
We went to the shop and bought a magnet before completing the trail all the way around the tower. It seemed to last for ever although it was about a mile and a quarter. We saw people climbing on it. They looked quite small in comparison.
As we drove out we spotted a lot of these little fellas at the side of the road. They are Prairie Dogs and there is a special reserve for them by the tower to help their dwindling numbers.
Then as we drove out the area we suddenly spotted more wildlife. Something we had hoped to see earlier on but had failed to do so. We did better this time.
Ann had told us that we only had to drive another half an hour to the hotel. That turned out to be an hour and a half. As we drove we saw deer everywhere, even in the road which we managed to avoid. We crossed the border into South Dakota and eventually we reached Deadwood.
Checked in and got our stuff to our rooms before heading down for pizza in the hotel. It has a casino of sorts in it. Looks pretty naff. Deadwood seems to have a lot of them.
States Visited - 8
Deer watch - Extremely high
Prairie Dog watch - High
Bison seen - 2
We dropped the key back into the mailbox down the road where we found it and headed on east. Soon we reached Bighorn National Forest which is situated along the Bighorn Mountains. Ann pulled over and made me drive as the road got steep and bendy with good old sheer drops. We reached around 2800m above sea level. The view from the top was pretty good
 |
| Long way up |
 |
| Bambi?? |
We drove another 133 miles after lunch heading east on I-90 before turning north at Moorcroft. Eventually we reached our first stop.
 |
| Devils Tower |
We went to the shop and bought a magnet before completing the trail all the way around the tower. It seemed to last for ever although it was about a mile and a quarter. We saw people climbing on it. They looked quite small in comparison.
 |
| Can you see him? |
 |
| Best photo ever |
 |
| Good bison |
Checked in and got our stuff to our rooms before heading down for pizza in the hotel. It has a casino of sorts in it. Looks pretty naff. Deadwood seems to have a lot of them.
States Visited - 8
Deer watch - Extremely high
Prairie Dog watch - High
Bison seen - 2
Monday, 14 August 2017
Day Twenty
For the second day in a row we didn't rush up. We had a plan of what we were going to do and knew we didn't need to rush off too early. Left around 11.15am and headed south towards our destination for the day, Cody. Ann and I had been before but only as a stop over on our first trip. Today we were going to see what it had to offer. It was a mixed bag in the end.
Our first port of call was the Buffalo Bill Dam on the Shoshone River about six miles west of Cody. We parked up and wandered down. It doesn't cost anything to go there, presumably as you are just looking at a dam. We had a look about and took some photos of the drop.
We then went inside to the visitor centre. Watched a film about the construction. It was competed in 1910 despite the fact it took three different companies to build it due to the conditions. They could only build in winter due to the flooding during the spring and summer from all the snow melt. So the conditions for construction were fairly chilly. Not great for setting concrete. Most of the stuff they did do seemed to get destroyed each spring which again didn't really help. When it was finally completed it was the tallest dam in the world.
We bought a magnet as ever and then headed back to the town of Cody. We grabbed a quick sandwich before boarding the Cody trolley at 3pm. 'Give us an hour and we'll give you one hundred years' is the tag line. It took us around the town showing us some things. The guy talking did so very fast, to the point at times you didn't really hear what was said. He also looked very familiar.
The tour was ok but quite expensive. We learnt some stuff. Ann won a wooden nickel for knowing something.
After we got off the trolley we nipped down the road to the local mini golf course. This time it was a three way challenge. Ann was pleased that the course wasn't like the last one we had played on. It had some interesting holes such as the following two.
It was the younger Knightley who took an early lead despite Bob throwing in two of these.
It got slightly close during the back nine but then at the 16th it went wrong for both Roffe and Knightley Snr.
They both failed to hit the hole and took 6s. The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 47
Knightley WR - 54
Roffe A - 65
As we left the course and made our way back to the car we spotted an intruder on the course.
We now had a spare half hour until our next activity so drove to the other end of town to get fuel. Dad said he would pay but he came back out and said unfortunately his card was declined despite having used it earlier. Presume the bank now think his card had dubious activity on it. Either that on he was conning us into paying.
We then headed back to the centre of town to watch the Cody gun fighters show at 6pm. Although it is a free event, we had paid $2 each to reserve seats to get a good view. Ann and I had high hopes for the show having seen something similar in Dodge City. Bear in mind this show is run every night throughout the summer.
It started off with national anthem that we had to stand for. Most people think of Americans as loud patriots but the singing here left a lot to be desired.
What then unfolded is quite difficult to explain. With a large crowd all ready for a rip roaring show, we got what can only be described as a complete pile of crap. It was so bad it was funny, we spent most of the time sniggering at the ineptitude of the performance. There seemed to be no script of any sort and the 'actors' just seemed to make stuff up with no real idea of what was happening. It made the Ermington Players look like the RSC. I kept thinking Mick Knight was going to appear at any moment dressed as the sheriff. Here is a brief example of the calibre of the show.
I read last night that at a performance last summer one of the actors shot three audience members as his pistol was loaded with real ammunition 'by accident'. The show was then abandoned for the rest of the year and the guy ended up in court. Dad and I hoped for something similar to happen today as it would have made it much more interesting. Eventually when the people in it could think of nothing else to say, it finished and the three of us walked away quite quickly.
We headed down to our last activity for the day, the Cody Nite Rodeo. We got in early and got some food. I got popcorn without realising it was salted. Not good. We took our seats and waited for the action to begin. The commentator thanked god before it started for everything from the tarmac on the roads to the safety of the athletes. When finished dad turned to us and said 'What a load of bollocks'. It did eventually start. We saw all the normal things that we have seen at our two previous rodeos except here they were just done much worse.
I think the fact that this rodeo is run every day for three months just means that the competitors just aren't of the same calibre as those that appear at the big 2 or 3 day shows around the country. Most failed at the event they were in, falling off or failing to capture the animal. The audience was also small, which gives the impression it is merely a tourist attraction rather than a thing the locals flock to. It was still good to see it, but it got cold at the end and we all just couldn't wait to leave by the time it finished.
We then had to make the drive back to the cabin eventually getting in at about 11pm. Drinks were made and drunk before, again, I am left writing up the day when everyone else is in bed.
States visited - 7
Dams seen - 1
Bull watch - high
Our first port of call was the Buffalo Bill Dam on the Shoshone River about six miles west of Cody. We parked up and wandered down. It doesn't cost anything to go there, presumably as you are just looking at a dam. We had a look about and took some photos of the drop.
We then went inside to the visitor centre. Watched a film about the construction. It was competed in 1910 despite the fact it took three different companies to build it due to the conditions. They could only build in winter due to the flooding during the spring and summer from all the snow melt. So the conditions for construction were fairly chilly. Not great for setting concrete. Most of the stuff they did do seemed to get destroyed each spring which again didn't really help. When it was finally completed it was the tallest dam in the world.
We bought a magnet as ever and then headed back to the town of Cody. We grabbed a quick sandwich before boarding the Cody trolley at 3pm. 'Give us an hour and we'll give you one hundred years' is the tag line. It took us around the town showing us some things. The guy talking did so very fast, to the point at times you didn't really hear what was said. He also looked very familiar.
 |
| Dan Thomas |
After we got off the trolley we nipped down the road to the local mini golf course. This time it was a three way challenge. Ann was pleased that the course wasn't like the last one we had played on. It had some interesting holes such as the following two.
It was the younger Knightley who took an early lead despite Bob throwing in two of these.
It got slightly close during the back nine but then at the 16th it went wrong for both Roffe and Knightley Snr.
They both failed to hit the hole and took 6s. The final scores were:
Knightley RJ - 47
Knightley WR - 54
Roffe A - 65
As we left the course and made our way back to the car we spotted an intruder on the course.
We now had a spare half hour until our next activity so drove to the other end of town to get fuel. Dad said he would pay but he came back out and said unfortunately his card was declined despite having used it earlier. Presume the bank now think his card had dubious activity on it. Either that on he was conning us into paying.
We then headed back to the centre of town to watch the Cody gun fighters show at 6pm. Although it is a free event, we had paid $2 each to reserve seats to get a good view. Ann and I had high hopes for the show having seen something similar in Dodge City. Bear in mind this show is run every night throughout the summer.
It started off with national anthem that we had to stand for. Most people think of Americans as loud patriots but the singing here left a lot to be desired.
What then unfolded is quite difficult to explain. With a large crowd all ready for a rip roaring show, we got what can only be described as a complete pile of crap. It was so bad it was funny, we spent most of the time sniggering at the ineptitude of the performance. There seemed to be no script of any sort and the 'actors' just seemed to make stuff up with no real idea of what was happening. It made the Ermington Players look like the RSC. I kept thinking Mick Knight was going to appear at any moment dressed as the sheriff. Here is a brief example of the calibre of the show.
I read last night that at a performance last summer one of the actors shot three audience members as his pistol was loaded with real ammunition 'by accident'. The show was then abandoned for the rest of the year and the guy ended up in court. Dad and I hoped for something similar to happen today as it would have made it much more interesting. Eventually when the people in it could think of nothing else to say, it finished and the three of us walked away quite quickly.
We headed down to our last activity for the day, the Cody Nite Rodeo. We got in early and got some food. I got popcorn without realising it was salted. Not good. We took our seats and waited for the action to begin. The commentator thanked god before it started for everything from the tarmac on the roads to the safety of the athletes. When finished dad turned to us and said 'What a load of bollocks'. It did eventually start. We saw all the normal things that we have seen at our two previous rodeos except here they were just done much worse.
I think the fact that this rodeo is run every day for three months just means that the competitors just aren't of the same calibre as those that appear at the big 2 or 3 day shows around the country. Most failed at the event they were in, falling off or failing to capture the animal. The audience was also small, which gives the impression it is merely a tourist attraction rather than a thing the locals flock to. It was still good to see it, but it got cold at the end and we all just couldn't wait to leave by the time it finished.
We then had to make the drive back to the cabin eventually getting in at about 11pm. Drinks were made and drunk before, again, I am left writing up the day when everyone else is in bed.
States visited - 7
Dams seen - 1
Bull watch - high
Sunday, 13 August 2017
Day Nineteen
Had a lazy lie in today, although the wind did it's best to make the cabin creek a lot during the early morning. I can report there were no bear attacks during the night.
We ate a leisurely breakfast, FaceTimed people, before getting ready and eventually heading out at about 11.30am. We decided to spend the day at one place, unfortunately that one place was quite far away.
Drove non stop for 150 miles, first back up to Billings and then along south eastwards to a famous river, The Little Bighorn. Eventually arrived here https://www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm
Pulled up and paid our entrance fee before making a dash for the facilities after a long drive. We then made our way to the visitor centre just in time for a 25 minute video to start. Unfortunately every seat was taken, so we waited for the next one to start in half an hour's time. In the meantime we looked at the exhibits and around the shop. Bought a fridge magnet as ever before making sure we got a seat at the next video showing.
By now it was 3pm so we decided to have lunch. We had made a packed lunch on the premise there would be no where to eat, which turned out to be a good call. Sat in the car to eat with the air con as the temperature had started to rise. Whilst doing this we looked through the literature to try and plan our afternoon. There were various ways to tour the battlefield and eventually we decided on a plan. First we went to look at the memorials. There was one for the US Army losses and then a newer one dedicated to the fallen Native Americans. Both were located on the hill famous for the last stand of Custer. Also there were stones marking the places soldiers had fallen including where Custer himself had died.
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| Memorial |
 |
| Literally Custer's last stand....ing position |
 |
| Native American stones |
 |
| The tribes memorial sculpture |
 |
| The tribes memorial |
This was all very well in theory but unfortunately we had reckoned without the fabulous audio system in the Tahoe. First of all when we started the car the audio stayed blank for five minutes. Eventually it came on and we inserted the CD. Then nothing happened for a while. Eventually it started and after five minutes froze. There was a map included so we started driving. Eventually the guide came back on but the idea was you listened to bits whilst moving and then other bits when you got to places. We ended up listening to a lot at the halfway point to catch up which meant we started to get bored with. We then headed back along the 4 mile road as it carried on before it froze with about five minutes to go.
At that point we just left deciding we knew enough about the battle. Custer ballsed it up. That sums it up.
We headed back the long 150 miles stopping only briefly for some more milk. Ended up in heavy rain as we hit the last forty miles or so. Witnessed an incredible piece of driving as we were doing 70mph (That was the speed limit) down a normal two way highway in the pouring rain when a guy towing a large RV trailer decided to overtake at about 80mph. No wonder there are so many white crosses by the sides of the roads.
Arrived back at the ranch at about 7.45pm. Having driven the 300 miles, I was excused duties and got to sit down and relax. Ann and dad produced a wonderful fry up including bacon you could snap in half. We sat inside as it was a bit colder than last night. Had more ice cream before Ann found Harry Potter again. Dad decided to play his favourite candy based game.
I am the only one now up and have just heard a bear trying to get in the kitchen window which for some reason had been left open with the smell of cremated bacon wafting into the night air. Managed to fight bear off and shut the window.
States visited - 7
Dead deer seen - 2
Live deer seen - roughly 11
Saturday, 12 August 2017
Day Eighteen
Up early at 7am in order to be ready to watch Everton kick off at 8am. Worked like a charm and settled down to watch the first half whilst simultaneous packing the last few things.
Rooney scored just before half time and we were out the door pretty much on time at 9am. Ann drove the first stint whilst I tried to watch the second half in the car. Succeeded in seeing a few odd seconds but the signal was not great to get any real success.
We retraced our steps back towards Bozeman in order to pick up the I-90 eastwards. Made good headway as it wasn't too busy. Stopped once at a rest stop but otherwise kept racking up the miles. Eventually arrived at Billings Airport just after 12.30pm. Parked up and walked in to the terminal. Within two minutes of us getting there this happened.
We packed him into the car and headed a few miles back west to the town of Laurel. Had lunch at the Owl Junction Diner. The waitress got an impromptu lecture about the solar eclipse.
Nipped in to Walmart to pick up supplies for the next three days before fuelling up and heading south towards Wyoming. Travelled for about an hour and then arrived at our destination which was the Go Away Ranch.
Unloaded the car and had a look around our secluded log cabin in the Beartooth Mountains.
Sat out on the veranda and did a quick FaceTime chat back home. Also saw some wildlife knocking about.
Ann made a version of cottage pie for dinner which was difficult considering we were missing various things in terms of implements, etc. It was remarkably good.
We sat outside to eat and enjoyed the magnificent view before eventually retiring indoors and Ann inevitably found Harry Potter on TV.
I am now writing this with two people who have gone to sleep.
States visited - 7
Rabbit watch - high
Fathers found at airport - 1
Rooney scored just before half time and we were out the door pretty much on time at 9am. Ann drove the first stint whilst I tried to watch the second half in the car. Succeeded in seeing a few odd seconds but the signal was not great to get any real success.
We retraced our steps back towards Bozeman in order to pick up the I-90 eastwards. Made good headway as it wasn't too busy. Stopped once at a rest stop but otherwise kept racking up the miles. Eventually arrived at Billings Airport just after 12.30pm. Parked up and walked in to the terminal. Within two minutes of us getting there this happened.
 |
| Hello, Father |
Nipped in to Walmart to pick up supplies for the next three days before fuelling up and heading south towards Wyoming. Travelled for about an hour and then arrived at our destination which was the Go Away Ranch.
 |
| We didn't |
 |
| Home on the range |
 |
| Rabbit rabbit rabbit |
We sat outside to eat and enjoyed the magnificent view before eventually retiring indoors and Ann inevitably found Harry Potter on TV.
I am now writing this with two people who have gone to sleep.
States visited - 7
Rabbit watch - high
Fathers found at airport - 1
Friday, 11 August 2017
Day Seventeen
Up and ready to go by 8.35am. Didn't need to shower as our activity negated the need to.
Drove an hour north east to Bozeman. Parked up and signed in here http://madisonrivertubing.com/
Got our stuff and then got on the classic American yellow school bus which proceeded to take us halfway back the way we had come. Unfortunately that couldn't be helped as to do the trip you need the shuttle bus to transport you back, otherwise you'd end up 5 miles from your car.
The bus dropped us off at Warm Springs Creek on the Madison River. We had three tubes, one each for us and one for the cooler. We filled it with drinks and snacks and we were ready to go. Ann befriended some Texans who were also on the trip.
There was an annoying family who had a waterproof speaker playing pop music which wasn't really what we wanted to have as we cruised peacefully down the river. We tried to avoid them but kept ending up next to them. I decided to act and jumped off my tube at a fairly shallow part to stop us for a while. The water was moving much faster than I realised and it was a battle to just hold the three tubes still against the current. After a while the annoying family had disappeared into the distance and I managed to scramble back into the tube and get us going again.
We ended being pretty much last out of all the groups which suited us just fine. We sat back and cracked open the cooler. Apologies for the poor sound quality in this clip.
After a while somehow we ended up catching up and then overtaking nearly everyone, luckily we also flew past the annoying noise and had peace at the front. Had a bit of a chat with the Texans who were at the front as well. It was more of a shout across the river really.
We did then get stuck in the shallow water and slowed dramatically. The Texans disappeared at a rate of knots and we had to battle to get out of it and back into the current. Eventually we did.
We got and dried off. Whilst waiting for the bus back to Bozeman, somehow Ann got us invited to stay with a couple from Lincoln, Nebraska. Lincoln is where we are watching the eclipse, so they asked if we had somewhere to stay, which said yes and they said well if it falls through come and stay with us. They gave us their phone numbers and everything.
Eventually we got back to Bozeman. Got changed and drove back to the motel in Ennis. Had a very late lunch at about 4pm and checked on the flight status of dad. He was only an hour away or so. FaceTimed Paul and Helen who were also tracking his progress. Spent most of the conversation making sprinkler noises at each other.
Had a quick shower and then headed out to here http://virginiacity.com/
It is basically a town that still looks old except for the cars parked all the way through it which ruins the actual appeal of the place. We added to those parked cars and mooched around a bit. Some of the buildings are untouched from the mid 20th century. Still full of the things that were left there.
Saw a beam in a building that five people were hanged from. Bought an ice cream. Bought a book. Got invited into an art gallery party with free wine. The woman who invited us in had a long chat about England and then Donald Trump. She apologised to us for him. We had a look at some of the art, some was decent, some wasn't.
Eventually we managed to sneak off and headed back to the car. Drove back to the motel. Saw some deer on the way.
Dad then FaceTimed us from his hotel room in Denver to say he had landed and made it into the country.
Off to bed soon as Everton kick off at 8am.
States visited - 7
Deer watch - high
Sprinkler watch - high
Drove an hour north east to Bozeman. Parked up and signed in here http://madisonrivertubing.com/
Got our stuff and then got on the classic American yellow school bus which proceeded to take us halfway back the way we had come. Unfortunately that couldn't be helped as to do the trip you need the shuttle bus to transport you back, otherwise you'd end up 5 miles from your car.
The bus dropped us off at Warm Springs Creek on the Madison River. We had three tubes, one each for us and one for the cooler. We filled it with drinks and snacks and we were ready to go. Ann befriended some Texans who were also on the trip.
There was an annoying family who had a waterproof speaker playing pop music which wasn't really what we wanted to have as we cruised peacefully down the river. We tried to avoid them but kept ending up next to them. I decided to act and jumped off my tube at a fairly shallow part to stop us for a while. The water was moving much faster than I realised and it was a battle to just hold the three tubes still against the current. After a while the annoying family had disappeared into the distance and I managed to scramble back into the tube and get us going again.
We ended being pretty much last out of all the groups which suited us just fine. We sat back and cracked open the cooler. Apologies for the poor sound quality in this clip.
After a while somehow we ended up catching up and then overtaking nearly everyone, luckily we also flew past the annoying noise and had peace at the front. Had a bit of a chat with the Texans who were at the front as well. It was more of a shout across the river really.
We did then get stuck in the shallow water and slowed dramatically. The Texans disappeared at a rate of knots and we had to battle to get out of it and back into the current. Eventually we did.
We got and dried off. Whilst waiting for the bus back to Bozeman, somehow Ann got us invited to stay with a couple from Lincoln, Nebraska. Lincoln is where we are watching the eclipse, so they asked if we had somewhere to stay, which said yes and they said well if it falls through come and stay with us. They gave us their phone numbers and everything.
Eventually we got back to Bozeman. Got changed and drove back to the motel in Ennis. Had a very late lunch at about 4pm and checked on the flight status of dad. He was only an hour away or so. FaceTimed Paul and Helen who were also tracking his progress. Spent most of the conversation making sprinkler noises at each other.
Had a quick shower and then headed out to here http://virginiacity.com/
It is basically a town that still looks old except for the cars parked all the way through it which ruins the actual appeal of the place. We added to those parked cars and mooched around a bit. Some of the buildings are untouched from the mid 20th century. Still full of the things that were left there.
 |
| Courthouse from 1876 |
 |
| Cars |
Eventually we managed to sneak off and headed back to the car. Drove back to the motel. Saw some deer on the way.
 |
| Oh dear |
Off to bed soon as Everton kick off at 8am.
States visited - 7
Deer watch - high
Sprinkler watch - high
Thursday, 10 August 2017
Day Sixteen
Woke up late. Very late. It was nearly 9am. Breakfast finished at 9.30am, so we had to get up quick and dash down. We did so and then went back to the room to get ready.
Had the sudden realisation that I forgot to include in yesterday's blog the fact we had run over/nearly run over some sort of creature as we were driving to the hotel in the evening. Neither of us saw what it was completely, nor do we know if it got out of the way. There was no thud on the car, no blood on the front, I didn't see anything cartwheeling away in the rear view mirror so it may well have got out of the way as quickly as it appeared. We think it was a mammal of medium size, maybe a prairie dog up to a wolverine in size. It was brown and furry and noticed us when we were about 4/5 metres away doing 70mph. I thought I managed to get the wheels either side of it hoping it would duck underneath!
We were packed and on our way by 11am. We headed south on I-15 again. It was 80mph limit and beautiful scenery just as it had been the night before. Ann managed to take a few snaps out the window although it is difficult to focus on something at 80mph.
We left the I-15 at Boulder. Stopped for fuel, which turned out to be the cheapest we've bought yet at $2.39 a gallon. Cut down south on the highways ducking under I-90 before Ann spotted a small diner in Harrison called the Town Haul Diner. Turned around and pulled in. Had lunch, it was very nice. A good spot.
Headed on the short distance down to Ennis and checked into here http://rainbowvalleylodge.com/
Sat around for a while before heading out for supplies. We have a kitchen, so decided to buy some stuff and eat in. Ann had scrambled eggs on toast. She was very happy about this. Now she is watching old western TV shows/films as I am doing this a lot earlier after last night.
Looking forward to getting wet tomorrow.
States visited - 7
Miles driven - 3000
Had the sudden realisation that I forgot to include in yesterday's blog the fact we had run over/nearly run over some sort of creature as we were driving to the hotel in the evening. Neither of us saw what it was completely, nor do we know if it got out of the way. There was no thud on the car, no blood on the front, I didn't see anything cartwheeling away in the rear view mirror so it may well have got out of the way as quickly as it appeared. We think it was a mammal of medium size, maybe a prairie dog up to a wolverine in size. It was brown and furry and noticed us when we were about 4/5 metres away doing 70mph. I thought I managed to get the wheels either side of it hoping it would duck underneath!
We were packed and on our way by 11am. We headed south on I-15 again. It was 80mph limit and beautiful scenery just as it had been the night before. Ann managed to take a few snaps out the window although it is difficult to focus on something at 80mph.
 |
| Not blurry |
 |
| Haul Good! |
Sat around for a while before heading out for supplies. We have a kitchen, so decided to buy some stuff and eat in. Ann had scrambled eggs on toast. She was very happy about this. Now she is watching old western TV shows/films as I am doing this a lot earlier after last night.
Looking forward to getting wet tomorrow.
States visited - 7
Miles driven - 3000
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