Bozeman, Mt

Another pretty hike in Montana.....  Ousel Falls in Big Sky which is perfectly named....big sky country with dramatic clouds and a stunning sunset. We enjoyed an unusual dinner at the Mongolian BBQ.  We will be enjoying "leftovers" tomorrow fer sure..  Heading to Yellowstone in the morning. Lord willing.

Big Sky Ski Resort

Hyalite Trail Hike in Montana with Pam, Steve, Czarina and Caleb

This is now our favorite hike.  There were many WOW moments and I couldn't stop taking pictures.  I took over 100.  It was 11 miles round trip and we topped out at around 9,000 feet at Hyalite Lake.  Yes, a lake on top of ,mountain.  Had to put the camera away when it started hailing!  We had sunny, thunderstorms, torrential  rain, mud, hail and fog.  There were 11 named waterfalls and many more that we got to name. Stunning bowls, meadows of wildflowers and good company all the way.  Our tour guides Pam, Steve, Czarina and Caleb were so much fun.  This was not an easy hike and we were very impressed with how the kids hung in there 'til the very end.

Mount Rushmore

Was neater than we were expecting.  How they did that with the limited equipment 70 years ago was fascinating.  No loss of life in the 14 yrs. it took to carve those faces. 

Badlands NP

Wow did this place ever blow us away.  The sheer beauty and the fact that we were really doing this made the tears flow a few times.  It reminded us of the Grand Canyon but not quite as grand a scale. The weather has been perfect with day time temps in the 80's and last night it got down to 50 degrees.  We camped right in the middle of the park completely surrounded by the mountains.  The moon came up over these pinnacles bright orange.  (full moon?) The little RV is working great as well and the bed is quite comfortable.

Our first wildlife sighting

first leg itinerary

Day # 1  Monday, August 23 -Leave Mount Joy to first stop
              -LaQuinta Inn, Delafield,  WI ........789 miles  (12 hours - 57 minutes)
Day # 2  Wednesday August 25 
            -Cedar Pass Campground in Badlands...748 miles, (11 hours - 56 minutes)
Day # 3  Thursday August 26   Kemps Kamp........107 miles, (1 hour - 52 minutes)
           -spend the rest of the day exploring Mt. Rushmore, it’s open until 9 PM
Day # 4  Friday 27  -to Bozeman MT................537 miles, (8 hours - 36 minutes)
           -arrive at Pam & Steve’s Friday evening
Day # 5 & 6  Saturday 28 and Sunday 29th    -spend the weekend with Pam and Steve
Day # 7  Monday 30th -Yellowstone, Canyon Villa... 117 miles, (2 hours - 49 minutes) 
Day # 8  Tuesday 31st -to Colter Bay Village Campground...........76 miles, (2 hours)
Day # 9  Wednesday 1 - to Flagg Resort Campground -..............17 miles, (27 minutes)   
Day # 10  Thursday 2    -drive to Old Faithful................................ 41 miles,  (1 hour)
             -start drive to Seattle...............................786 miles,  (13 hours - 19 minutes)
Day # 11 through Day # 18     Friday 3rd to Friday 10th  Cruise to Juneau, AK
              -cruise leaves Seattle at 4 PM