Lewis & Clark and Beyond

August 27, Day 9

Today was a day to rest and relax. We drove into Williston to do laundry and have lunch. When we got back, I put the scooter on the ground and took a spin around the park and adjacent roads. After a couple of miles on the road leading to the park, I turned around because the hills I had to climb looked to be too much for my little 250cc auto transmission scooter. I went to the park marina only to learn that it is closed. The lake is down so far that the launch ramp and connecting stream are totally dry. It looks like the lake would have to come up 10 to 15 feet before it could be usable. I knew the West was suffering from drought, but I did not realize it was so bad. The Ranger reported that they had no snow the last few years and little rain. During my ride, I saw a rattle snake sunning itself on the pavement. It assumed a threatening posture as I approached. Tonight we plan to burn some burgers and have a camp fire. It should be interesting since nether of us has an axe to split the logs. Hopefully the quart of charcoal lighter do the job.

August 28, Day 10

Today we left South Dakota and entered Montana. We traveled on U.S. Rte 2, so the hills we had to traverse were less of an issue than when we were on Rte 1804 or 1806 which are more local. We stopped at a really neat local museum in the town of Culberston, MT. While the museum was assembled by local non-professionals, it was well organized and very comprehensive. We stopped for the day at the Fort Peck Dam Site which is Corps of Engineers Site, so the facilities are great and cost is low. I put the scooter on the ground and toured the dam site. This is the largest hydraulic earth dam in world. At its base, the dam is 3500 ft wide and four plus miles long. Right now, the water is very low as this part of the country has been in a drought for eight years. They report that the water level is 37 feet below optimum level. One of the more impressive structures that makes up the dam complex is an emergency spillway about a mile from the dam. The spillway has only been used three times since 1937 to keep the water from going over the top of the dam. The last time was in 1990. Of course, there is also a power station about a quarter mile from the dam. The water is supplies to the turbines via large tunnels 24 (?) feet in diameter The Corps has a very nice Interpretive Center that features the local wildlife, dinosaurs fossils found in the area, and the construction of the dam. The dam was a depression era PWA project that employed 10K people directly and took four years. There was a disastrous failure of a portion of dam near its completion that cost a number of lives some of whom are still buried in the debris.

The new truck got delivered on Saturday and we were on the road by noon.  The big question was whether the title for the old truck would get to Pierre, SD, in time.  Well, FedEx came through like a champ.  Once on the road, we 'expressed' it to Bismarck to try to make-up for lost time.  We tried to stay at a nearby State Park, but it was full, so we spent the night at Wal-Mart.  No big deal, only no shower!  We got an early start and and headed for Washburn, ND, which is near where L&C spent the first winter with the Mandan Indians.  We visited a really good Interpretive Center and a nearby reconstruction of the fort L&C built.  Up the road there about an hour is a National Park Service site where they have reconstructed a Mandan earth lodge, a most imposing structure.  The country we went through today was very hilly and we touched the bad lands.  We are spending the night at Lewis & Clark State Park on Lake Sakakawea (that is how they spell it).  Nice facilities, but not a lot of shade which is typical for this part of the country.  The campground has WiFi which is why I am able to make this posting. 

August 24 

It is day six and we are in Pierre, SD. 

The first night we spent in a Wal-Mart parking lot is Des Moines.  Day two was in Omaho where we did some touring and spent a part of the night in the masonry bath house because of a tornado warning.  Day three was touring in route to to Ponca State Park Ponca, NE, which is on the Missouri.  Ironically, we camped at the same stop L & C did (8/22) on 203 years later.  On the way to Ponca, we stopped at an Iowa SP to view replicas of the boats L & C used for the journey through the lower Missouri.  We put down a few more miles on day four and got to a Corp of Engineers dam site of Big Bend Dam which forms Lake Sharpe near the town of Fort Thompson, SD.  On the way to Big Bend, we stopped at a number of Indian Cultural Centers.

Day five was interesting and memorable.  First, we got lost trying to follow Route 1806 which an historic route that most closely follows the river and utilizes local roads.  We ended up on a pennisla of Lake Sharpe with the pavement stopping and road turning to gravel and then dirt.  We had to back up a quarter mile to find a place to turn around.  that was an interesting process for Will who pulls a trailer.  The trip on this route to Pierre is not very long, but goes through a lot of grass covered hills.  Long storu short, Will blew a cylinder in her engine and we limped into Pierre where she traded her Lincoln Navigator for new Chevy Silvarado.  Ouch!!

So, we are here through today.  As I write this, she is at the dealership taking delivery and learning about the new vehicle.

Tomorrow, Saturday, we head for Bismark.  I will try to update posting as I get access to Wi-Fi.

Tom 

August 18, 2007 

It is Saturday the day before we leave.  Wil arrived and has her rig parked off site near mine.  We leave first thing in the morning.  Most of the packing is done and the rigs are gassed up.