August 7, 2021

Had such a fabulous Montana vacation. I love getting away with Darren. And Montana (plus some Wyoming) was a great place to do that. Grandpa’s cabin was a unique and great place to stay. (There was an outside shower, plus an inside one - phew - and no bathroom door but there was a great place to back porch sit.)

Montana:

• Hwy 55 should be called bird of prey hwy. lots of hawks and some bald eagles.
• Pine Creek Falls was a great little hike. Cool double waterfall and tall tall trees.
• Dinner at Katabatic Brew because of course our first choice was closed on Wednesdays and this place was open and fast. Finding dinners was not easy.
  
• Early Lamar Valley morning. Left the cabin at 3am. Wildlife included - bison, bald eagle, wolves (that looked like gray dots), weasel, common raven, ground squirrel, mountain goat, some water fowl, elk (that we almost touched with our front bumper). Still no bear. I’m not convinced they are actually in the wild. The bison that was yelling at us was my favorite.
• Nap in the car at a Yellowstone viewpoint. 
• Chips and salsa at the overlook. 
• Stop at Beartooth Falls. Cool little roadside attraction. 
• Hike to Beauty Lake from Beartooth Lake. TH at the back of the campground. Way pretty hike and especially loved Crane lake along the way. Why are there no people here? It’s so beautiful. No complaints. The solitude was wonderful. Found some mushrooms for Sadie. Found out this hike was actually in Wyoming. Also found out what biting flies are.
• Finished driving the Beartooth Hwy. so cool! Lots of stops along the way. So many lakes and gorgeous views. Like so many. Rocks and lakes for days! Saw some marmots. The drive down the other side was switchback after switchback on the side of a mountain.
• Friday was a Bozeman day. 
• American Computer and Robotics Museum at Montana State was a cool museum. 
• Lunch downtown at Western Cafe felt very Bozeman-like. 
• Server suggested Hyalite Canyon for a hike. That's were we headed and it was a brilliant suggestion. 
• Hiked past Arch Falls (cool falls through a natural bridge). We found huckleberries! Such an awesome serendipitous hike.
• Dinner at a grill with an amazing salad while watching some Olympics.
• When in Montana we listen to Dan Seals, The Judds, and Don Williams.
• Some of the drive home was along the Gallatin river. Pretty stuff with lots of fly fishermen.