Great Falls, Montana--August 30-September 3, 2008

The drive to Great Falls was interesting. The scenery changed as soon as we passed East Glacier. We were driving through the plains of Montana and they were plain! The road was relatively straight, but very hilly. As we drove through one town we saw a corral full of camels and in the one next to them were reindeer! There were cars behind us and no place to pull off, so no picture!

We arrived at Malmstrom AFB and checked in for the rest of the Labor Day weekend. We planned to leave on Tuesday. We explored the small air base--found the commissary, exchange, gas station, and outdoor recreation center. Most of the buildings on the base have been newly remodeled or rebuilt. It seemed very modern. The commissary and exchange were some of the smallest we have seen, but they carried the necessities.

Great Falls was an interesting town. It is where Lewis and Clark had to portage around the waterfalls (5) on the Missouri River. It took them almost a month to get all their boats and supplies around the falls.

We visited the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center on Monday even though it was pouring rain. This buffalo was in the entrance to the center.

Once inside the center, you walk the route of Lewis and Clark from their start near St. Louis to Ft. Clatsop, and back again. Along the way are artifacts, journal selections, and hands-on activities to give you an idea of the harshness and difficulty of their trip.

This is the Lewis and Clark Quilt. Everything on it represents a portion of their trip.

After leaving the center, we found the local Super Wal-Mart and looked around for a while. It was still raining and chilly.

Yes, it seemed the weather followed us from Glacier. It rained from Sunday morning through early Tuesday morning. We decided to stay until Wednesday morning as we didn't want to drive in the rain!

Bob found some geocaches along the river trail in Great Falls, so Tuesday was caching day. The first cache was located at the Veterans Memorial. Then, we drove to one of the parking areas and walked a portion of the trail. The trail in Great Falls follows both sides of the Missouri River from one end of town to the other. This tunnel took the trail under the highway and closer to the river.
At one point, there are several railroad cars surrounded by a deck. I wonder if they are used as sales points during the summer. There was a cache behind this car.
There were several picnic areas along the trail and we saw some locals arrive to eat their lunches before returning to work.Tuesday was a really nice day and we enjoyed exploring Great Falls while we hunted caches.

Wednesday it was time to get back on the road. Destination: Yellowstone National Park. I hoped we would leave the rain behind us!