Montana

Montana is beautiful! We came into the state via the Crow Indian Reservation through US 90. We couldn’t let the Little Bighorn Battlefield pass by without having a first-hand look at the battle field and what the Army and Indians were up against.
The literature calls it a clash of cultures, I might even go further and shows just how power hungry some of the US Army commanders might have been. Its June of 1876 and a hot couple of days on this Montana filed. The conflict between Indians and Army comes to a head after gold is discovered in the Black Hills, the heart of the Indian Reservation that had been assigned in the treaty of Fort Laramie in 1868. The US Government promised to protect the Indians “against the commission of all depredations by people of the United States.” The News of the gold strike spread and those eager to make a fortune moved to that region and broke the treaty. The army “tried to keep them out, but to no avail.” Efforts to buy the Black Hills from the natives, left the Indians a bit upset. Lakota and Cheyenne left the reservation and resumed raides on the settlements and traverers on the edge of their reservation. The Commissioner of Indian Affairs ordered the tribes to return or to be treated as “hostiles” and noted that military force would be used.
When you hear about the battle, I had in mind the fields and terrains of the midwestern and eastern battle fields of the Civil War. Instead, this was a series or rolling hills and grassy fields along the Little Bighorn River. It is easy to understand why some encampments would happen along the river. The trees cool the air by several degrees and afford protection from the wind. Moving along the top ridges, you can see pretty far, but I don’t imagine that the artillery of either side would travel the .distances. Still, you look across and don’t expect that it would be much of a battle in some areas.
We headed through to Deadman’s Basin near Shawmut. It was a nice fishing spot, but not much for camping or hiking. Last night we stayed at a National Forest site, Larch Campground near Seely Lake. Hamburgers on the campfire taste great. Tonight Phil is grilling steak. We are also working to finish our vegetables from the garden back home. The tomato ripened nicely and the onion is holding up great!
We have even snacked a time or two on some of the things Dad sent along when we stopped to see him.

The weather has been chilly with about 37 degrees this morning when I got out of the tent to take Molli for a walk and make the coffee (not in that order!) The daytime temperatures are warming to 60s, but we are staying warm by putting on all we have when the sun goes behind the clouds! We tried to find Morrel Falls this afternoon to do a hike. National Forest Roads are very poorly marked and we ended up going in a circle on one road and never found the turn off. A rock in the middle of the road gave us an adrenalin rush.
Off to Glacier National Park on Friday. We can see several mountain tops with lots of snow. The water ways seem to be at pretty high levels. We had rain through Wyoming and a bit in Montana so it is not surprising that things are green! I’m sure things will stay cool as we continue north. It’s all about layering…everything we own in the morning.