Christy and Jose Aug 2021

Another one of my favorite access points to the 55 miles of the River's Edge Trail is Memorial Island, named in honor of all those who lost their lives working on or at the Black Eagle Dam, one of 5 hydroelectric dams in the area. A footbridge crosses the spillway under the power house to the island.   A turbine that was in service for 74 years is displayed on the island.  Made of cast iron and weighing 18,000 pounds, it spun at 15 rpm and generated 16,500 horsepower.    Today water flows at a good rate from the dam over the Black Eagle Falls. From the end of the island you can see the silhouette of a statute of Lewis and Clark with Sacagawea on the horizon. And as always, the fur babies enjoyed exploring and reading new "P-mail"  !!!

My sister Carol, my niece's mother-in-law Marlene and I went to see a 26-acre sculpture park located in Lincoln Montana.  Sculptures in the Wild began in 2014 with 5 artists creating works inspired by the rich environmental and industrial legacy of the surroundung Blackfoot Valley. These innovative pieces are constructed using natural and industrial materials.  Today the park features 18 permanent sculptures from local and internationally acclaimed artists.  I'll share a few of our favorites. Picture Frame by Jaakko Pernu of Finland 2014 Tree Circus by Patrick Dougherty of USA 2017 Inside the Tree Circus  Size perspective  Hill & Valley by Steven Siegel of USA 2014 This one really piqued our interest. Its an ongoing community project composed of 28 lodge poles, 400 pounds of nails and 30,000 pounds of newspaper. New layers of newspaper are nailed onto the top each year.  Close up of newspapers....

We are still in Great Falls, Montana. The RV is in need of some parts that have to come from the East coast and will be arriving in a few days. We have been lucky that Christy's sister Carol has been willing to put up with us for so long. Today while the ladies were at the grocery store Carol's husband Lynn and I went to lunch at a place called Street Burgers. They have some amazing burgers and desserts. No we did not order this one, named The Unicorn.  After lunch we visited some interesting Pawn Shops. Nether of us pawned or bought anything, we just looked.  It was a great guys day out. 

Over the year, the city of Great Falls has build miles and miles of hiking trail along both sides of the river through town. There are many access points to the "River's Edge Trail."  One of my favorites is at the pedestrian bridge near downtown. On each end of the bridge are art installations made from old tools and miscellaneous pieces of metal. José quite liked them.  There are two of these obelisk, one on each side of the bridge, with all 4 sides made in the same fashion. We spent quite a bit of time picking out different items. Hinges, chains, padlocks, gears, wrenches, nuts and bolts, springs, horseshoes, nutcrackers, and on and on. These were created by local artist Alex Smithson in 2014. José says this guy must have visited a lot of thrift stores and garage sales to find that many tools.  José was quite fascinated by how  the pelican was build. There is a frame of rebar inside the body and a heavy wi...

The city of Great Falls is bisected by the Missouri River and is named for a series of 5 waterfalls to the north and east.  There are 5 hydroelectric dams in and around Great Falls earning it the nickname "Electric City." On our drive to Giant Springs we stopped at the overlook of Black Eagle Dam located right in town.  It was a smokey day but still afforded some nice views.  Notice there is very little water being released to flow over the Falls below.  A few days later it was clear blue skies so we took the 15 mile drive to Ryan dam, site of the "great falls." Unfortunately the park on Ryan Island below the dam closed for the winter after Labor Day, but we were able to get a good look from the parking area. 

After relaxing for several days we were ready to start exploring Great Falls. I wanted José to see one of my favorite places along the Missouri River. Giant Springs State Park is a short drive from my sister's home and a good place to begin our adventures. The spring flows into the Roe River which in turn flows into the Missouri a mere 201 feet later.  The Roe was once listed in the Guinness World Record as the world's shortest river. 9 Icemelt travels underground from the Little Belt Mountains before resurfacing at Giant Springs, a journey of 60 miles that takes about 26 years to complete. It produces over 150 million gallons of water each day that remains at a constant 54 degrees.  The pond created by the spring runs in to both the Roe and Missouri rivers.  Water bubbles to the surface.  Crystal clear water displaying the watercress that is prolific in the spring. 

Piper and Marley, Golden Retriever sisters, born 2 years apart. Piper is the oldest.  Their mother is blond and the father is a red head.  Louise is a Portuguese Water Dog.  They are very sweet and smart.  And always ready to help clean up anything that hits the floor. That's Dawn, my niece, teasing them.  Squeaks (named for her squeaky meow) lives in harmony with her canine companions - meaning she tolerates them and she's the boss!

We arrived in Great Falls on Friday September 3d at 6:30 pm. It was great to finally see Christy's sister Carol and brother-in-law Lynn. The dogs immediately liked them.  We originally were going to park the RV in their back yard, but we noticed that the driveway is pretty level so we ended up leaving the RV in front of the house.  We plan to be here for a couple of weeks to rest, visit family and explore Great Falls. 

We left Craters of the Moon on Thursday, September 2nd and decided to "bite the bullet" and travel on the interstate the next 400 miles to Great Falls.   We spent the night about 30 miles south of Dillon Montana at the Lone Tree Campground (aptly named as you can see in the picture below) at the Clark Canyon Reservoir, another reservior with water levels well below normal. It was our second time on this trip of having the campground all to ourselves.  No hook ups but fresh water was available with a bit of effort. 

After our grueling hike through Indian Tunnel we opted not to do anymore "caving" and continued the drive around the loop. We took the short loop hike through Devil's Orchard, named 100 years ago by a visiting minister who said of the jumble of rock, brush and trees "was a garden fit only for the devil himself." The dead limber pine trees in the pictures below are the result of dwarf mistletoe that caused the trees to become misshapen growing clusters called "witches broom."   Back to camp and a beautiful pink sunset.