Life Is Such A Sweet Insanity.

We drove from La Grande, Oregon to Elko, Nevada. The trip from Boise to Elko was along back roads. It was nice to get off the interstate for a couple hundred miles.

We settled for the night at the Ramada Inn at the Stockman’s Casino. It wasn’t very busy and the natives were chatty. Elko has three legal brothels. We didn’t search them out. I’m pretty sure the cocktail waitress that brought me a beer was drunk out of her mind. Another woman hit on Earl and I giggled.

At the end of the evening one of the one-armed bandits gave me $500 so we decided to call it a night.

We drove from Butte, Montana to LaGrande, Oregon by way of Spokane and Richland, Washington.

I had no idea that eastern Washington State was such a “cold desert”.

The more you know.

We drove from Laurel, Montana to Butte, Montana, with seven hours at Yellowstone National Park in between.

I told Earl I’d like to come back to Yellowstone, rent an RV, and spend some time camping at the park, doing some hiking (more than we did today) and just enjoying downtime in the middle of nature. It can be winter, it can be summer, it doesn’t matter. Yellowstone is that fantastic and I could enjoy it during any season.

We spent the afternoon in Theodore Roosevelt National Park (South Unit). It is stunning. I lost myself in the beauty for a bit and it felt good. 

The prairie dogs do it right.

Earl and I drove from Tomah, Wis. to Jamestown, N.D. It’s been a misty drive, with the temperature never getting above 50ºF, but it’s been enjoyable. We’ve been singing, talking, and laughing in the Jeep.

We stopped at the Mall of America for a bit. Earl had never been there. I visited back on a solo vacation in 2013 and liked the experience. It hasn’t changed much in nearly five years, but it’s still enjoyable for a mall.

Tomorrow we continue west. We’ll finally cross into the Mountain Time Zone as we make our way across the prairie into the Badlands. We are off to a great start.

Earl and I were on the road promptly at 5:00 PM Central. We are headed west on a 10-day road trip. We have things to see, states to conquer, and relaxation to be had. I’m looking forward spending every waking moment with Earl discovering what we find.

Make life grand.