Day 3 of the 38 hour drive home. This drive: 9:31:57 of me, Border Crossing, and rain.

Well onto day 3 - the final day!! Yay!!!!!!

I woke up in Helena and actually had breakfast.  I think the first real meal I had in 3 days.  It tasted glorious!!!  I also forgot that being in Montana, people probably actually understands where Canada is and certain parts.  So when the front desk person asked why I was up at the crack of dawn and told them I had about an 8 hour drive ahead of me, he says 'oh that puts you right up around Edmonton'  Finally!!! Someone who knows Canada!! I could smell the Canadian Air and knew that it wasn't too long till I was back on Canadian soil.

The drive itself this day wasn't too exciting.  Which I knew was going to happen.  This day had a purpose.  This day was not for the scenery but moreso for the destination.  So in my car I go and hit the road.  Leaving Helena it was pretty - mountains and hills and scenery.  But it didn't last long.  Ohh oohh oohh and I finally say the Missouri River!!! A lot.  Kept winding around the road that I was on.  For some reason I want to say it was far more majestic at 5 in the morning when I crossed it in Pierre, South Dakota.  But at least I finally got to see it.  It was alluding me my entire time down in the States.  Which is funny as it is a pretty big friggin river. 

Anywho, not a lot to report on this trip in all honesty.  I drove.  And drove.  And drove.  And passed nothing.  It was flat.  It was boring.  And that made for a long driving day.  Finally I get to the border!!! Yay!!!!

And start panicking about what they are going to ask me, what if they search my car, lets not look panicky, everything will be alright.  And I start panicking.  And wait.  And wait.  And finally get to the border.  I was (or thought I was) prepared for any and all questions they were going to ask me.  Until they asked me what my licence plate number was.  Then I froze.  And mumbled something that resembled my forgotten licence plate number.  Apparently it was okay so the border agent took it.  He asked me some questions and then let me on my merry way.  Easy peasy lemon squeezy.  

And I keep driving.  And driving.  And driving.  And not see anything.  I think I was on one of the most desolate highways in Alberta ever.  It was crazy quiet and nothing.  Except rain.  Hit a lot of rain.  A common theme along my drive for the three days.

I finally get to the highway that will get me home and the last three days was all for something.  I pull up, scare the living bejesus of my mom as she was expecting me later and we start the fun process of unloading my car.  And I can finally say I am home.  Some happiness to be back with family and on Canadian soil, some sadness because I loved what I was doing in Hastings and some excitement as for what the world has in store for me.

Day 2 of the 38 hour drive home. This drive: 15:08:212 of rainy weather, mountains and anxiety provoking signs.

Day 2 started with me waking up in Gillette, Wyoming after crashing hard from the night before.  I knew it was going to be a long day as Google Maps projected a 10 hour driving day so I made sure I woke up on the right side of the bed to make it a wonderful day.  And for the most part it was.  

I get on the Interstate and already I know this is going to be a good day (even though I was still having the mountain v. hill argument in my head).  The scenery in Wyoming is friggin gorgeous.  And after looking at a map, I realized that I drove clear across Wyoming so I got to see a lot of its scenery.  From the red dirt near Gillette to all the mountains and forests around Cody, it was awesome.  Which kind of surprised me because usually what I love the most about scenery is water - lakes, waterfalls, rivers, etc.  Wyoming had none of that (which adds more to the beaches of Cheyenne perplexity).  I really don't know how to explain it - hills and valleys of greenness everywhere.  It was one of those moments that I didn't think to take pictures or videos because I didn't want to share it with anyone - this was just for me and my prize for surviving the day before.  It was my happiness to relish in that moment.  

I start getting closer to Yellowstone National Park as signs start popping up advising which route to take.  I will tell you this, when the signs start saying stuff like "Yellowstone National Park Fastest route take Route 16" "Yellowstone National Park Scenic route take Route 16" I start to ask myself what route did I choose and where was I going to end up.  But then I saw the sign that says "Yellowstone National Park Safest route take Route 16", I panicked a little.  I mean, what route *did* I choose when I made my plan?  And the problem with not having gps is if you go off script of a printed off map, getting lost increases in probability.  Which is something I did not want to experience as I constantly told myself I was lost.  Just telling yourself you are lost is totally different than actually being lost.  But I keep plugging along, having faith in my handy map print off and knowing that at some point I will end up where I am supposed to be.  

I am so glad I took the route that I did.  I do not know what the other 'scenic' route was but mine was pretty friggin scenic.  I get off the interstate and start driving, getting closer and closer to mountains and trees.  Something that I love.  I drive through this town called Dayton and I tell myself that I am going to move to Dayton, Wyoming and work in the Crazy Woman Saloon.  HOW COOL WOULD THAT BE!!!!!!  It seems perfect really.  So I keep driving and suddenly I find myself at the entrance of Bighorn National Forest and my car start driving up.  

And up.  And up.  I was driving up a mountain.  A very very high mountain.  And the road was hair pin turns and twists and SO MUCH FUN!!!!  There was little pull outs to take pictures and see how high up you were and it was crazy to look down and see where the road started from and where I was standing.  I think at one point in time an elevation sign said something like over 8000 feet.  It was nutso.  Driving through Bighorn was beautiful and I thought of my brother and how he should go camping here as that would be gloriously wonderful.  Getting near the end of driving through the Forest you have to start driving down (cause you know, going up is one thing, but one has to go down as well) and again, some road signs started to give me a little anxiety.  The sign said "10% grade over 13 miles" so I think to myself, that is nothing.  Then right under that sign is said "sharp curves" and under that one it said "beware falling rocks" and under that one it said "road damaged".  I figured that if we weren't on the side of a mountain the next sign would have said "animals crossing everywhere" for good measure.  

I get out of the Forest and start plugging along, passing little towns everywhere.  And then I hit Cody.  And decide this is the town that I want to live in.  It is totally based and themed around Buffalo Bill Cody and it looks so much fun!!!  I would love to go back and spend a couple of days there alone because you can go on trail rides, I think I saw a stage coach ride or something and the day I was driving through had the rodeo that night (I almost decided to abandon all plans for the day and stay for the rodeo but then figured that hotel rooms were probably pretty scarce).  The town is kind of built on a mountain with a crevice/canyon/river flowing through it.  It was pretty neat.  And right outside of Cody is Buffalo Bill State Park which is gorgeous as well.  And I went through 2 mountains.  Went through.  Not up. Not down.  But through.  It was awesome!!!!!  And passed this huge reservoir/lake and the houses on the hills were magnificent and gorgeous!! Definitely would be an amazing place to live. There weren't that many places to pull over and take pictures but it is definitely a wonderful place to go check out.  

I leave Buffalo Bill State Park and find myself in Shoshone National Forest and again, it is gorgeous.  I went through so many Parks and Forests but they were all so glorious and beautiful.  I am glad for all the signs as I never knew where one Park was ending and another Forest was beginning.  But I was thinking to myself that I was making some good timing and that I would be able to spend some time in Yellowstone and actually appreciate that park.  Basically Shoshone turned into Yellowstone and before I knew it, I was at the gates of Yellowstone and entering it.  

I will have to admit, I was a little let down at first when going through Yellowstone.  I felt like Bighorn, Buffalo Bill and Shoshone were all more foresty than Yellowstone but then when I looked at the map of Yellowstone I realized that there were a lot of little things to look at in Yellowstone, like the geyers, water falls, rapids and stuff like that.  Not so much treed areas but other areas.  So I was content.  For the time being.  My first stop was to hit Old Faithful (which I kept wanting to call Old Yeller).  Traffic was a little busy and finding parking was close to impossible but I finally got there, got out and stretched my legs and walked down to see Old Faithful.  And I made it in good timing as I got there about 10 minutes before it went off.  It was kind of cool to watch and something that I have never seen

before so that was cool.  However, I will say this - Yellowstone has a lot of geysers and if you seen one, you have seen them all.  If the Park was smart, they would put food coloring in all the geysers and make it a game for people to mark off and find all the different colors and when they leave the Park they get a prize for participating.  That would make the geysers a little more interesting.  Don't get me wrong, they are cool but kind of boring.  

After Old Faithful I head up to other places of Yellowstone - saw some natural hot springs, some falls, lots of trees.  There was one point that I was driving down a mountain, with no guardrails, hair pins curves and I thought to myself 'do they not put up guardrails so that people have to be vigilant drivers? Does the lack of guardrails make for less accidents??" I also saw yet another sign that made my heart stop for a moment.  This sign said 'falling rock'.  Not rocks plural.  Just rock.  Single rock.  Does that mean that the entire friggin mountain is coming down in one swoop, in one mass?? Cause that would suck big time.  

I decide that I wanted to hit all the junctions at Yellowstone since I was there and making good timing.  I got up to Tower Falls (WHICH WERE AMAZING) and I hear the thunder in the distance and think to myself 'cool I get to see a rain storm on a mountain'.  Don't ever think this.  Ever.  You may think it would be pretty cool.  But kind of isn't.  At all.  But I still think I can make it up to the last junction which is further up the mountain and on the other side.  So I start treking that way.  And it starts raining.  So I just think to myself that I will slow down but all will be well.  Right when I think to myself that I am driving right into the storm the wind picks up (remember - on a side of a mountain with no guardrails), the rain increases to the point that my wipers can't really keep up (and I am on the side of a mountain with no guardrails) and then it starts to

hail.  That is when I say to myself 'I don't need to see ALL the junctions.  I have seen enough.  All is good' and I turn around. And drive for a bit but then come up to a road that has a gate and that gate is closed.  With a sign that says 'severe weather - road closed'.  So now I am stranded on the side of the mountain with no guardrail while a storm is coming through.  The park rangers were directing traffic to get as far into the mountain as we could and then we just had to sit and wait for the storm to lighten up enough for us to continue on down/up the mountain.  Thankfully I brought a book as we sat there for about 1 hour.  And since I was one of the first ones who got to the gate, I was lucky enough to be parked under some trees (lucky in that no hail was really hitting my car but then I thought that if a tree or branch fell on my car how would that insurance claim go).  It was really pretty but also kind of scary.  And another thought I had was 'my mama would be so proud that I didn't continue on into the storm and actually had the common sense to turn around'.  Once the storm lessened up enough for the roads to be open again, I thought it best to just get out before another storm hits.  And that is when I got stuck behind a car from California who was doing 15mph going UP a mountain.  UP.  Not because that is all the car could do.  No.  Because it was raining.  Which I understand.  But do you how hard it is on a car and one's patience to go UP a mountain at 15mph.  It sucks.  Big time.  I took another hour just to get from the junction I was at to the exit I needed to continue on my way to Helena.  But I finally got out of the park and kept going my merry way.  Which I thought was only going to be another hour or so.  I was wrong.  So wrong.  

Helena was another 2.5 hours away.  And by this time it was already 8pm.  But I figured, what the hell, enjoy it while I can and I did.  I drove through yet another forest  (can't remember the name of this one) and enjoyed a gorgeous Montana sunset.  It was so pretty.  But then it got dark.  And animals started coming out.  That last hour of driving was kind of nerve wracking as it was pitch black, I was driving on unknown roads and I was getting tired.  Thankfully I made it to my hotel and just conked out.  

Overall it was a gorgeous day of driving.  Saw so many mountains/hills, forests, water falls and lakes.  I would definitely do that drive again.  I was in heaven.  And up in the clouds.  And just not caring what was happening in life and being in that moment.  It was a marvellous feeling.  

Day 1 of the 38 hour drive home. This drive: 7:12:17 of me, my car, scenery and my thoughts.

When I realized that I had to do the road trip back home from Hastings as there was a snafu with extending my visa, I was looking at the happiness of going through places that I have always wanted to see, like Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone National Park.  The drive that took around 20 hours to head down to Hastings panned out to be a 38 hour trek home.  But lots of sights were seen and many, many, many thoughts and questions were pondered during the trip.

My first stop on my list was Valentine National Wildlife Refuge.  Now, because my mind is how it goes, I was expecting to see animals and animals.  Because you know, it is a Refuge.  A place they can feel safe and secure and not have a fear of being hunted.  However, I should realize that when one wants to see an animal is exactly when one won't see an animal.  I didn't see a single one.  Except dive bombing birds.  But more about those later.  Driving through the Refuge I was looking forward to driving around all the mini lakes and whatnot that was encompassed in the Refuge but I did not realize that the roads around the lakes were basically dirt paths.  And when one has a car that is packed full, one does not want to get stuck somewhere and that was a fear of mine so I sadly bypassed all the lakes.  Which if you know me was sad because I do love me my lakes and rivers.  So I finally pull up to a lake that I can safely go and see as it was right off the highway.  I pull up and grab my camera and think that I am going to get some really nice pictures of the sun glistening off the lake and the vast hills and valleys around the lake.  Nope.  Enter the dive bombing birds.  THEY WERE FREAKING EVERYWHERE.  At first I thought I could handle them but nope.  When one swooped and almost hit me, I decided it was high time to get the heck outta dodge.  I was slightly disappointed that a) I saw no animals b) I didn't get a picture of sun glistened lake but those dive bombing birds were vicious so I am glad I got out with my life intact.  And eyeballs.

Next stop was Smith Falls in Valentine.  It took me a little to figure out where they were and when I was finally on my way to them, I felt like I was heading out to the middle of nowhere and something bad was going to happen.  I most of the time feel like something bad will happen.  I am a optimistic pessimist that way.  I get out to Smith Falls, and do the 'hike' to the falls.  I was expecting a hike hike (but kind of glad I did not have to as packing and loading up my car twinged something in my old lady body).Get up to the falls and my first thought was 'well they aren't no Nigara Falls'.  Although I have never seen Niagara Falls so I shouldn't be too hasty on comparing the two but I thought they would be better than what they were.  Don't get me wrong, for Nebraska they were pretty good but when I think Falls, I think of whooooshing, splashing, smelling the goodness of water, crystal clear pile of water, etc etc of a water fall.  Over all, it was pretty and I am glad I could say I saw the only waterfall in Nebraska.  

After Valentine was to high tail it up to South Dakota and cut through the Pine Ridge Reservation to get up to the Black Hills National Forest.  Going through the Reservation wasn't too bad.  Some nice sights.  Went through Buffalo Gap National Grassland.  I only saw 1 buffalo and he was at the end when I was turning out of the Grassland.  I would have to say though that this is where I started noticing all the bikes.  And they just got more and more the more north I went.  By the time I hit Hot Springs, they were everywhere.  By the time I got to Custer, they have overtaken the earth.  Like ants.  Ants everywhere.  I think I would have enjoyed the Hot Springs to Mount Rushmore drive a whole lot more if there wasn't so many bikes around.  I swear I passed over 5000 of them.  Dr. Suess could write a poem about Sturgis - bikes of every size, of every color, of every make and model.  Men and female, old and young. Some very very attractive, some not so much.  Humans of every size riding the bikes.  Bikes freaking everywhere.  I am not a huge people person at times and even though I was driving by myself, I was people tired of being just in the same driving vicinity of all of them.  Custer was like the grand central station for them all.  And I was thinking of kicking up to the Crazy Horse Memorial but the line up to get up there was insane.  Stupid bikers.  They kind of ruined a lot of things for me.  I shake my fist at them (now that they can't see me and potentially beat me up).  

So I finally get up to Mount Rushmore.  And almost miss it.  First off, being stuck behind a newly biker is kind of frustrating.  Secondly, be climbing up a mountain and twisty turvy roads at the same time.  And then by the time I get to Mount Rushmore, the line up to get in and to even get in was mayhem.  But I eventually got in.  I told myself that I am coming through this way for a reason and I am not going to let these bikers take away my experiences.  I get into Mount Rushmore and it is pretty fantastic.  I wonder who looked up at the mountain and said 'hey, lets chisel in some faces on this mountain'.  And how much booze was involved in that decision and how many friends laughed at that person with that crazy idea.  But now look at what happened.  It is amazing.  One could go along the Presidential Walk but it involved 250 steps and I was far too hot and tired to do that.  Maybe next time I go through there I will do the walk.  But I am glad I went and saw Mount Rushmore.  It was amazing and kind of inspirational to just sit there and look up at something that somebody created.  Especially back then with no technology that we have now.  I applaud you gentlemen who created that.  

Next up was heading north to Rapid City, bypassing Rapid City and cutting through the Black Hills National Forest to make my way to my destination, being Gillette, Wyoming.  And I hit rain.  Big rain.  Hard rain.  Rain severe enough that while driving through the mountains, there was a sign that said 'Severe Weather Ahead.  Be Cautious'.  The sign might well of said 'Be Crazy or Stupid To Venture Forth'.  Rain plus crazy curves and mountains is a fun time.  And it rained basically straight form the Black Hills to Gillette.  And right when I get on the interstate and was able to actually pick up some speed without fearing of falling off a mountain or crashing into one, one of those overhead signs says 'Wet Road.  Take Off Cruise Control'.  No word of a lie.  The moment I put on my cruise control I see that sign.  Again, I wanted to shake my fist.  Wyoming though was gorgeous.  It has the red earth dirt.  Or clay.  Or whatever it was.  And the rolling hills and valleys.  Simple gorgeous.  

I finally pull up to my hotel in Gillette and I am wiped and tired and annoyed.  Day 1 is finally done and over with and I have 2 more days to look forward to.  I shall leave you with some of my thoughts I had with this drive:

• what makes a mountain a mountain and what makes a hill a hill?  what is the difference between the two? were I going over and through mountains or hills?  who decides what the difference is?
• what is the capital of Wyoming?  (I took a very long pause trying to remember it and then I remembered I have the song Beaches of Cheyenne by Garth Brooks on my ipod so I turn that on and start to listen to the lyrics).  Is it Cheyenne?  That sounds about right.  But why in the song do they say 'beaches of Cheyenne?  there are no oceans around Wyoming.  Maybe a lake beach?  I haven't passed a lake yet though.  But there has gotta be lakes.  So maybe a lake beach is what they are talking about.  But then also why in the song so they say that he is going up to Wyoming for a rodeo?  If they were already in Wyoming why would he be going up to Wyoming?  Unless Cheyenne is at the bottom of Wyoming and he is travelling up into Wyoming for a rodeo, then it makes sense.  I would still like to know where she died though and where this so called beach is in Wyoming.  
• it would be totally plausible if along this journey I meet a hot biker and we decide to get married.  The Sturgis version of a Vegas marriage.  It could happen.  And solve all my problems.  
• are more people going to be making Mount Rushmore's with different faces on it?  Or is it a copyright thing and nobody else can chisel faces into mountains? 
• all these curves are so fun to go around.  Fun.  Dangerous.  Nerve wracking.  But fun.  Makes me feel like a formula 1 racer.  In a Ford Focus.  
• oohh my car tells me when I am hydroplaning.  Cool.