My Journey

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

So I've decided that today is the day to leave Bozeman. It's been a great stay but I think I'll do a little traveling now. I've spoke several times this past month about the trailhead where I've been over nighting and doing my day hikes. Here's some pictures of the trail and the sights along the way.....







These pictures are looking west to Bozeman and the Gallatin Valley.....









This is looking to the west to Yellowstone and Paradise Valley.....



And this is where we end up after a (10) mile hike.....

 

[parkkitchings]

Jerry....glad to see you're doing well out on the road. I've been kind of dormant lately but will be headed up to Bella Coola in BC this weekend so that's about to change. Be safe out there.

 

[chet6.7]

A happy dog and a happy wife makes a good life.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Park / Chet.....yes, doing well here but I'm starting to tire of life on the road again. I'll be changing that soon I think.....

Headed south out of Bozeman and had a few ideas in my head as to where I would go next. I traveled south on 191 and had planned to spend a few nights in the Gallatin National Forest south of Big Sky. Somehow I missed my turn onto Taylor Fork Road and before I knew it I was driving along the western boundary of Yellowstone National Park. Dispersed camping becomes difficult to find in this area so I pulled into a trailhead and set up camp. A few hours later a ranger told me to move on but fortunately he informed me of a nice, secluded spot on Teepee Creek Road, not more than a mile from the trailhead.....



My plan was to cut through Yellowstone but as it turned out there was a huge fire and the south entrance of the park was closed. After my stay in the woods, we drove into West Yellostone for a visit. Now that's a town I've never cared much for so I didn't stay long, and I made a U-turn, drove a bit north, and then headed west to Ennis, Montana.....



Now that's an area that I've always liked so I hung out here for awhile. I then decided that I may as well continue west so I took 287 over the mountain pass and made a stop in Virginia City, Montana. I've really been trying to avoid steep mountain passes since I've had the issues with truck overheating (both the engine and transmission). Looking at the gauges I saw it was elevated but neither went into the red zone. There's not much to do in Virginia City.....it's more of a tourist trap than anything else. I met some interesting people, ate some local food, and continued west.....





So I was just kind of wandering around at this point with no real destination in mind. I guess the next somewhat interesting stop we had was in Whitehall, Montana. I pulled into town right at dinner time so I decided to find a place to stay for the night. I cruised around town and came across a rodeo. Of course there were tons of campers and motor homes pulling horse trailers so I just kind of sneaked in there and parked amongst the Cowboys. All were friendly and nobody seemed to care.....



So I spent the weekend at the rodeo.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Mike D. Check your inbox....I responded.....



Well, Whitehall, Montana is located on Interstate 90, and I just didn't feel like getting on an interstate, so I drove north towards Helena, Montana, the state capitol of Montana. There was one steep grade between me and Helena but I figured it's impossible to avoid every mountain in Montana. As I drove up the one steep grade between me and Helena, I watched the temperature gauge jump up maybe 40 to 50 degrees but still not close to the "red zone". The transmission was reading about 200 degrees (which seems to be typical these days). Fortunately we had no issues and all went well as we sailed into Helena.





I enjoy strolling through the old town district of Helena. If you're ever there make sure to check out this art shop:

1+1=1. (1plus1is1.com)

These are coolest people that run this shop. They only accept work from emerging artists and you can't help but love these people. I hung out with them on 3 occasions. I was amazed at how open they were about their life.....loved their photos and what not.....

During our walks downtown, the dogs frequented this particular fountain to cool off a bit.....



I stayed in the Walmart parking lot which wasn't a bad one. Sometimes I wish I'd kept notes over my years of traveling across America as to which Walmart sucks and which ones aren't so bad. I did spot this 4 x 4 Bigfoot camper while I was in Helena. I've never seen anything like it before. Nice rig for sure.....



Like I said earlier, I had no plans as to what the next day would bring.....I wake up, drink coffee, look outside, walk, and then decide. So my friend's cabin was only 23 miles away and I decided that I'd go there, shower, figure out what's next. Well, truck only made it 22 miles before breaking down again. It lost almost all of it's power. I unhooked the Jeep and was able to make it to the cabin driving maybe 2 miles an hour. They say there's a silver lining in every cloud, and I guess mine was that I was able to remove the camper and have the truck towed to Helena. I was so lucky to have a property to stay at since it was 4 days to get the repairs completed. I was also fortunate to have my trusty Jeep.....

 

[chet6.7]

That Bigfoot camper is nice.
As you said,having a second vehicle and a place to stay while the truck was being repaired was a stroke of luck.
Is the fan clutch functioning properly on the truck?
I knew someone that plumbed drip irrigation misters to spray the radiator of his RV,used it going up grades in high ambient temps.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Chet....I had the cooling system checked out in Wyoming. I even had the thermostats replaced just in case. It does need the EGR valve and cooler replaced but the Chevrolet dealer in Helena said it'd take another 10 days to get the cooler so I moved on. He said I should be fine for awhile. That should help when that work is performed. A friend did some research on my truck and the issues that I've experienced this summer could be expected.....

So like I was saying I had 4 days to waste at Canyon Ferry Lake (my friend's cabin). I decided that I would stay in my camper rather than bum off of her and stay inside. I did hook up to her electricity and I did use her shower daily (although I left the hot water heater off so all the showers were ice cold). I spent my days reading, taking long walks, and of course swimming in the lake with my dogs.





I've always loved the Montana skies. I spent countless hours looking up into the skies.....wondering what is next for me.....



I decided to return to Bozeman and regroup I guess you could say. The wheat fields are sensational this time of year in Montana.....





It's now been (138) days, almost (5) months, living in the camper, just wandering around the country. I think the time is soon to settle down somewhere for a few months.....before I head south of the border.....

“For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.”

Robert Louis Stevenson

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Back on the road again.....



But this time I'm doing things a little differently. I left the camper and Jeep behind. Tonight we're staying in Custer National Forest in eastern Montana. I happened across a free campground as we were driving east on 212 towards Wyoming and South Dakota so we pulled in and grabbed ourselves a site.





Lots of snow the other night in Montana. I heard that the Beartooth Pass was closed and I saw the snowy peaks surrounding Bozeman. It's exciting.....fall is near.....

Looking forward to looking up and seeing the wonderful stars overhead tonight....

 

[bigskypylot]

Back on the road again.....

View attachment 365298

But this time I'm doing things a little differently. I left the camper and Jeep behind. Tonight we're staying in Custer National Forest in eastern Montana. I happened across a free campground as we were driving east on 212 towards Wyoming and South Dakota so we pulled in and grabbed ourselves a site.

View attachment 365299

View attachment 365300

Lots of snow the other night in Montana. I heard that the Beartooth Pass was closed and I saw the snowy peaks surrounding Bozeman. It's exciting.....fall is near.....

Looking forward to looking up and seeing the wonderful stars overhead tonight....

View attachment 365313

I need to get back home to Bozeman asap. New job has me out east

 

[parkkitchings]

Jerry....saw in one of your posts that you're heading south of the border. Baja? This was shot about 100 feet from the back of my camper two winters ago! Make sure you pack a mask and snorkel..........

 

[johnnytravels]

Back on the road again.....

View attachment 365298

But this time I'm doing things a little differently. I left the camper and Jeep behind. Tonight we're staying in Custer National Forest in eastern Montana. I happened across a free campground as we were driving east on 212 towards Wyoming and South Dakota so we pulled in and grabbed ourselves a site.

View attachment 365299

View attachment 365300

Lots of snow the other night in Montana. I heard that the Beartooth Pass was closed and I saw the snowy peaks surrounding Bozeman. It's exciting.....fall is near.....

Looking forward to looking up and seeing the wonderful stars overhead tonight....

View attachment 365313

Ha, I camped at Red Shale while driving through Montana last year! It's nice seeing familiar spots come up, Bozeman was a favorite town of mine as well. Sorry to hear about your automotive problems, but enjoying the updates, save travels!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

sheller73.....I also am back east right now and honestly I'm hating it.....just too hot and humid for me.....

Park.....Baja is one place I've been considering lately. Initially I was thinking Costa Rica but with all the truck problems (it broke down again since last posting). So who knows.....I'm gonna get a place in Montana to rest and plan to go south beginning of January.....

JonnyTravels.....that really is a nice free campground. I had the entire south side to myself.....

As I was saying, I'm currently on the east coast. I decided to continue east after leaving the campground. The morning sunrise leaving Montana was amazing.....





It seemed like a good idea at the time. With winter just around the corner, I decided that I'd like to visit my son and grand daughter and then return to Montana. I really wasn't accomplishing much of anything and was just wandering around, so I hit the road.....





Things worked out fairly well for me except the weather didn't cooperate one bit. It rained everyday crossing the country. Sleeping in the bed of a pick up truck with 2 dogs sure did suck. After a few days we crossed the Mississippi River.....



And a few more days of driving and we were home. I spent my last night camping in the George Washington National Forest. This is where I first fell in love with the forest as a very young man, so I wanted to stay one last night, as I won't be returning to the east coast again....

I finally made here, the truck was running great, and all was well. Second day here the truck lost power again. I could hardly believe it. I crawled into the Chevy dealership and am anxiously awaiting it's return. Lots of stuff going on with it.....everything related to the first two breakdowns. I'm expecting a $5,000 invoice Friday afternoon (ouch !). But I hope to be back on the road Saturday, returning to Montana.....

 

[galvyork]

Good luck man....might be time for a Tundra! lol

 

[johnnytravels]

Again, sorry about the bad luck, hope things turn around. And any specific plans for wintering over in Montana? Did you consider anywhere warmer, lol?

 

[chet6.7]

Beautiful sunrise. Vehicle breakdowns are a pain,at least you have good luck in where and when they break.