We Must Have Lost Our Mind

to think that we could stock up on supplies

on a Saturday. . .

in the rain. . .oh my word.  Sheer craziness. . .

we had a good plan. . .in theory.

Left Jamestown about 8:30A. . .short 1 1/2 hours to the RV Park in Bismarck. . .

rains weren’t predicted to start til around noon. . .
and last about an hour. . .so all would be well.

Yeah. . .they started about 30 minutes into our drive,

and continued the entire way. . .not bad. ..just dark, gloomy, and drizzly. . .

Hillcrest Acres RV Park is fine. . .

nice long pull through spots. . .30A FHU. ..$30 no discounts

a combination Mobile Home/RV Park. . .but very clean,

very well organized. . .and very, very full. . .

also, easily accessed, and convenient to what we wanted to see. . .

The North Dakota State Capitol Building in Bismarck. . .

they call it the “Skyscraper on the Prairie”

isn’t it sad?  We were just so disappointed. . .

now, I must tell you I borrowed the two pics you see above

from the State Capitol Website. . .because. . .

there was a concert on the Capitol Mall out front

along with all these vendors. . .so my pics are as sad as the Capitol Building. . .

we didn’t get a pic of us in front of it. . .it was raining. . .the wind was blowing. . .boo hoo!

so there ya go. . .but hey. . .we’ve seen it. . .so I can check it off. . .

 

Now. . .on to the stocking up in preparation for our 5 day stay in Medora. . .

where we’ve been told there are no big stores. . .

you know what that means. . .tourist prices,

unless you want to drive 45 minutes to Dickinson. . .

 

wow. . .we remember all over again WHY we HIBERNATE on the weekends. . .

yikes. . .I still have no chicken. . .no hamburger meat. . .NO RICE. . .

very few veggies. . .NO peppers. . .

is it even possible to cook without peppers?

it was just TOO crazy. . .


Instead. . .we have NOW planned a supply stop in Dickinson ND

with the Motor Home. . .yippee. . .we’ll see. . .

if it’s too difficult to access. . .or too crowded. . .

we will just make the drive back later in the day in the Jeep.

 

Craziness. . .we don’t have too many crazy days. . .

but this one certainly qualifies as one of them. . .

 

See you next time in Medora. . .

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

World’s Largest Buffalo. . .I guess this is Buffalo Week

Leaving Minnesota this morning,

we had decided that Jamestown ND

would be a good destination for an overnight stay. . .

it met all the criteria. ..about 3 1/2 hours on the road. . .

leaving time to see a couple of interesting things in the afternoon. . .

this beautiful field of sunflowers brightened our day. . .

first time we’ve ever crossed the North Dakota State Line. . .

by noon we were all set up at Frontier Fort RV Park. . .
I was reminded by Judy, when I told her where we had reservations,

that Sherry and David had a horrible experience here. . .

so we were somewhat concerned. . .

but like Sherry said. . .the reviews weren’t that bad,

and another couple we had met said they had a nice long

pull through with great 50 amp service. . .so here we are to give it a try. . .

here’s the deal as best we can tell. . .

do NOT stay in the BACK IN 30 amp spots. . .

you can see more graphic pics by checking out Sherry’s Blog

pay the extra fee for the 50A pull through spots, which seem to be fine. . .

$27 Passport America Rate. . .

it will work for just this one night. . .

 

There are three things we would like to see since we are here. . .

Louis L’Amour was born in Jamestown ND,

and lived here as Louis LaMoore until he was 15.

He later changed the spelling of his name

when his writing career began to take off. . .


Dave has read every book he has ever written. . .

I knew the World’s Largest Buffalo was going to qualify

as one of those weird Roadside Attractions. . .

yep. . .I was right. . .

right up there with Paul Bunyan and Babe. . .fun stuff!

and then the Albino Buffalo,  but this was the best photo we were able to get. . .

and this is from the freeway.

The buffalo were not visible from the museum area,

but we knew we had seen them from I-94 as we were coming into town. . .

so we drove back around there to get these sad pics. . .

Sherry’s pics of him? are much, much better. . .

so I hope you’ll check it out. . .

She and David must have been at Frontier Town on a Saturday. ..

‘cause none of the stuff she shows on her blog was going on

when we were there today. . .and we leave in the morning. . .

 

but I did get this one great pic of Dave funnin’ around. . .

he’s such a clown. . .

After Frontier town, a teeny little grocery run

was an absolute necessity. . .

we were totally out of bread, eggs, and sugar. . .


We’ll see you in Bismarck next time for our tour of the
North Dakota State Capitol. . .

 

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

 

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,North Dakota,Jamestown ND,Frontier Town,World's Largest Buffalo,Albino Buffalo,White Buffalo

Well. . .That was a Shocker. . .

On Wednesday, we decided to drive over to

Tamarac NWR, and do the Blackbird Wildlife Trail,

which is a self guided driving tour. . .

imagine our surprise as we came around a curve,

and discovered a Buffalo Traffic Jam. . .

really?  In Minnesota?  we had no idea. . .

come to find out. . .a herd had gotten loose

from the local Buffalo Ranch,

and had been wandering the refuge for about a week. . .

for more info, more pics, and the unfolding story

check out Judy’s Blog. . .Travels With Emma. . .

There’s a good possibility the buffalo will come to a sad end

if they are not corralled soon. . .

on to the refuge we go where it is our great privilege to see

these Trumpeter Swans with their signet. . .

I love the way my photo looks. . .almost like a watercolor painting

from needing to zoom in from such a long way. . .

we loved the observation platform at Blackbird Lake,

and spent quite a long time there just observing stuff. . .

but nothing exciting enough to show you. . .LOL!

We’ve arrived too late for the Spring Wildlife. . .

and too early for the Fall Wildlife. . .such is our planning

what can I say?

So, that was about it for our exciting Wednesday. . .

Today, Thursday, we drove back over to Tamarac,

for our “official” guided tour with fellow RV’er,

Blogger, and amazing volunteer. . .Judy.

Since we were the only ones who showed up,

we felt very special to have Judy’s undivided attention. . .

wish I had thought to get a pic of Dave opening and closing gates. . .

since, on the guided tour, you get to go to places not open to the public. . .

 

These are the things we saw. . .as I said. . .it’s high summer. . .

an Osprey nest. . .last week they were still there. . .this week. . .soronora. . .goodbye!

the “teenagers” Trumpeter Swan group hanging out on Flathead Lake. . .

Judy explained that they don’t begin producing young until they are about three years old. . .

this is where they hang out together until they get “lucky”  (my words. . .not Judy’s. . .LOL!)

this was a Chippewa Burial Ground up on a knoll. . .

the Spirit Houses, though collapsed,

are still totally visible. . .

the small triangle is where the spirit of the beloved escaped. . .

a garter snake needed to get across the road. . .

my very favorite thing of the day. . .

this beautiful Monarch Butterfly. . .isn’t it divine?

 

loved the black capped chickadees that visited

just outside the window of the motorhome. . .

We invited Judy and her Co-Volunteers, Bridget and John

over for fajitas in the afternoon. . .

After we ate and visited, and they were getting ready to leave. . .

we remembered. . .oh. . .pictures. . .so. . .there ya go. . .


What a wonderful, wonderful day for the memory bank. . .

Thanks Judy!

We head out in the morning. . .

See ya next time in North Dakota. . .

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

 

Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge,Minnesota

Itasca State Park and the Headwaters of the Mississippi. . .you gotta see it!

 

we waited out the weekend. . .thinking Monday would be a much smarter day to

view the Headwaters of the Mississippi. . .hmmm. . .

and although we did not enjoy the boat tour at the Soo Locks. . .

we do love being out on the water,

and decided the Boat Tour of Lake Itasca would be just the thing. . .

I must say. . .very well done!

first thing we see. . .the Common Loon. . .Minnesota’s State Bird,

and the one thing I really, really wanted to see while we were here. . .check!

now tour guides sometimes amuse me. . .

and this was one of those times.

As we pass the Old Growth Forest portion of the park

called Preacher’s Grove. . .the guide told us that is was called that

because a group of Preachers gathered for a

. . .Religious Conference. . .

I almost laughed out loud. . .and told Dave. . .

I’m pretty sure back in those days they called it a

. . .Revival Meetin’. . .or a good ole’ Brush Arbor Meetin’

nuttin’ fancy like a religious conference. . .

ah well. . .tickled my funny bone. . .

I was completely intrigued by the wild rice growing all along the shore of Lake Itasca. . .

evidently, it is very common and grows all over the Great Lakes Area. . .

and was a huge trading commodity for Indian Tribes in the area. . .

causing many battles over wild rice. territory. . .

More images of Wild Rice and Wild Rice Harvesting

Foraging for wild food intrigues me. . .not enough to do it of course,

(well, other than blackberries). . .but it does intrigue me. . .

I bought this bag of rice in the gift shop,

although I quickly discovered I could have gotten it much, much cheaper at the Farmer’s Market.
Oh well. . .it contributes to the State Park coffers. . .so all is well,

and I am sure we will enjoy a couple of wild rice pilafs in the near future.

we also loved seeing “The Bog”. . .

the little short trees that look like Christmas Trees

are actually Tamarack Trees which are approximately 80 years old. . .

their growth is stunted due to their proximity to the bog. . .interesting!

(I’d love to load the link to a fact sheet about it. . .

but slow internet. . .not happening. . .maybe later)

lots of kayakers on the lake. . .loved this wooden one.

bet that suckers heavy though. . .

the kayakers needed to paddle through the wild rice. . .

I think the little dog on the front must have seen something interesting,

because he dove in. . .and needed to be fetched out. . .

it all happened really quick. . .too funny!

here was our view of the headwaters from the lake side. . .

the kayakers could paddle in this far, and then needed to portage. . .

this was our view of the Headwaters once we finished our boat tour,

DROVE around to the Visitor Center. . .

and hiked an awful long way. . .just kiddin’

watched these kiddos “wading across the Mississippi.”

Won’t that be a fun story to tell when school starts. . .loved it!

I got the biggest kick out of watching all these folks

crossing the Mississippi on these rocks. . .

I’m too clumsy to attempt it myself. . .

and after Dave’s fall on the rocks at Schoodic Peninsula. . .

well. . .yeah. . .ain’t happening. . .

but doesn’t this look fun?
Just past the kids swimming, you can see the path

the kayakers were taking through the wild rice

to reach this point from the lake. . .

What a fun day we had at Itasca State Park. . .

but if you really want to know all about the park

and all the things to do there. . .

plus they got some really great shots of the
Headwaters without all the folks. . .

I really, really must direct you to

Sherry and David’s Blog

In the Direction of Our Dreams

they actually stayed at one of the campgrounds in the park,

and checked out the park from every angle. . .enjoy!

See you next time at Tamarac NWR. . .

‘til then,

Janice and Dave

OH. . .P.S. . .

I almost forgot to tell you. . .

after Itasca SP, we drove the Great River Road

over to Bemidji to see Paul Bunyan and Babe. . .

I mean really. . .can you even come to Minnesota,

and not go to see Paul Bunyan. . .come on!

 

LiveJournal Tags: Full Time RV Living,Motorhome Travel,Lake Itasca,Itasca State Park,Minnesota,Headwaters of the Mississippi,Great River Road,Paul Bunyan,Bemidji MN