An account of our trip in September of last year. Some of the shots are re-posts.

After crossing the border into Montana at Port 'o Peigan we followed 89, one of my favourite highways, through St. Mary and then Great Falls. We overnighted at Bob's Motel in Neihart, in the Lewis and Clark Forest, which is pretty rudimentary, but has a great bar on the lower level, where the locals hang out. I used to stay here in my bike riding days.



Continuing south on 89, we stopped at King's Hill Summit. That's Showdown ski area in the background.



If you're in the Great Falls area, don't miss a run on 89! Another "summit" shot:



We worked our way south to I 90, then headed east to 78, the Absaroke Cut Off, which is another good P-car road. This is about 10 miles north of Red Lodge:



At Red Lodge, Montana, we stayed at the Pollard, which is a not-to-miss place if you're passing through:



And the Snowcreek Saloon, just down the street, is a great bar.

We were lucky to meet a great bunch of Healey folks from New England:



The next day we headed up the Beartooth Highway. There is a scenic turnout near the top:



The Chipmunks here are pretty mellow, and easy to photograph:



Then we drove up to the summit plateau. This is truly one of the most beautiful places you will ever see:



From Red Lodge, we did a day trip through Yellowstone, and took in the obligatory show at Old Faithful:



You have to keep your head on a swivel in the Park; many drivers and riders are totally distracted.

From Red Lodge we headed southeast into the Big Horn Mountains, and stayed at the Bear Lodge:



Alas, my brain was in holiday freeze mode, and I did not take any pictures on the fantastic roads (310 and 78) leading to the Junction.

[to be continued]

 

Great stuff! We drove out to Yellowstone from Chicago in June but not in the 993. I had not been to Yellowstone in 30 years. It's an amazing place. Look forward to hearing more.

 

Outstanding!! What a great trip in a 993. Thanks for sharing the pics.

 

Looks fantastic Rinty. It looks like you had great weather and scenery. I have to program myself to take photos on trips.

 

Rinty,

sounds like a great trip... we did a similar trip in my 356 two years ago. Thanks for sharing the nice images, makes me want to hit the road! Meanwhile we're in a deep freeze,eh... minus 29C last night.

Happy Trails,

bert

 

Thanks guys.

And which prompted my little project yesterday, instead of doing Christmas stuff.

 

From Burgess Junction we headed east to the Black Hills, and after an interesting scrum with some Harley guys in Spearfish Canyon (they couldn't stay with me, hee, hee), we visited this place:



For those of you who are interested in snakes, they have the best collection I have seen anywhere in the world, including a couple of species that I have never heard of. And lots of "two steppers...."

Karin had a bit of an emotional moment with Methuselah, whom she had ridden as a girl of 12 (they don't allow riding anymore):



After the Gardens, we drove down the road a ways, and they're still chipping away at Crazy Horse:



We stayed in Rapid City, and had dinner with a buddy from my riding days, Bob Mandel:



Bob, the Deputy D.A. in Rapid City, is the guy who co-prosecuted Arlo Looking Cloud for the murder of Marie Asquith Pictou, about 40 years ago after the standoff at Wounded Knee. He is currently co-prosecuting the alleged trigger puller, (Canadian) John Graham. Looking Cloud is serving a life term. These three were all involved in AIM at the time of the standoff. You can google Bob's name if you want to read the whole, fascinating story.

From Rapid City we paid a visit to Ellsworth Air Force Base and got a bunch of great shots, including my favourite, the Aardvark:



And another favourite, a Thud. I always think of Col. Jack Broughton, "going into downtown Hanoi", when and I see one of these:



And a B1B:



This is a fantastic museum!

Then we backtracked to Sturgis and headed up 85 into the desolate western Dakotas. Driving through this wild area, I visualized having to deal with a mechanical breakdown, and it was a bit unsettling. But the car just rumbled on, non plussed, for kilometre after kilometre. By the time we got to the border and a stopover in Regina, Saskatchewan, we had made a serious dint in the Dakotas bug population:



We spent some time with Karin's relatives and my nanoganerian mother in law enjoyed a spirited ride in the 993:



This trip concluded my first summer with the 993, and I continue to be impressed with its speed, comfort, reliability, and build quality. It's truly a remarkable car.