Montana State Prison

 

Today we went to the old prison.  We also hit a couple of museums, and I took a lot of photos.  This will probably take a couple of days to show you!

Here is the photograph booking room.  This stuff is so old!

I’ve heard of these shoes, but really didn’t believe that they even existed.  Click on the photo to read about the cement shoes.

Toilet paper rope.  Living in my fifth wheel I have to ask…was it one or two ply?

Here are just some of the shanks and weapons found.  The inmates were so creative!

The prison was built in 1871.  

Some 22 caliber rifle shells fell out of some stool tops.  Read the story by clicking on the photo.

Now I know the next two photos won’t interest a lot of people but I took these for Gene.  The above photo was the electrical box in the women’s area of the prison. 

And this electrical box was in the big house.  Looks like a mess to me but maybe Gene can fill me in on the going on!  

OK, story telling time! After going through the prison, we went across the road to a hobby store.  Everything in this store is made by inmates.  Let’s go shopping! 

I said to Road Hog, I will buy something small just to help someone out.  I bought a bracelet, meanwhile we were talking to the cashier.  The cashier told us that the inmates use their own money to buy the stuff like leather to make these things, and they do their own pricing.  Some of this stuff was very expensive….belts, bridles for horses, beaded things, etc.  Lots of stuff.  Above is the receipt that I was given for my bracelet.  As we were walking out the door, I told Road Hog “Gosh, I hope the bracelet I bought wasn’t made from a murderer. “  

Well, guess what?  I looked up the inmate when we got home.  Now believe you me, if I would have known that I bought something that was made by someone in prison for Deliberate Homicide, I wouldn’t have bought it!  I don’t want to support anyone that has killed and in prison for life!  But then I thought, maybe the money goes to the victim’s family?

I do want to say one other thing….if any of you receive a bracelet from me, please don’t ask any questions…Just take the damn thing and be happy!

Tomorrow is a day for us to relax.

I will continue on with photos from the museums.

Tully In Helena MT

 

We drove into Helena today and to get there we had to drive over a pass.  Beautiful country!  93 today!  With a breeze!

We stopped and got diesel, then Road Hog left Tully and I in the truck while he went shopping.  Tully and I people watched.  We saw a lot of older cowboys, some that could barely straighten up from all the bronco’s that they got kicked off of!  Most of them were so bow-legged!

Tully had to watch everything and everyone.  

This house is now a museum, but it used to be the original governor’s mansion.  Free tours if you are interested.

Here is an old homestead.  I would love to go exploring but it was too out in the open.  Imagine all the old tools and such I could find!

This is how a lot of ranchers are now storing their hay for the winter.  It isn’t uncommon for the ranchers to feed out of 2 or 3 year old stacks.  Ranchers can put up 300 tons of hay a lot faster then putting it up in bales.  Because the stacks are domed, they wick away moisture and snow.  The outside layer of the stack may start to brown, but inside the hay stays green and fresh.

I heard a rumbling earlier and stepped outside to see this train.  Not a whole lot of noise which I was pretty surprised.  Look how close to us it was…

It’s pretty close!  But he didn’t use his horn, just slipped on by.

God bless America!

Dinner tonight was barbecue chicken.  Buying that little barbecue/smoker was money well spent!  We also had a salad with it which isn’t in the photo.

Tomorrow we will go into the town of Deer Lodge to eat some supper, and maybe even visit Old Montana Prison Museum.  I hear that it is haunted!  My cup of tea!

Garrison Montana!!

 

We got on the road this morning at 9:15.  Look how beautiful Idaho is!  And not a whole lot of traffic!  Let me tell you, we have had some beautiful driving days!

A short time later we arrived in Montana.  Do you know what that means? Do you want me to tell you what this means? Did you know that Montana is an hour ahead of the western states?  Do I even need to tell you how screwed up not only me, but Tully and the cats are going to be?  Definitely a down side to this traveling business!

Montana sure is pretty too!  

Lots of wilderness, and more than likely, lots of wild animals.

When I think of Montana, this shack says it all.  Don’t look at the lights near the train track.  I think I see a cowboy on his horse heading up the hill.

We arrived in Garrison and found out that we had a small problem.  My job is to push the button to put the slides out.  The bedroom has one slide, extended without a problem.  Next was the two living room slides, one one each side of the trailer and one button slides them both out.  Next up, both galley slides.  Well, only one came out, the other one didn’t move.  The one above in the photo would not move. In a matter of minutes, Road Hog had Vanleigh on the phone, face timing so Samantha could see the panel in the basement under the slide. She told Road Hog to unplug the power to the slide and plug it back and boom! It works.  Samantha will document what happened and send it on the the guy we have been working with.  Once again, great customer service.  We honestly love this home and we will get all the kinks worked out.

It was up to 83 degrees today, but being in the shade and with the best breeze ever, we didn’t need air conditioning. 

We have our star link hooked up without a problem and no obstructions at all.  Once in a while we might have an obstruction but it is so slight that we don’t even notice.  DISH is hooked up and working.  

My Tully Bug!  We went on our little walk around the camp and it is beautiful here.  We saw some free range turkeys and chickens.

We also saw this big bird in the tree.  I looked her up and she is a black billed magpie.  If you look really close, her wing is blue. She must have been guarding her nest because she was pretty noisy.

We are going exploring tomorrow, maybe go into Helena which is about 36 miles away.  And yes, Tully will go too!

Last Night in Idaho

 

Lake Coeur d’Alene is huge!  And pretty!  And for people that water ski and swim, the weather has been great! High 73 degrees today!

I think a lot of vacationers have left for the summer, but there are a few stragglers hanging around.  The lake is 25 miles in length and anywhere from 1 to 3 miles wide.

And what you don’t see are houses built all along the shore.  There are a few here and there, but nothing like what you normally see.  Starting in November through February a migrating population of bald eagles visits the lake to feed on spawning Kokanee salmon.  More than 200 of the birds have been spotted.

We had to run into town today and passed this salon.  Beer and haircut.  Mens salon.  I’m dropping Road Hog off and picking him up next August. 😏

On to Garrison, Montana in the morning! This park is lovely and all but we are right next to the highway, which gets pretty loud.  Time to move on…

Happy Tully’s Day!

 

I know today is Tully’s day, but here is a photo of her sisters.  They were being pretty cute this morning.

God bless America!

This is Wolf Lodge Marina.  It’s next to Wolf Lodge Creek. 😂  It’s clear water, and you can go swimming if you want. Or maybe wading since it is about 2 to 3 feet deep.

I took Tully to the dog park.  She had the whole park to herself.

It was a beautiful day today, up to about 88 degrees.  The heat sure feels different when you’re surrounded by trees in the mountains.  We made a Costco run into Coeur d’Alene and diesel for the truck was $4.69. I think this was the first Costco I have seen that sells diesel.  And we bought a watermelon that was excellent.

Trailers and fifth wheels were coming in all afternoon.  This fifth wheel was towing a trailer with a four wheeler on it. No way Jose! I would not tow behind my fifth wheel. I think that is an accident waiting to happen. I’m not into four wheelers, obviously. 😂 Leave that four wheeler at home!

Road Hog barbecued dinner tonight.  Man, I love camping!

Dinner was pork chops and roasted golden beets and carrots.  Best meal ever!

If you didn’t know, today is Tully’s day! Happy National Dog Day.  Tully is the best traveling dog there is.  She is quiet, loves most people (including men), loves her sister Ethel Louise, (we are still working on getting along with Lucy), loves her walky walks, her treats, and her momma, and dad.  She is my bugged eye beauty, baby face, and my Tulls. Who has ever heard of a nice, quiet chihuahua?  Tully is pretty special, and not only to us but to all of our friends. Happy Tully Day, or Happy National Dog Day!