Random thoughts on the trip north

May 5, 2009
Kalispell, MT

As we travel (and even when we're not), Geri and I often say to each other "That'll make the Blog". Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't. Here are a few random thoughts from the past week.

It was a good fall for the bulls. All along our route, particularly in Nevada, cattle ranches and ranges were filled with calves. In some places where the range is "open" (no fences to keep the livestock off the road), we had to slow or even stop while they crossed.

It was a bad spring for the skunks. We saw more dead skunks on the side of the road than anything else.

We'd use this route again. We've been trying to limit our Interstate driving, and this route from Yuma to Montana worked very well (railroad crossings excepted). US-95 to Las Vegas and then US-93 all the way north brought us through some interesting country, the roads were in good shape with only two short construction zones and a limited amount of what we call "bad road", there was only one steep mountain pass, and we made good time for the most part. Since we tend to drive at 57-59 MPH anyway, we can make the same time on "back roads" as Interstates. The only real slow and mountainous area was in northern Idaho, traveling from Challis up and over Chief Joseph Pass into Montana. We took it slow and were fine. Thank goodness for the Jake brake.

We had good practice for the trip north. We know how to slow for construction zones and creep through the bumps. We saw some wildlife (some mule deer in Nevada, plus a momma white-tail with two kids and a cluster of three elk in Idaho) and were able to slow appropriately. We'll tend to travel between 9 AM and 3 PM, so that may reduce the exposure.

We're learning how to be more flexible. This is very important, especially for a "planner" like me. We're working to make our plans in smaller chunks, and to make changes when needed. More on that in the next update...