The Great Road Trip 2017....Part Twenty/Day Seventeen

Part One of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Two of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Three of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Four of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Five of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Six of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Seven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eight of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Nine of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Ten of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eleven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Twelve of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Thirteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fourteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fifteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 
Part Sixteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

Part Seventeen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 

Part Eighteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

Part Nineteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

We had a hearty motel provided breakfast the next morning since we didn't have dinner the night before.  I don't drink coffee so I had some kind of juice, scrambled eggs, a huge sausage patty and a little corned beef hash.  The hash was salty as heck so I didn't salt the eggs(just peppered them)and ate a hunk of each in every fork full to spread the salt out.  Do the best you can with what ya got. ;-)

The common area(where breakfast was served)at this motel was pretty grand and decked out in taxidermy and bear pelts.....

"Eat, Sleep and Fish"(or Hunt)seems to be the motto everywhere we go out here. lol

More animal heads and a fly rod.

After checking out we hit the gas station next door to fill the car's tank.  I wandered around inside the attached convenience store.......

Cute sign.

And there was a cardboard sign on the side of this building letting you know which direction was which on the interstate this gas station was adjacent to.

There were a lot of t-shirts with firearms displayed on them here for sale.  You know you are in the "wild west".  I opted to buy a souvenir Montana coffee mug instead to tote home.

We drove East on I-90 onto we hit Columbus MT

Then it was local roads through Joliet, Fromberg, Bridger and down into 

Wyoming.

I had to take a photo of this drive-thru coffee spot along the way.  You'll notice it's called "Revenant Coffee".  I believe it was named after the book from 2002 and the film starring Leonardo DiCaprio that came out in 2015.  I had read the book by Michael Punke earlier that year and I highly recommend it!

A cattle sighting along the highway.........

                              

The Two Bear Tavern and Eatery in Fromberg....in keeping with the Revenant movie theme.....

And changing highways to get to Bridger....

And Welcome to Bridger...

Truly a one light town, Bridger.  And it's not even a full 3 colors traffic light. lol

A crowd of used appliances along the road outside of Bridger?

And back out into the wilderness.......

A strange thing being towed by someone by us on the highway.  Is this a log splitter, a generator or what?  I couldn't figure it out.

About lunch time we came to this place.  I immediately thought of Kim when I saw this sign. *snort*

So we made a pitstop at the Blue Rooster Cafe, an unassuming little eatery, somewhere between Bridger and the Wyoming state line.

Not being very hungry as it was early for lunch after that breakfast we had at the motel, we just got a drink and a slice of pie each.  Can't recall what pie I had but I do remember it wasn't that great.  Hubs liked his cherry pie which was homemade.

                                   

And it was back onto Highway 72 and more of those lovely views of mountains.....

Another one of those log ranch entrance gates/structures........

And then we crossed the border into Wyoming(not our first time though).

The highway changed to 120 in Wyoming but the scenery was similar to Montana.

And we knew we were getting close to our destination for the day when we saw this billboard.........

And then this one, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the death of Buffalo Bill Cody, whom the town is named for.  That's all I can figure it means since the town of Cody was founded well before 1917.

We passed this historic building in town that housed "the Silver Dollar Bar"....

Then the historic Irma Hotel, named for William F. Cody's youngest daughter, Irma Louise Cody.  I wish we had stopped into the bar inside since made of cherry wood and it was bestowed to Buffalo Bill for the hotel by Queen Victoria(Buffalo Bill took his Wild West Show to England and Scotland and they performed for the Queen).

And then we spied non combustible locomotion on the roadway. ;-)

And of course lots of stores selling guns and accessories and advertising a gunsmith.  Take note of the saddle sitting under the flag too.

And we had arrived finally at Buffalo Bill's Center of the West Museum in Cody WY.

Some native teepees on the grounds outside the building.

A howling wolf statue too.....

Hubs posing with a bronze statue of a native warrior looking skyward.

Hubs again posing with the 100 years banner on the building.....

Me inside the entrance posing with a grizzly.

The Museum had various rooms and themed exhibits in each area.  I hit the William Cody historical rooms while Hubs wandered into the native fowls of the area rooms.

This was the holographic projection of Buffalo Bill as you entered the exhibits of his life.

It's too bad that you could barely hear what he said as it was in a crowded, noisy public area at the front of the museum.

A different location was called for.....

Look! Another sheep wagon sighting.....

When Queen Victoria and Prince Philip came to the US in 1913, Buffalo Bill took the Prince out big game hunting at Camp Monaco in Wyoming, on a fork of the Shoshone River.  This is the trunk of a tree that was witness to that adventure. It was said to have been the tallest tree in the forest there.

Here is a Wheel of Fortune, using in the Wild West Show.  Maybe there was gambling involved. lol

Here is a gilded beer stein that belonged to William Cody.  It is engraved "To General Cody from Peck's Bad Boy".  Info on Peck's Bad Boy HERE.  It seems William Cody was a rule-breaker who lived outside the bounds of the law at times so someone dedicated this stein to that reputation.

A print of cowboys at chow time.......

Me and the stagecoach.

This piece of jewelry was lovely.  It's a priceless Gold and Diamond Fob and was given to Buffalo Bill in 1892 by Queen Victoria.

A reproduction of a tent camp the likes of which William Cody may have inhabited when out hunting.

A lithograph of painted panels commemorating Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show as it was performed in London for the Royal Family in 1887.

Buffalo Bill has a big proponent of women's rights.  He hired many female workers in his Wild West Show back when women were expected to marry and stay to have children, run the home and serve her husband.  No wonder that Wyoming was the first state in the USA that included women's suffrage in it's agenda and gave women the right to vote in 1917.  Coincidently, this was the same year Buffalo Bill died.

One of Annie Oakley's costumes and saddle along with my reflection. lol

Cut-outs of cowboys on horseback  amongst an antique stagecoach....

I believe this was a Frederick Remington painting......

More bison.....

A typical homesteader's cabin of the era in Wyoming.

A taxidermy Bison momma with her baby, otherwise known as a "red dog".

Me taking a selfie with a big taxidermy horned male bison.

It took me at least an hour to get through this part of the museum.

More on other areas of this museum next time........

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

 The "The Great Pumpkin is Coming" Edition.....  

Saw this massive free standing display of seasonal breakfast cereal at Walmart last week.  Looks like a sugary variation on Lucky Charms or something.

This is day 120 of the "diet".  Yay!

My PCP is on board with this way of eating to reach a short term goal so no unsolicited advice on this eating plan please.  While I appreciate the concerns I am fine and I am losing weight.  I haven't had any sugar nor any white food(mostly).....bread, potatoes, rice, pasta since returning from the cruise on June 4th.  But I am holding fast to my plan anyway.....so far.  I am down an additional 40 lbs. since starting this eating plan(not counting the 8 lbs. I gained on the cruise and then dropped after coming home).  Haven't weighed the last few days so I might be a little lighter than 40 lbs.

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned for last week.......

1. Sunday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad

2. Monday--Grilled Salmon, Sautèed Cabbage

3. Tuesday--Cheeseburgers, Baked Sweet Potato Fries

4  Wednesday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

5. Thursday--Leftovers(Lasagna, etc.)

6.  Friday--No Clue

7. Saturday--No Clue

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad

2. Monday--Grilled Salmon, Sautèed Cabbage

3. Tuesday--Cheeseburgers, Baked Sweet Potato Fries

4  Wednesday--a can of Soup, Leftover Cabbage, Hummus and Celery

5. Thursday--Yogurt w/Flaxseed, Leftover Spaghetti and Meatballs

6.  Friday--Big Salad w/Chicken, Hummus and Crackers

7. Saturday--No Clue other than Yogurt in the am-Flying day

No going back to old habits and eating patterns for me!

What got taken out of the freezer last week...

*  a hunk of Salmon

*  2 dozen Meatballs

*  2 Hamburgers

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  Leftover Spaghetti and Meatballs

*  Leftover Lasagna

Last week we spent $208.44 on grocery shopping for October.  

Grand Total shopping comes to $208.44 for October.   

There are 22 shopping days left in October.

The total is high at this point in the month because I won't be in any shape to shop once we get back from surgery so I packed in all the shopping the first week of the month.

I've earned $96.97 on Ibotta in October.

I've earned $30.00 on Shopmium in October.

I've earned $5.75 on Alexa app in October.

I've earned $2.10 on Kroger Cash Back in October.

I've earned 10,071 points from food shopping on Fetch in October.

I've earned 3,133 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in October.

I've earned 1,084 SB from food shopping on Swag Bucks in October.

That is $134.82 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Fetch)on $208.44 of grocery spending so in reality it's $73.62 in food spending after the 4 rebate apps I count. 

My savings percentage for the last week was 22.72% and the monthly savings total for October comes in at 22.72% spent.  

Leftovers going into this week...nothing.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--No Clue

2. Monday--No Clue

3. Tuesday--No Clue

4  Wednesday--No Clue

5. Thursday--No Clue

6.  Friday--No Clue

7. Saturday--No Clue

This is surgery week in Ohio.  I am clueless about what we'll eat, but we will eat, no doubt.

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any deals on food at your stores this week?  

Sluggy   

The Great Road Trip of 2017....Part Nineteen/Day Sixteen

Part One of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Two of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Three of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Four of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Five of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Six of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Seven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eight of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Nine of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Ten of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eleven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Twelve of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Thirteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fourteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fifteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 
Part Sixteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Seventeen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

Part Eighteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

So we all hugged and cried and hit the road East the next day.

Well we headed North toward Coeur d'Alene so we could pick up the interstate there.

But we drove about an hour and a half North before making a stop outside of Plummer, Idaho........

Just had to go in and poke around this shop on the Nez Perce Reservation if for no other reason but because of the awesome bison statues outside. lol

Not only was this a Smoke Shop but there was a huge section of beading supplies, leather pieces, fabric, sewing supplies and feathers, etc. for making native costumes.

There was also a large area of hand dipped candles for sale......

It was very overwhelming the amount of fabric and such they had and a shame I couldn't bring any of the sewing stuff home with me.

There was also hand carvings and other indigenous made goods.  Hubs bought a book and a package of white sage.

I spent a little time in the front, the actual smoke shop.  Buying cigarettes on the reservation don't carry the federal taxes they do when bought on the outside and they can sell things that aren't legal(at that point in time)off the reservation lands.

They had many vapes(vapes were relatively new and a hot commodity back then), a wall of cigars as well as CBD and lovely handmade glass bongs as you can see in this shot.  

I bought my kids some vape juice and my brother some cigars.

Here I am looking all cute(lol)posting with one of the bison statues before we hit the road again.

The Nez Perce Reservation/Tribal Lands aren't one continuous piece of ground.  There are many pieces of land spread out over the state of Idaho that belong to this tribe.

We continued north into Coeur D'Alene, passing by the Casino entrance.

And then continuing into the town of Coeur D'Alene, all the while traveling along the shores of Lake Coeur D'Alene.

This lake is massive.  We were weaving in and out of tribal lands and then crossing over a part of a finger of the lake on this journey.

It was a relatively clear day(if you don't count all the smokiness due to wildfires that Summer)and the scenery was spectacular.

Once we got onto the Interstate(90)Hubs needed to stop for gas so I wandered into the convenience store to stretch my legs.

Saw these Snickers bars and though of Kim..........lol!

And they were selling this t-shirt in there.  At this point in our month long adventure I would have appreciated a nap or two.....

Back on I-90 and even though it was the interstate the scenery was still wild, rugged and lovely.

We passed an exit for Lookout Pass.  I believe it's the only interstate exit with the number of 0.

Lookout Pass is a ski and recreation area that straddles Idaho and Montana.  It is the highest point in the rocky Mountains between Seattle WA and Missoula MT.

Beyond every turn was another great view!

And then we were back in Montana.

I'd hate to be towing a camper on these hilly roads.

And passing one of the many log filled trucks. I hope this truck had good brakes on the descent. lol 

Loved the little picture signs along here with mountains toppling over and rocks falling onto a car. lolz

Then we drove a bit further and we were very close to an uncontrolled wildfire.

You can see the smoke flumes coming up into the sky.

We kept driving and the road took us further away.....

And then we were at a place on the highway closer to the fire.

At one point there were some railroad tracks that went under the Interstate and I saw a train car with forest fire fighters hanging onto the sides, being moved from one area of the outbreak to another.  I wasn't fast enough with my camera plus Hubs was hauling a$$ out of there!

I prayed for them all to be safe while sitting in our car, being driven away from this danger.

Awhile later we were clear of the fire area and saw this sandy bank along a river.  I believe this was part of Clark Fork.

Then we were getting close to civilization--Frenchtown and further up the road was Missoula.  We ended up stopping in Butte for lunch.

But first, we had another couple of hours of driving to reach Butte(or as Joel use to call it "Butt"). ;-)

Some craggy rock cliffs......

And then I saw a giant "D" on the side of a mountain.   It seems this is a "thing" in Montana.  Towns and schools put giant letters on mountain sides.  It's a form of geoglyph and as I found out quite common in these mountainous states.

Info HERE.

Not sure what this "D" signifies.  Might have been in Drummond MT which is near the Clark Fork near Butte.

Almost to Butte.....

We stopped in a Perkins off the Interstate as we wanted something quick and easy so we could hop back onto the road since we lots of miles to cover still before stopping for the night.  The lunch rush was well over and the place was pretty deserted but the service was still glacial.  I got a salad with honey mustard dressing, not being very hungry since I was riding in a car all day.  I had to remove a bunch of croutons from said salad as it was just lousy with them!  Crouton overload isn't a bad thing unless they are not crunchy.

We only had about another hour from Butte to reach the Quality Inn in Belgrade/Bozeman, MT.  Could have hit the Lewis and Clark Caverns(I know Kim would have LOVED to go there...not!)but I have a

phobia about caverns stemming back to my childhood and being traumatized by being forced to go into the Luray Caverns by my parents.  Can't do those ever since(and my mild claustrophobia sure doesn't help on that score either).

Approaching Belgrade Montana, a blip on the map(at least back in 2017)along the Interstate.  This is one of the only motels in the area and/or only one of them that weren't crazy expensive.

I don't believe we ate dinner that night.  Hubs was too tired from driving so we settled into our room and got a good night's sleep.

Sluggy