We started the day with a drive to Peaceful Valley Ranch. We had driven by Peaceful Valley Ranch before on our way through the park. When we stopped here we understood how it got its name. The drive back to the house and barns was like a trip into the past. It was relaxing. Even the trail was calming.
Our plan was to ford the river and hike to the top of the hill for a view of the valley. When we reached the Little Missouri River we reconsidered our plans. The river looked calm. It also appeared to be about three feet deep. We thought about how many times people moving west in the 1800s faced a river or stream like this. It is both an easy and hard crossing at the same time. For us, it was a question of how wet we wanted to get. For the pioneers, they were risking all they owned to get across. The little path on the other side is an easy walk on foot. With all your belongings in a wagon, that three foot tall bank on the other side looks like a mountain.
We decided to stay dry and enjoy the valley. What did they do? Risk a crossing, build a ramp? Or find another place to cross?
We probably spent about thirty minutes looking at the scenery and watching the water go by. It truly was peaceful.
During our short hike to the river, we got to see an unusually bright caterpillar, morning dew on the grass, and a woodpecker feeding on insects in a tree. It was an enjoyable visit to Peaceful Valley ranch.
Our next destination was Devils Tower in the northeast corner of Wyoming. Our travels would take us through Montana to Big Sky Country. We began on an interstate highway. Shortly after entering Montana and adding another state to our list of states we have visited, we took an exit onto a dirt road. Was this another Google misdirection? We quickly checked our other sources. They seemed to verify this choice.
This dirt road was a new experience. Compared with other dirt roads, it seemed like a highway. It was smooth. It did not have ruts. It did not have sharp hilltops with limited vision. It was two full lanes wide. There was minimal signage though. We looked up the speed limit in Montana on unposted roads. Yes, we had an internet connection. We drove for about fifteen miles through meadows and rolling hills at about 60 miles an hour.
There was little traffic until we reached the end of the dirt roads. The semi in the foreground was accelerating to 60 miles per hour as he came down the hill. He followed the short cut as well. The white SUV pulling the trailer was a little more hesitant. We stopped to see if the family in the SUV was okay. They asked us about the road. They did not trust Google either. We assured them we had just come about 15 miles across the dirt road from the interstate highway near North Dakota. They then decided to take the dirt highway as well.
Once we reached a paved road and a more open plain, the nickname Big Sky Country made more sense. After a few miles, we ended up in Wyoming where the roads were a little more winding.
The experience of seeing Devils Tower is hard to describe. It is massive and impressive. We saw it up close as you can see below. However, the real visual impact is from a distance. It dominates the landscape. No scientist has a solid explanation for its formation. But there it is. Must be something supernatural.
Here are some photos taken from different angles from within the park. Notice the different colors and shapes from the various angles.
This is a magpie we saw while in the Devils Tower National Monument area.
Our hotel for the evening was in Sundance Wyoming. The town claims that Sundance was the only place the Sundance Kid ever spent time in jail. They have a statue in a jail cell so you can join Sundance in jail. Must be a nice town. His crime was stealing a horse. Many places had a much stiffer penalty for that crime.
This is as far west as we are going on this trip. Tomorrow we will start heading east toward home. There is still a lot for us to see.