Big Sky Country Part 2

Montana is an amazing place. Hubby and I have really enjoyed it here. When we arrived it was still cold, I felt like I haven't been warm in about 4 months. Now it is warm, and I am enjoying not have goose bumps or having to wear a jacket. The pictures are of the same mountain, the first one is the day we arrived and the second one is from Thursday. Notice the difference in the snow.

 Tuesday, we went to the Gallatin History Museum. It's located in the original Bozeman jail house. It had a lot of interesting things to see and to read about. Lewis and Clark named the 3 rivers (Gallatin, Jefferson and Madison) that come together and join the Missouri River. Fun fact: The Missouri River is the longest river in North America. Rising in the Rocky Mountains of western Montana, the Missouri flows east and south for 2,341 miles before entering the Mississippi River north of St. Luis, Missouri. What I found very interesting about the museum is the hanging that happened in July 1924. Seth Danner was hung for the murders of the John and Florence Sprouce. His wife Iva, testified against him after obtaining a divorce. Iva was not only his wife, but his cousin and stepdaughter. The remaining question is "Did he really commit those murders"? I had to find out, so right now I am reading a book written by the museum's curator, Kelly Suzanne Hartman. She also signed the book for me, that was cool. The book is entitled, "Murder along the Yellowstone Trail".  Below, the first picture is of the jail cell named Siberia, not named that because it was cold, but because it was farther away from all the other cells. It held the most violent of criminals, including Seth. Next pictures are of a regular jail cell, a cannon, Lewis and Clark's adventure and the gun belt the first Gallatin Valley Sheriff wore.

Wednesday, hubby got a haircut and the stylist told him about an historic steakhouse. Hubby told her the name would be easy to remember because it is my name. So, I had to look it up. 

 

At the end of Prohibition, entrepreneur May Ping Sellards converted the building, formerly a butcher shop and bank, into the Old Faithful Bar, complete with a legendary brothel upstairs. The bar offered a small-town feel with live music and cold beer for loggers, ranch hands, and other locals around the Gallatin Valley. 

 

In 1963, Stacey Crosby and his wife, Phyllis, bought the establishment and reopened it as Stacey's Old Faithful Bar. Stacey and his family moved into the upstairs apartment. 

 

In 2005 Stacey's daughter, Toni, took over the restaurant. Stacey's underwent a massive remodel which included placing steak on the menu. Hubby and I ate there, but we didn't have the steak. Hubby had a burger, and I had the days' special, Bison meatloaf with a twice baked potato and broccoli. It was very good, and I even brought home leftovers and ate the rest the next day for lunch. Those of you who know me, know that I rarely bring home leftovers and if I do, I usually throw them out or hubby eats them. There were a lot of locals in the restaurant, and it didn't feel right to take pictures. So, I only have one.

So, I had the idea of going to Burke Park to hike. We did that on Thursday. The hike wore me out! I need to get in better shape. All in all, we did over 4000 steps on this hike, which isn't a lot, but it is when you are hiking up and down mountains it feels more like you have been hiking for miles. Oh, my thighs! It was beautiful to see downtown Bozeman from that height as well as the M on the mountain.  "For the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods, in whose hand are the depths of the earth, the peaks of the mountains are His also." Psalm 95:3-4 (NASB)

(The mountain we hiked down. Yes, those are roof tops in the background.)

(The mountain we hiked up. This didn't look bad until we were actually on it hiking.)

Friday was the day we started getting ready to leave Bear Cannon Campground. Hubby washed the RV, I put some things away and then we went out to dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ. The state of Montana is hiring all over the place, it is crazy! I think this place had 6 people working, it was slow, but our waitress was amazing! Good food for sure!

Saturday, we stayed at SoJo's Norwegian Ranch, another Harvest Host site. It was amazing! Love this place! We had such a great time! Friendly hosts and just amazed at what they have done with this place. We will come back!

Today is travel day, we are headed to Coeur D Alene, ID. It will be fun to see family. My mom and her husband, Dave, live there as well as my brother, Steve, and his family. My sister, Stefanie, and my nephew will also fly up for a week. Hubby and I will be there until July 3rd and then head west to stay in Oregon. 

If there is something special you would like me to take a picture of, please let me know!
 
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God, the RV & me...