Category Archives: Montana

A Working Vacation in Lewistown, MT

Looking across Lewistown, MT

(This post will probably have way too much information and photos for a town that, odds are, you have never been to and never will be in. It’s my blog and I can do what I want!)

I had the chance to work in Lewistown, MT for a week and took it. I was able to make some money and see a new place at the same time. Lewistown (not Lewiston like I kept wanting to call it) has about 6,000 residents and is the county seat of Fergus county (named after James Fergus whose picture is further down in the post). There are mountains around the town although I had a hard time seeing them due to the weather most of the week. Lewistown is right in the center of Montana. I had a good time seeing some buildings and eating at some restaurants. The hot tub at the hotel was pretty nice too!

 

All in all it was a pretty good time. Some of my favorite spots were the Rising Trout Cafe Continue reading →

My First Montana Rodeo

Sadie and I were able to attend the opening night of the Northern Rodeo Association (NRA) Finals at the Butte Civic Center on October 6th. It was my first rodeo! (It was also two for one admission night which is always a plus.) There were cowboy hats, cowboy boots, a rodeo clown and even a proposal in the crowd (she said yes). The lighting wasn’t working for my camera. My pictures are quite dark so I am only going to add a few of them. Click for a link to a YouTube video of a bull ride (not taken by me but we were only a few rows up from this vantage point).

Cowgirl making a turn while participating in barrel racing.

Cowgirl making a turn while participating in barrel racing.

There were men’s and women’s divisions. A few events even had a junior division. Events included bareback riding, steer wrestling, breakaway roping, tie down roping, saddle bronc riding, barrel racing, roping and the main event: bull riding! I liked the steer wrestling. A steer would be let loose and a little later the cowboy would chase on his horse, jump off while grabbing the cow and wrestle it down. I looked it up and the animals are around 500 lbs.

A contestant returns to his horse after completing a tie down roping rodeo challenge.

A contestant returns to his horse after completing a tie down roping rodeo challenge.

Bull riding was my other favorite event. Nobody was seriously hurt on the night I was there but there were a few close calls. I think this will be a sport I will watch and not ever try. Some of the contestants were college students from around Montana.

The prize for the best bull rider

The prize for the best bull rider

I also wanted to share some of the bronco and bull names because they are a lot of fun. Some of my favorite bronco names are Joe Dirt, Triple Respect (there was also a Double Respect), Fun Hater, Lights Out, Slim Shady, Deal or No Deal and Beaver Milk. My favorite bull names were Fender Bender, Olaf and Nut Cracker.

 

A cowboy hanging on to the bull at the Northern Rodeo Association finals.

A cowboy hanging on to the bull at the Northern Rodeo Association finals.

I would definitely go to another rodeo. I would like to see one outside in the summer. That sounds like a nice evening out.

Hiking at Humbug Spires

In July I had the chance to hike at the Humbug Spires Recreation Area with my girlfriend. It was a beautiful day and the the 25 mile drive from Butte to the trail head was pleasant until we got to the washboard gravel roads. A Toyota Camry wasn’t designed for it but we survived, although the CD we were listening to did not. That’s Montana roads for you. There was also a fallen tree near the parking lot so we could only get so close, but I just thought of it as bonus hiking.

Butterfly at Humbug Spires

Butterfly at Humbug Spires

Trail at Humbug Spires near Butte

Trail at Humbug Spires near Butte

The trail was 3 miles one way to the foundations of a prospectors cabin. I am not sure how old this is as there was not a lot of signage. The area is popular with mountain climbers but we did not see any on the day we went. It was a Monday so that might have something to do with it. There were some small hills to overcome, but otherwise the trail was pretty easy. There are lots of rock formations. The area is part of the Boulder Batholith.

The Wedge formation at Humbug Spires

The Wedge formation at Humbug Spires

Cabin foundation at the end of the trail

Cabin foundation at the end of the trail

This was a nice hike and it was also close to Butte. I am certain I will be going there again. The above cabin foundation at the end of the trail was a great place to picnic and think about what living here back in the day would have been like. Get outside and find something new near you!

Evel Knievel Days 2016 – Butte, MT

Evel Knievel was born and raised in Butte, MT. Every year they hold an Evel Knievel Days festival featuring stuntmen, motocross, bmx shows, base jumpers and even a flying snowmobile (sorry I didn’t catch a picture of the last one).

Here is Geoff Aaron doing his trials bike show. He climbed over all of these obstacles for about 20 minutes without putting a foot down on the ground. Pretty impressive!

There were also base jumpers. We watched the lift go up and up and up over the Original Mine Yard. Not for the faint of heart!

The festivities included Evel Kross on a course made earlier in the week. Although it was only 5 laps most people, especially the amateurs, looked exhausted by the end of it. A few had trouble getting over the tires.

There was also a downhill mountain bike course and a pedal drift trike course. Continue reading →

Go to Glacier National Park

My girlfriend and I spent 3 nights at Glacier National Park in early July. If you haven’t been you should really make plans to go. The park was gorgeous and we did some hiking on all days except the day we left. We ended up doing part of the Lake McDonald trail, the Logan Pass to Hidden Lake Overlook, Avalanche Creek trail, and the Highline from Logan Pass to the Loop via Granite Chalet and the Grinnell Glacier Overlook. Along the way we saw beautiful views, many animals (no bears though) and some nice plants.

Entry sign to the west side of Glacier

Entry sign to the west side of Glacier

Lake McDonald is a large, glacially formed lake on the west side of Glacier National Park. It has a few campgrounds around it’s perimeter. We took a short hike along the west side of the lake. A large forest fire swept through the park in 2003. You could tell on the hike where the forest fire ended.

Below are some pictures from Logan Pass to Hidden Lake Overlook. Continue reading →