On the Road... again!

LAST week I hit the road again.  South out of Calgary to Fort MacLeod and on to Coutts and Sweetgrass MT.

LONG before I hit I-15, I spot the Sweetgrass Hills shimmering in the distance.  It's hard to get a perspective of their height, they are still 50 kms distant from the Canada/US border. 

It takes an hour to get through the 49th parallel, the customs agent, a woman with shocking white hair, is much more pleasant than the dude I got last year.

He didn't appreciate my answer to his question of 'why' I was visiting the United States of America! 

Apparently 'supporting the US economy' was not an appropriate answer.

Once back on the road, the miles came quickly.  It was a wonderfully sunny, cool day.  The Rockies clearly visible a hundred miles to the west.

South of Great Falls, where the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804-05 had to deal with a massive portage, the scenery of the Missouri River and Bitteroot mountains, is actually pretty spectacular.

Averaging 120kph, I make time in the Blazer, she knows the route well, it's her 5th trip south. (the state speed limits vary between 75-80mph)

Generally speaking, I don't speed, but do drive steady.  With a cooler, 25plus mpg performance, and a 500km bladder range, I can cover a lot of distance given decent road conditions, and these were very good road conditions.

As you can see, I don't photo shoot so much as drive and shoot!

Having reached Dillon before 6pm, there is no point in stopping early.  I feel great, the road is the same, the Chevy is running exceptionally well, and there is little to no traffic except in the vicinity of a major city.

Idaho Falls, where 11 months ago, tractor trailers were in the ditch, came and went, then Pocatello and pretty soon, I was crossing the Utah state line. 

Yee Ha!

At this rate I'd be in SLC by 10 pm.  And I was...

Nephi, next three exits... I took the first and found the Sa ari Motel.  Actually it was the Safari but there was an obvious malfunction with the "f" .

It was exactly 12 midnight when I pushed the buzzer.

Old place, but decent for an overnights sleep.  On the road by 8 the next morning, the rest of the day was almost totally uneventful.

Vegas came and went... no detours to Freemont this time around, took the Hoover Dam bypass highway, and presto, halfway across, I'm in Arizona.

The run into Kingman was warm, I drove with the window down and let the heat suck the moisture outa my lips!

After fuelling up for the 5th time since leaving Silver Springs, an idiot drives across the center line from the opposite direction in a Monster Truck with a pair of exhaust pipes the size of juice cans poking out the rear, and U turns in front of me, cutting me totally off and initiating a major ABS stoppie.

My first time in Kingman, a guy merged onto the highway, crossed two lanes and forced me over onto the shoulder as I was passing in the fast lane.

Must be something in the water?

Once onto route 93/60... I was feeling right at home and more relaxed.

The Chevy and I arrived at Golden Lane 

5: 45pm local time, it took barely twenty minutes to unpack.

A trip the next morning to Safeway for groceries, and some ice cold Rolling Rock and I was home again.

Now this, feels like retirement!