Lewis and Clark Trail Back Home 1805 — 1806

Day 28: September 8th, 2001 Miles City — Glendive

I have breakfast again at Gallagher’s. Next stop is the gas station at the other side. I start to fill up my tank but the pump does not count the gallons up. Maybe the display is broken and I will see the final result on my receipt. But after I finished I also get no receipt. I only see an error message to see the cashier inside. So I go into the store and explain that the pump displays nothing. He tries to get a receipt from the system but that does not work. He explains that credit card payments run directly and he is not able to see them inside. I mention that maybe nothing will be charged because of the broken pump. But he is sure everything will be alright. Let’s see what will be on my credit card statement when I am back home…

Highway 489, MT

Highway 489, MT

I drive back over the Yellowstone River and turn onto Kinsey Road. It is still cloudy and it looks like rain. Not the best weather for backroad travels. But with my 4WD I am getting more and more courageous.

Highway 489, MT

Kinsey Road follows the Yellowstone River for several miles with nice views of the river. Then it leaves the river and takes me to Milwaukee Road.

The road passes a house very close and I start to be unsure if I am allowed to drive here. But there have been no signs yet. So I assume it is ok. Just past the house the road goes steeply down to a creek. The road passes the creek where the water will be pressed through some pipes. There are some stones on top and finally a pavement to cross the creek. But due to the heavy rain of the last days the water almost overflows and runs over the road. While sitting there and thinking if I can cross the creek another car drives down the hill. He crosses the creek, turns around and crosses the creek again. It seems he has inspected the crossing for damage. But if he is able to cross the creek twice I should be fine to also cross it. So I drive slowly over the creek and up the steep hill on the other side.

Then the road takes me deep into the country. Suddenly I reach the entry of a ranch and it looks like it is again private property which I am not allowed to trespass. But there are no signs around. Therefore I give it a try and drive on. I am amazed to see the road is covered with red stones, which I have not yet seen in this area.

88 S10 Blazer on Milwaukee Road, MT

After a short drive it starts to rain again. Just to be sure I kick in 4WD. I drive through the rolling prairie, unfortunately a bit far away from the river.

Bridge Milwaukee Road, MT

Bridge Milwaukee Road, MT

Milwaukee Road, MT

Traffic Sign Milwaukee Road, MT

But after a while the road takes me back to the river banks. It also stops raining and I can switch back to the gas saving 2WD mode. When looking at my card it seems the road is following an abandoned railroad. But I am not able to see any rails. At least I have nice views of the Yellowstone River.

Bridge over Yellowstone River, Milwaukee Road, MT

Bridge over Yellowstone River, Milwaukee Road, MT

Bridge over Yellowstone River, Milwaukee Road, MT

When doing my preparations I have seen a big bridge over the Yellowstone where I was not sure if I am able to cross the river there. When I reach the bridge it does not really look trustworthy. But two cars have approached me on this backroad. If they have been able to drive on this bridge, I should be fine too. But first I take some pictures of this bridge with some missing guiderails on the side. Then I enter the bridge. While driving over the bridge I got an idea: The railroad is really abandoned and where once the rails where laid out is now the road. Actually I have been driven on the old railroad and I am now passing the river on a railroad bridge. They have only put in some additional logs to close the gaps and added some steel mats where the tires run. Hopefully this bridge is stable. The yellowstone is very wide here and it is also a long way down from the bridge to the river. But I reach the other side without any issues and I am able to drive on to Terry.

From there I drive on paved roads to Fellon and on Highway 340 up the hill.

Traffic Sign Marsh Road, MT

After a while the next backroad leaves the highway which should take me through the prairie above the river. I hoped to have some nice views of the river from up there. But the road runs too far away from the bluff. When I reach the area of Marsh I am able to see the river again.

But the road takes me soon back into the prairie and it also starts to rain again. I kick in 4WD just to be sure until the roads are getting less slippery.

At the point where Highway 335 begins I am back on paved roads. My destination for toady is the Super 8 in Glendive, which I reach on paved roads. Even with all the bad weather I am good in time. I am checking in at a quarter to four. Then my usual routine starts with unloading my truck and checking my videos.

The dinner recommendation is the Kings Inn across the street. It’s a combination of motel and restaurant. But it doesn’t look very inviting. Therefore I drive into the city. Unfortunately it starts again to rain heavily, but only for a short period of time. I drive through the city for almost half an hour but I am not able to find something nicer. So I drive back a little bit frustrated to try the Kings Inn.

I already assumed this is not a restaurant to have steaks. It is a big hall with simple tables. The other guests are most likely from the motel. I am able to find a small table for just me. This time I don’t order my usual family restaurant chicken but pork. The dinner is much better than expected. It’s simple homemade cooking, but good. Way better than some of these family restaurant chains I have been visiting in the past.

They also have reasonable prices. They only had some issues when I ask to pay with my credit card. They can only accept credit cards where the motel guests check in. Unfortunately I don’t have enough cash. Otherwise I would have paid cash. But now I am forced to pay by credit card. It takes a while (they don’t do it online but on paper!), but eventually I made it!

I drive back to my motel on the other side of the road. Then I go to bed early. It will be a long day tomorrow and it doesn’t hurt to get a bit more sleep.