MT 200 from Missoula to Great Fallls

Today, after unloading in Spokane, WA, we headed back across the upper finger of Idaho and into Montana. Heading to Great Falls, we left the interstate to Missoula, taking MT 200. Its a two lane that winds through the mountains, up to Great Falls, and then on out through eastern Montana and into North Dakota. We'd traveled from Great Falls east, but had not yet been on this western portion of it.

Its always unsettling to round a curve in the road and see this.

Old fashioned game of chicken, anyone?

Take a second look...

Its always a little unsettling at first glance, until you realize that its a truck being hauled by a truck. I think they ought to turn it the other way, just to save everyone else a little stress.

Its a pretty drive along rivers and streams, through mountain passes where the pines shade the road and in the breaks you get views of peaks capped with the remnants of winter snows.

About 60 miles from Great Falls there is a change. Its almost as if, when creating the world, God took his finger and drew a line, and the trees stopped there.

To the north, the jagged peaks near Glacier are visible, and to the south are more of the forested mountain ranges that Montana is famous for. Its all beautiful, but I'll take the open plains of central and eastern Montana over its famous mountains any day. This is the Montana I fell in love with.

Here's a point of curiosity. This is a missile silo. There are a number of them between the ranch in Baker and Belle Fourche, SD. I've not seen them out here in Montana before though. Within that fence there is a giant underground silo where missiles were stored by the government. I believe the missiles are no longer housed in all of them, but I've seen at least two that were heavily protected, guard and everything, so it leaves me to believe that probably they are not all abandoned.

We've been to Great Falls twice before, once last summer delivering wheat to General Mills, and then again this past fall to load cows in the middle of a snow storm. That was an adventure. We came up here with Doug and went back to Shepherd with them, and the roads were sheets of ice coming and going.

There isn't much to Great Falls. I think there is some kind of military base here. It's a small city tucked into a curve of the Missouri River.

Wind Turbines

Rush hour traffic in Great Falls.

The Elevator where we loaded.

We're loading malt. Its going to Fort Collins, CO to a brewing company. We're not delivering till Friday morning, and we go past Shepherd. Looks like another day and a half at the house!