Kansas City

Originally I wanted to drive to Omaha as that seemed like a reasonable days drive from St Louis, but the hotels in Omaha were $400 to $500 a night. Turns out it was the weekend for Warren Buffett’s annual meeting.  Instead I left for Kansas City after brunch with my friends Francois and Francoise. The drive was easy and everything was very green. As I pulled into KC I looked up a couple of museums but they all closed at 4pm or 5pm if they were even open on Saturday. I was staying at the Hotel Phillip in the Power and Light district. The hotel was an old elegant boutique hotel and the lobby was full of prom goers posing for pictures. After checking in I wandered around a bit but the streets were pretty dead. They had restored their old buildings nicely and they all seemed to be occupied. The hotel was at the top of a hill so it was an uphill hike back from anywhere. It was the heart of the theater district so I asked at the desk about a show. I got a blank look and finally they told me where the movie theater was. Not very cultural I guess. For dinner I went to the Majestic. When you went in it was a dive bar, then they led me down a very narrow stair to the jazz club. It was perfect; cozy, good acoustics, and the band was great. The steaks were all dry aged and excellent. I stayed for 2 sets and it was the best Saturday night in a long time.

I looked for brunch in the morning, Webster House didn’t open until 10 so I settled for Mildred’s. Excellent quiche and cappuccino in a basic kind of coffee house. When I got back to the hotel the elevators went out and I had to carry my bags down 8 flights. My first stop was the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. It was small but well curated with free admission and parking. Next was the Nelson-Atkins museum, a quarter mile away, also with free admission. It was impressive, 22 acre sculpture garden, inside some very nice Egyptian pieces, as well as impressionists to contemporary works. A huge and well laid out art museum. There were at least 6 more museums that I would have liked to visit but it was time to drive north. Kansas City needs 3 or 4 days, museums, jazz, food, old buildings, parks, a very nice city.

Sioux Falls

Next destination was Sioux Falls. The largest city in a very sparsely populated state. As I crossed the river into South Dakota the speed limit jumped to 80, which seemed a bit fast in the rain. The falls were impressive and worth a visit. They were in a large well maintained park with the ruins of the Queen Bee grain mill on the east side of the river. There was an observation tower that looked over the falls. I spent 2 hours walking around and taking pictures. The quartzite was especially interesting. There was a slight sulfur smell by the falls, I don’t know if it was the water or some nearby gas drilling. Unfortunately there is absolutely nothing else to see in Sioux Falls. For dinner I went to the Khorasan Kebab house, and Afghani place, and had the lamb kebab, very tasty.

Rapid City

I headed west toward Rapid City and the country was rolling and green and not a tree. It looked a lot like the painting American Gothic. Soon the crops gave way to cattle, mostly Angus. I can only take so much interstate, so I got off at Mitchell to see the world’s only Corn Palace. It was a huge building covered in murals done with corn husks. You’ve see Elvis on black velvet but you should see him in corn husks 25 feet high! The whole building was covered it such tacky stuff. Inside it was a basketball arena. Next stop was Pierre, the nation’s 2^nd smallest state capital. The capital building was very pretty beside a pond and there were several public sculptures, but nothing very historical. I had lunch at Big Tom’s Diner, pulled pork sliders, yummy. Now that I was off the interstate, I took the Native American scenic byway. The country was the same but rocketing along a deserted 2 lane road with hills and curves was quite pleasant. When I got back to I-90 I should have gone east about 5 miles and then I could have done the Bad Lands scenic byway in to Rapid City.

I finally got to Rapid City, stopping at the visitor’s center for maps. There is a lot to see in the area and I should have allowed 2 days. The town reminded me of Albuquerque in the 50’s but with better restaurants. I don’t think I have ever seen so many motels, every major and minor chain was represented. There is a small shopping area in the old part of downtown with a lot of native arts and crafts. On the corners they had life size bronze statues of all the presidents. I stopped at the Firehouse Brew Pub and their red ale was excellent. A bowl of the Gorgonzola ale soup was just right. Probably you should stay in one of the rustic lodges by Keystone or even a cabin, to get the real Black Hills experience.

The Black Hills

When I got gas I was talking to the attendant about going to Crazy Horse and he told me a tale about his great grandmother being Crazy Horse’s sister. Many years ago he said there was a malt liquor called Crazy Horse and the Lakota Sioux objected to the name. They had to have someone with a “black and white” (a piece of paper) proving they were family in order to sue. His father had the paper from when his grandmother married. He spent 15 years but finally got the malt liquor taken off the market.

Tuesday I drove thru Keystone which had a real old mining town character. My first stop was Mt Rushmore. Entrance was free but $11 to park. They said that included re-entry for a year, like anyone was coming back. I went around to entrance 6 and parked on top of the garage close to the monument entrance. Up close it is very impressive. There is a short film long on patriotism and short on details of the construction. Not much else to see unless you want to trek to the unfinished hall of records. A bit pricey for 40 minutes. Then I started on the scenic loop thru Custer state park, OMG it was the most beautiful drive. Soon I came to a place where the road did a 360 looping over itself on a wooden bridge, and that happened 2 more times. There were also one lane tunnels cut thru the rock. When you are shouting in the car “Oh wow” you know you are in a beautiful place and you have mentally slowed down enough to appreciate it. Eventually I came to the official entrance and they wanted $20 to do the entire loop, well worth the tariff. The southern part of the loop was billed as a wildlife loop and I saw bison, deer, and antelope, with their babies. I had to stop a couple of time for the antelope to get off the road. Once there was a big bull bison and I let him have as much road as he wanted. The northwest part of the loop was called the needles highway for the rock formations. There were more one lane tunnels thru the rock that I crept thru. Definitely one of the most beautiful drives in the world.

About one pm I got to Crazy Horse which was the reason I came this way. When you come to the gate the view of the monument is amazingly massive, $11 entry fee. I watched the film which was great, there were actually 5 survivors of Wounded Knee at the dedication in 1948! I was so happy to be there and then I saw the notice that you could go to the top. $125 seemed like a lot of money but I quickly realized I was the only one going and it was so worth it. Impressive as it is from a distance, being right next to the face was special. They have been working on it for 67 years, all private money, and still a family run effort. I don’t know if it will ever be done, the rock has a lot of flaws, but it is a dramatic monument to Native American culture. I also saw some marmots sunning themselves on the rock piles as we drove down.

Devil’s Tower

Next I headed to Deadwood, where Wild Bill Hickok died. The whole town was a giant road construction project, and I did not stop. By this time I had decided I wanted to see Devil’s Tower so I skipped the last scenic loop in the Black Hills and entered Wyoming. I approached it from the north, and it was back lit and enormous. The monument road circled around to the visitor’s center on the west side so the light was perfect as the sun went down. I climbed up a little way and kept circling, the path around the tower is about a mile and a half. The views keep changing. 50 million years in the making! No one was there except a huge prairie dog colony. As I was cruising down a deserted two lane, I noticed something up ahead on the left. Eventually I decided it was a couple of guys on horses, by the time I realized they were herding sheep, it was too late to slow down. As I approached one of the cowboys (sheep boys?) threw his hat at me. It sailed over 100 feet landing in the bar ditch across the road. Glad I didn’t run into him later. I rolled into Gillette as dusk was falling, dead tired. The motel had a free taco bar and that was dinner before I collapsed. A long and magical day.

Cody

Just outside of Gillette I got my first glimpse of the snow covered Rockies. By mid-morning I got to Buffalo, a laid back, small western town with no pretension. The Occidental Hotel from the 1880’s is still in use. Their sign said “wireless in 1880 and still wireless”.  The museum was closed due to a roof leak. There were a few galleries and I stopped for a coffee. The woman at the coffee shop was working on the “Mini, Buffalo’s only free newspaper.” It was four 8.5×11 sheets folded in half. In western Dakota and Wyoming the sky starts to change. There is a combination of latitude and altitude that makes the sky and the light very different. West of Buffalo I started over the Big Horn Mountains. My car started wheezing and my ears were popping. The top of the pass was just shy of 10,000 feet, and covered in snow. Coming down the other side I drove thru the Tensleep Canyon which was spectacular. Eventually I came out on to the high desert plateau of the Big Horn basin. There were no cattle, no trees, no grass and even most of the oil well pumps were still. Lunch was in Worland, a wide spot in the road with a nice little natural history museum.

I got to Cody around four and struggled to find the Cowboy Village Cabins. They were on the west side of town and turned out to be new and the best place to stay so far on the trip. Large log cabin rooms with nice baths. The Buffalo Bill Museum, called the Smithsonian of the west, was open until 6 and has 5 parts. I went for the Whitney western art section, and then toured the William Cody section. There was also a section they claimed was the largest collection of American guns in the world, a natural history section and a native American section. Main Street was definitely old west, saddle and tack shops, boot shops, the Cowboy Palace western wear store, and many galleries. I had dinner sitting at the bar of the Proud Cut Saloon. The prime rib was delicious and the drinks were strong. The motel called their breakfast continental, but with biscuits and gravy they must mean the North American continent.

Yellowstone

The east entrance to Yellowstone was not open so I drove north to Silver Gate along the Chief Joseph scenic byway, one of the nicest drives in the west. I wish I could describe the vastness, majestic beauty, and the solitude. Photos can’t capture it but some artists come close. Silver Gate is a town time passed by. There was a buffalo grazing by the lodge, coffee was a dollar, there was still snow on the ground and no cell service. After going in the northeast entrance to the park, I realized other people had discovered the beauty of Yellowstone in early May. There were several people with spotting scopes watching the herds of Buffalo and their new calves. I had never been to this part of the park, it was wide meadows with a river and loads of wildlife. In all I saw bison, elk, antelope, deer, mountain sheep, chipmunks, and squirrels. I stopped at the park headquarters to get a map. This was at mammoth hot springs. There is an extensive boardwalk system for the lower terraces and a beautiful, narrow drive thru the upper terraces.

Eventually I got to the Norris geyser basin, my favorite part of the park. There are two walking tours, one thru the porcelain basin and one thru the back basin, total distance about 2.3 miles for both. I like both but the back basin is more isolated, with many small pools and geysers. As I continued south I got stuck behind a herd of buffalo that took over the road. It took 30 minutes before they got to where they felt like getting out of the way. I left the park by the west entrance at the town of West Yellowstone. I thought it would be no problem finding a room, but that was not exactly the case. There were busloads of Asian tourists in town for the night. I stayed at a normal Best Western but the owners were so friendly you’d think you were family. I asked if it was safe to leave stuff in my car, and they said “it’s Montana.” Dinner was at the Buffalo Bar, a funky locals place with animal heads, slot machines, TV’s, micro brews, and good food. I had the buffalo meat loaf and a couple of amber ales, $35. Your first visit to the park should be at least 4 days and stay at the Old Faithful Lodge.

Missoula

Friday I took US287 north and passed by Earthquake Lake formed by a massive quake in 1959. The whole side of the mountain had slid into the river. Further on I was in a broad valley and stopped at Ennis to visit Willies Distillery.  10am seemed like a good time to taste some bourbon and tour their facility. They made moonshine, vodka, bourbon, and some liqueurs. The bourbon tasted like Jack Daniels but a bit smoother. The town was pure old west. Then I took a small detour to see Virginia City and Nevada City. Two of the best preserved old mining towns in the west. Eventually I arrived in Helena, the state capital. I wanted to see the historical museum with its collection of Charlie Russell paintings. They had a temporary display of the cartoonist Stan Lynde who drew the Rick O’Shay strip, and a nice exhibit about the Chinese in early Montana. The weather was getting cloudy and foggy so I proceeded to Missoula without doing the scenic tour.

Missoula is a college town with a lively downtown. It was the First Friday art walk and unfortunately I started at the best gallery, Dana, and it was downhill from there. There were several street musicians playing, and if it had been a bit warmer, I would have loitered a bit longer. Red Bird was the top rated restaurant but it was very dark and smelled odd. I wound up at Plonk, very hip, great cocktails, and a lovely seared sablefish, with 2 drinks $47. My new favorite cocktail is the scofflaw; rye, dry vermouth, grenadine and fresh lime juice. I stayed at Goldsmiths B&B and it was the best place so far. It fronted right on the Clark Fork of the Snake River, and Jason knew everything that was going on in town, which was a lot; art walk, whitewater film festival, brew fest, farmers market, and more. The room was large and comfortable. Breakfast was a homemade strata with smoked salmon. The river walk was brisk in the morning and there was a pedestrian bridge over the river right by the B&B.

Walla Walla

Saturday I headed west thru rolling meadows with cattle and an occasional lodge or some tourist cabins. There were some large stretches of dead trees probably due to pine bark beetle. I entered Idaho as the road reached the top of Lolo pass. This was all part of the Lewis and Clark trail. The sign at the pass said winding road next 99 miles, next gas 90 miles. They were right about the gas but the winding road lasted all the way to Lewiston. This was all national park with towering pines and almost no traffic. As the river beside the road grew, the white water started looking pretty nice. At the lower part of the canyon I did see some kayakers. Past Lewiston the land turned to green rolling hills with farming. I drove thru Dayton, which had a restored downtown and looked like a great place to spend the night some time. Due to the time zone change I was driving an hour longer than I thought so I did not stop.

Eventually I got to Walla Walla. I had picked the busiest weekend of the year, all the wineries were doing their spring release, which explained why the only room I could get was Motel 6 for $140, ugh. There are over 170 wineries in the area and in town the tasting rooms were one right after the other. I started tasting my way up Main Street. I decided to taste my up the street and shop on the way back. That way I did not have to lug the bottles and I wouldn’t buy everything. I know, the more you taste, the better they all taste. Most of the places had the Bordeaux varietals on their own or in some blended combination. There were some excellent wines and I need to come back and visit the actual vineyards and buy in quality. I was warned that all the good restaurants would be booked but there were a few that did not take reservations. Multiple people recommended Olive’s, a café where you ordered at the counter and they brought it to you. I ordered the lamb bolognaise and a Syrah.   The pasta was definitely homemade and the dish was excellent as was the wine. I did manage to snag the last outside table too!

Portland

My last day I wanted a good breakfast as lunch would be unlikely. Maple Café was the best recommendation but at 7:30 even the outdoor waiting area was already full. So I went to Bacon & Eggs which did not open until 8, there was already a line. By 8 the line was more than 50 people and by 8:20 the place was packed with a waiting line. Breakfast was great and the Stumptown coffee was even better. I drove west along the Snake River, the bluffs on the south side were green but the north was brown. When it met the Columbia River came it looked like an inland sea with kite boarders. I wanted to avoid the interstate, as usual, so I elected to drive down the north side of the Columbia. The Washington side had grapevines and fruit trees and the Oregon side had wind turbines. The drive was scenic and I finally stopped at the Maryhill museum. It was built by Sam Hill, who also built the Columbia gorge highway, and he named the museum after his daughter.   The location was dramatic, overlooking the river. The wind was also dramatic, almost blowing me over. The museum was eclectic, a room of Rodin, a room of Native American artifacts, a room of Romanian royal furnishings, and a smattering of Flemish and early 20^th century works. The road west of there was especially scenic with sheer rock faces. I crossed the river at Hood River, the bridge toll was $1. In Portland I was booked in an Air B&B and I arrived just when I said I would.

Nine days on the road (2700 miles) and I wish I had taken 2 weeks. It feels good to be back in the west. The air was pristine for most of the trip and the weather was perfect. The people I met were incredibly friendly and helpful. Next up is overseeing the renovation of my condo.