44 Earthquake Lake and Big Hole Battlefield
Ever hear of Big Hole Battlefield? Or Earthquake Lake? How about Dillon’s Beaverhead Mountain? In one day we covered much of Montana on our way home. We aren’t thrilled about this being the end of a fabulous journey.
Leaving Yellowstone National Park we traveled west up through the Madison River Valley. In 1959, about the time Ron and I were engaged, there was a huge earthquake in Montana that brought down tons of rock into the meandering Madison River. It destroyed homes and injured and killed people. What devastation. We don’t remember even hearing about such a thing but suppose it was because our minds were elsewhere! People’s lives were changed as we were thinking of ours together. That is such a description of life, isn’t it?
We had a nice stop in Dillon near Beaverhead Mountain. Traveling with Lewis and Clark this was the site that thrilled Sacajawea when she spied it from afar. It told her that they were close to her family. We stopped in for hugs from the neighbors of our niece Nicole, Ryan and family when they lived there. We are heading west and night is falling so we didn’t stay long.
We stopped for gas in the middle of nowhere, Wisdom, Montana. The electricity was out so we paid cash. The guy was very nice and showed us a place in back of the station where we could park and sleep. A nice quiet night with only 50 people in town!
Big Hole Battlefield was suggested by Ruthie, our daughter. She knows how much her dad loves history and the west. It was a good call but very emotional. Seeing the video and looking out the windows of the visitor’s center at the actual battlefield brought realness to the event. The one volunteer who shot first started a mess that ended up with so many lost lives. Chief Joseph has been a hero of Ron’s for years so this was a wonderful experience.
Our next stop was at a rest area on the continental divide. We have crossed it many times since beginning this trip. Water running both ways from one area in our land is always amazing. We met an interesting couple while there. They have walked from Canada down through Montana and will end in Yellowstone, all along the Divide. Marcie was so talkative and cute. Not young but vivacious so that she looked younger than her fifty years. This is her first long hike. John has done many walks so it’s old stuff to him. Don’t think I’ll take up walking that far just yet.
We had been singing America the Beautiful as we drove through the plains of the land of The Big Sky with valleys golden with wheat and purple mountain’s majesty off in the distance. “O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, for purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed his grace on thee and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea! “Marcie and I agreed that it was the ‘brotherhood’ from sea to shining sea that surpasses all.
Once our minds were made up to get home we boogied on as fast as we could. As a horse that is turned loose on the way to the barn our car with our cabin flew down the road on the final strand west.
We had an incredible time together sharing our lives with those we met along life’s way. 10,000 miles isn’t so long when you’re enjoying each day. We love each other more and could have kept going. Ron is ready to leave for another tour so watch out as we didn’t get to see all we desired, you might be next.
This quote of Margaret Gerke in 1915 as she and her husband camped and travelled anyway they could back then: “Let those who will buy lands and have money, we will have our memories, glad memories of golden experiences together.”
Filed under: Uncategorized on August 15th, 2009
hello peggy and ron, I enjoy reading your adventures and looking at photos of your travels and friends and family. I have a question and if it’s too private you dont have to answer. you are always talking about others nationalities and history etc, but you don’t talk about your own nationalities..so parden my bluntness but, what are both your nationalities? to make this fair, I am greek and irish and native american indian(lenni lenape or the deleware indian tribe)… any way I appreciate that you share your lives with the world thanks so much love kelly
Good suggestion.. Ron’s family hails from Wisconsin from Prussia/Germany in the early 1800’s. His maternal grandfather was from Poland, came when he was six in the late 1800’s. His maternal great grandfather served in the Revolution so they’ve been here a long time. My roots are English and Scottish. All sides served in the revolution then were granted land in Tennessee and fought in the Civil War.. on both sides! Brother against brother. Both our families migrated to the West in the 20’s and when in their 20’s my parent’s met a church and married while Ron’s met a bit later in a bar!
thank you peggy,that is awesome info about both your families history..god bless you and your family and have a great weekend..love kelly
Oh, I was so excited to read you had taken the very same route my sister and I took last summer in Montana, except we came from west (Missoula) down south through the Bitterroot Valley and east over to Big Hole Battlefield. We had read all about the Nez Perce wars and the conflicts with the US Army before we went there so it all came alive. What a sad tale, and how unfair the indians were treated! After we left we went to the little town of Wisdom where I bought a beautiful piece of jewelry in the small shop across from the gas station. We spent the night at Jackson Hot Springs just a “fur piece” down the road towards Dillon. What an amazing experience that was! There is a 1st class restaurant there, and a huge hot spring fed pool to relax tired bones, then retire to a little cabin, each with a fireplace, and so cozy. What fun.
I noticed that you love to read real life adventure books Peggy. Someday when you wander back to Medford I would be happy to lend you some great adventure books I’ve collected. No wonder we clicked right away! At least you and Ron actually put wheels to your travel dreams. I am an armchair adventurer, I’m afraid. Just waiting for God to bless me with a friend to do some traveling with.
I am praying for you two as you travel to Thailand to help the needy children there. God bless you!