August 15, 2024
We woke up this morning to the sound of rain hitting our RV…not just light rain, but a downpour! We figured we were going to have a very wet drive. However, when we pulled away from Spearfish, at 9:00 AM, it was sunny and 67 degrees! We drove 236 miles to Hardin, MT. It was a gorgeous day as we passed through the towns of Gillette and Sheridan WY before reaching Hardin, MT our destination. Hardin is small city, located north of the Crow Indian Reservation.
When we arrived at the Grandview Campground and RV Park, we realized that we had stayed there before on a previous trip. As I walked to the office to register, I had to dodge the sprinkler. Upon opening the door, I was greeted by a cat (maybe more than one) and had to work my way through a store full of musty merchandise…I think most of the stuff was there on our last visit! We were assigned a long pull-through site in the back of the park. As we always say…”we’re not buying the place”! Actually, it was a fine location for overnight…full hookups, good wi-fi, and we didn’thave to unhook the jeep.
August 16, 2024
It was another beautiful sunny day as we left Hardin, MT at 10:00 AM. Hardin, MT was home to Campbell Farming Corporation, the world’s largest privately owned wheat farm. At one time 95,000 acres were under cultivation.The corporation discontinued its farming operation in 1987. As we drove away from Hardin, we could see wheat fields for miles.
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Today’s trip was 164 miles as we continued through Billings toward Livingston, MT, our destination for two nights.
The campground we chose was Osen’s RV Park by Starry Night Lodging. Sounds Impressive! In order to get to the RV park, we had to drive down a very narrow street that was very undesirable. We arrived at the RV park and were relieved that it was decent place. We think we had the best site in the park!
We unhitched the jeep and set out to explore the Livingston area.
The wide streets of the historic downtown date back to the days of Calamity Jane, a known resident of Livingston. Boutiques, cafes and art galleries line the street. My favorite thing about the town was the neon-type signs that resembled a small Las Vegas.
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Livingston is surrounded by four beautiful wild mountain ranges that offer an abundance of outdoor activities year round. We decided to do a little off-road adventure. We chose a rutted and rocky country road that went for several miles up a mountain. Much to our surprise, the road dead-ended at a green metal cattle gate…the Livingston Peak Trailhead. So, back down the rutted, rocky road to the bottom. There,we discovered another road back into town. It was quite an adventure!
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After a quick drive through town, we wanted to stop at popular 1954 Hamburger drive-in. Popular is right…no parking and a very long line out to the street. We passed on by!
August 17, 2024
Livingston was the “Original Gateway City to Yellowstone National Park” . Today, we drove from Livingston to Gardiner, the North Entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
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The North Entrance is the home to the park headquarters and Mammoth Hot Springs.
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The springs are terrace-like formations created by limestone deposits. We drove on the one-way upper terrace drive for 1.5 miles to view the hot springs and travertine formations. They were amazing as always!
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Usually, there is a group of Elk that hang around the Mammoth area near the headquarters. Not today…not an elk in sight!
We continued on to the Lamar Valley hoping to see some wildlife. We saw large herds of Bison and a few deer as we drove along the roadway. We think that is the most Bison we have ever seen in this particular area!
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We exited the Northeast Entrance and began our drive on the Beartooth Highway. We traveled through the small historic mining communities of Silver Gate and Cooke City.
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The Beartooth Highway continued for many breathtaking miles to the Beartooth Plateau (Pass). We have been to this pass several times over the years and always get our picture with the Elevation Sign…Elevation 10947. We have been at the top when there were snowdrifts, but, not today! There were just a few patches of snow near the top.
There’s nothing like descending Beartooth Highway behind a bicyclist taking up the whole roadway!
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We were delighted to see some wildlife as we drove back through Yellowstone. We saw Bison, Deer, and best of all…Mama Moose and a baby!
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The drive today was 300 miles of magnificent scenery!
Tomorrow- West Yellowstone, MT
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