Coveys Great Adventure: #70 July 2020

View from the windshield at Ennis RV Village

View through the windshield at Ennis RV Village

July 2020 - Montana and Idaho

I picked Ennis, Montana, for no particular reason that I recall, except that it was in roughly the right area and within an easy day’s drive of Salmon. Except it really wasn’t, because Google Maps includes dirt roads in its directions. And, because it had a Montana state road number, MT 324, I didn’t check it on Google Earth. Luckily, I had a premonition as soon as we turned onto it. It was paved, but the first two vehicles that passed us coming the other way gave me a funny look, like “really? Hmm, I hope you know what you’re doing.” For once, I listened to the voices in my head and we turned around at what might have been the last place that we could. Back at the crossroad, I asked a local about route MT 324. She laughed and said it was an unpaved, rock-strewn, pot-holed mess that got worse after it crossed into Montana. Avoiding that shortcut added over a hundred miles to the easy day we had looked forward to. Nonetheless, the country was spectacular and Covid eliminated any hint of traffic.

"Small" gold mining dredge in nearby
Nevada City

Ennis claims to be the trout fly fishing capital of the world, or maybe just the country, I forget. The storied Madison River passes through town and fishing dominates the economy. It’s a lovely small town that exist solely for tourists, fisher people or not. There is also enough shopping and site seeing to keep non-fishers from going nuts for a few days.

As much as we liked the town despite the Covid closures and restrictions,
discovering the Ennis Village RV Park alone made the trip worthwhile. We pulled into our site to discover a panoramic, 180 degree view of more than 30 square miles of the Madison River valley, all backed up by varicolored, snow capped mountains. Herds of fat cows grazed on lush, tall grass. Deer and flocks

The neighbors come to visit

of geese came out into the fields to feed. One evening a pair of moose crossed the valley in full view. We sat in the coach or on chairs at the edge of the ridge for hours every day watching the show below us. This was the best view we have ever had in six years on the road. Oh, yes, the park was terrific in every other way, too. And the dogs loved it. Just a mile away is Deemo’s, the best meat market we have ever seen. The local supermarket, Madison Foods, even has a great wine section. We plan to return as soon as we can.

Lots of great "stuff" and colorful owners

One more plus: no trains! It seems to be a rule that commercial RV parks must be located on busy train tracks where long freights blow for every driveway, or just to relieve the crew’s boredom. Ennis is miles away from any tracks. I slept better there than I can remember. The only drawback I can think of is the wind. Every afternoon the winds build, usually blowing a steady 20 mph, often gusting over 40. One afternoon gusts hit 60 mph, causing damage to some campers who weren’t prepared.

Picture doesn't due Cliff Lake justice

One of our neighbors (not above) encouraged us to visit Wade and Cliff Lakes, about 40 miles south of town. They were right. These are mountain lakes, absolutely crystal clear, set in lovely heavily wooded settings. There are small campgrounds that are impossible for us to get into and popular day-use areas where folks picnic, kayak and play in the chilly water. (see more lake pix below)

Ennis was a very tough act to follow, and Riverfront RV Park in Garrison, Montana certainly missed the mark. A double-track freight line borders the park and a switching yard is not far away. Every train going in either direction blows their horns for four crossings. That’s 16 bellows per train. I counted six trains in one hour one night. Poor electric power and lots of mosquitoes didn’t help, either. I doubt we’ll be back, despite the lovely setting, including acres of diligently mown grass and great staff folks.

There isn’t a lot to do in this part of Montana, but the Old Montana Prison & Auto Museum in Deer Lodge is just a few miles away. I’ve never seen these two wildly disparate subjects combined in one place, so we went to find out. The prison museum was depressing and disquieting. After ten minutes we were looking for the exit. The car section, though, was pretty neat. If you go through the area, it’s worth a stop for an hour or two. The ice cream stand next door serves Umpqua ice cream, a Northwest specialty. Don't miss it.

We enjoyed our golf foray in American Falls and looked forward to another nice day. Deer Park Golf Course looked like our kind of track: short, flat, wide open and cheap. Even with those advantages, we still stunk up the place and came away dispirited and humbled. We had forgotten that the golf gods are vicious and capricious. Maybe new balls will help.

This was even better than it looks

Garrison is about 45 miles from Helena, and Kayeanne wanted sushi and chocolate for her birthday, so … road trip! The sushi was great and the chocolate was wonderful. The town proved to be interesting, too. For those who nodded off during Social Studies, Helena is the capital of Montana. Many of the things we wanted to see were closed for Covid, but the state capital building was open, so we looked around.

Typical of many state capital buildings, it was built ~120 years ago of granite and brick with domes, gilding, fancy woodwork, granite floors, etc. None of that delivers any real value for the proletariat, but they never get to approve the budget, anyway. After all, the “public’s servants” need quarters befitting their somber duties.

The murals and statuary are what you’d expect in a late 19^th century municipal edifice in the West. What struck me, though, was the number and scale of items, some heroic in size, depicting Native American peoples and themes. Given how many Indians were slaughtered by the builders of this homage to democracy to drive them off their ancestral lands, it looked to me like collective guilt or monumental cynicism. If I’m feeling generous, probably both. Commissioning the decorations was certainly cheaper than actually buying the land or paying reparations, but maybe I’m too cynical. Ok, rant off.

After a week in Garrison, I think we were both ready to start heading west to Oregon. Kayeanne picked the Blue Anchor RV Park in Osburn, Idaho. She has offered no defense of that choice, but she hit the jackpot: an old mobile home park that was converted to an RV park, artfully situated between a main freight railroad and Interstate 90. I could hit the freeway with a pitching wedge. The park really had nothing to recommend it except its proximity to Wallace and Kellogg.

This part of Idaho was arguably the richest silver mining region of the country, if not the world. The largest of seven mines in the area, the Sunshine Mine, produced 365 million ounces of silver between 1904 and 2001, accounting for roughly 14% of total US silver production. The mines drilled literally thousands of miles of tunnels and reached depths over 5000 feet deep. Lead, zinc and copper were also produced in great quantities. The fumes from the refining processes were so toxic that the valley where Kellogg is located wouldn’t grow trees until the smelters were shut down for several years. Starting in the ‘80’s, Kellogg High School students have replanted literally millions of trees. Thanks to them and others the area is making a comeback.

In 1972, 91 miners died in an underground fire in the Sunshine Mine. The mining museum in Kellogg does a good job explaining what happened. Not long after that, the costs of complying with growing environmental regulations and a worldwide drop in silver prices led to the end of mining in this area.

The Shoshone Golf Club is a real test. It’s only a 9-hole course, but you WILL want a cart, and you better bring several extra balls (the new ones didn't help). Yikes.

Wallace has been making a successful transition from mining town to tourist destination for many years. We made a couple of trips just to look around. It reminded me a little of Ouray, Colorado, another mountain mining town. Several stores and restaurants were closed due to Covid, but enough weren’t that we had a good time wandering around. Muchacos Tacos was quite good for lunch.

Watch the first step....

Do I look nervous?

I never knew Kayeanne had a bucket list, but it turns out that zip lining was near the top. Some of you may recall that on our second date almost exactly 40 years ago, we jumped out of airplanes. That was her idea, too. Apparently it was time to scare me silly again. I have to say that it was a gas, and over too fast, but we still turned down the offer of another ride. Tempting fate is not a good idea.

Our next stop was Hood Park Corp of Engineers Campground in Burbank, Washington, just across the Snake River from Pasco and Kennewick. We just stayed one night, but really enjoyed it. Lots of grass and shade for the dogs, and no freeways or trains! We’d like to come back and spend time exploring the area.

It was an easy drive from Hood Park to Creekside Campground in Sisters, Oregon. Sisters is one of our favorite places to visit. A number of Covid closures and the Governor’s new mask mandate limited what we could do, but we enjoyed walking the town, again. Creekside Campground is a little tight for Ripley, in fact there are only a couple of spaces that we fit and were lucky that one was available. No utilities, but that’s not an issue for two nights. The dogs loved it, too, lots of grass and trees.

On August 1st , we pulled into Thompson’s Mills State Park to volunteer for two months. (Note to self: do not take the coach on Rt 20 between Sisters and Sweet Home again. I don’t shy away from most roads, but this is one. It is way, way too tight and much too long. Take Rt 126 through Eugene, instead.)

I haven’t been doing a lot of reading this month, but Jim Lynch’s Border Songs stood out.

New wines this month include 19 Crimes Pinot Noir and A to Z Oregon Rosé Wine.

More soon,

Bob

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