Another 4th of July... Wait... Let Me Go Look... Yup... The Flag is Still There...

Gonna be moving today... Have to get a fresh camp set in a good spot while I make the ride over to the Black Hills...

Some might not consider today to be the best one for rolling... but... we've got to move 'cause we've overstayed our time here a couple days :) ... and time is a little tight to get set before I leave for the Dakotas...

So... while I roll today... some things are likely gonna be floating through my head... Robin Says most of it, with pretty good Humor... and quite a while ago...




As always... enjoy this day... but... Remember... Always Remember... just WHO it was, that brought it to you...

Rolling in Freedom on the 4th of July
Brian

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Hamilton, Montana... This Weren't My First Rodeo...

 ... and I've been to a county fair or three... So to be honest, I wasn't expectin' a whole lot at a rodeo in this lil' backwater town of Hamilton...

Yeah... well... it's kind of nice to have your expectations surprised once in a while...

Hamilton Montana... Senior Rodeo... or... Guys and Gals... Who just won't accept aging... Gracefully! They're gonna go out screamin' and kickin' :)

... or... Maybe Ridin' a Buckin' Horse!

First show I've been to... in a bunch of years... I avoid 'em... They can get a guy to thinkin'; "Yeah... I can still do that"

NOT!

Uh... I broke 'nuff parts when I was young and Bounced good... If I climbed on one of those neck snappin' Bareback horses today?...

Which is what I rode when I was still on the Sunny slopes...That Ol' bronc would take two jumps outa the chute and my head would snap off like the popper when ya crack a whip! :)

Most of these guys, are on the shady side of 50... either tougher then rawhide... or dumber than stone! :)

Though... they did have some youngsters to give a giggle or two in the mix...

Ohhhh.... he's hangin' on... he's hanging' tight.....

Until ... Ker-whop!... he bites the dust! :)


These Lil' guys were 4 maybe 5 years old... Rodeo stars in the makin' :)

Now... maybe the onliest thing a Cowboy likes betterin' ridin' a good buckin' horse...

Is... watching a good horse work...

Well... OK... Not the Onliest thing...

Those guys under the big hats... have been known on occasion to take notice of the fair side of the genetic pool...

... and watchin' a gal on a good horse... racin' the pattern... is a fine thing...

But a guy has to admit it... the rough stock is still and always... the premier part of a rodeo...

Even if some Ol' Busters... don't have 'em selves a good day... and get fed 15 lbs of good Ol' Montana dirt!

It was actually a pretty good show... sometimes... to be gentle... at these "small" shows... the... uh ... skill level, just ain't there... So... Considerin' that ALL the riders in Senior Rodeo have to be above 40 (except for the couple of events they stuck in for the youngsters)... and MOST of those in these pics... have long since passed 50, they did themselves proud... Guess they've been doin' it long enough to not embarrass themselves. :)

What was really pathetic...was... watchin' these folks ropin, ridin' rough stock, and racin' the barrels... I got up from my seat on the wooden grandstand, after sittin' for most of three hours... and it took me five minutes... to stand up! :)

We move to Seeley Lake tomorrow... barring unforeseen circumstances... after 18 days in this camp... gonna miss it here... this has been a nice and soft camp on the Bitterroot.

Movin' On
Brian

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Mountain Critters, National Battlefields, Montana Cowhorses, Flowers and RV Boondocking Camps

The day started out kinda mixed... you know, one of those; The sun is shinin' bright... but your bones just say; "pour me another cup of coffee" kind of mornings?

So, sittin' and listening to some early morning tunes with that coffee, some neighbors stopped by for an early morning visit...

We'd talked about riding the Raider on a loop, but to be honest... those achy bones whispered; "ride the truck" ... so... I did. :)

We made a loop over to the Nez Perce, Big Hole Battlefield, on to Wisdom, then up and around to cut south at Wise River to Polaris; and then back up through Jackson, back to Wisdom.

Makes about a 180 mile run from here, taking most of a day, if you're smart and make quite a few stops.

First stop the Battlefield.

I wonder what it is that makes men fight in the prettiest of places. But it's true. You go to most Battlefields... and... they started out as just about the finest places around... and then people show up...

*The siege location*

Up in those trees on the right, is where the army dug in, when the Nez Perce fought back and pushed back the assault... held out there for a couple days I guess... There's a monument for the soldiers in those trees. I guess there's two more, with one for the Nez Perce, that have been put up over the years, but those are now in the Visitor Center, which is closed just now, while under major renovation... There is a temporary center open which does have some interesting exhibits...

Something happened while we were standing up near the end of the Battlefield overlook trail...

*David Chasing Goliath*

The lil' bird, went after the big guy, working to drive him away... seemed kinda futile... and... spookily reminiscent...

Back down at the visitor center... had another "interesting" observation, 'bout something totally different. A volunteer gal and a Ranger did a demonstration of putting up a Tepee...

So... they set the Tepee poles and the canvas...and were staking the Nomads abode down...

When... another "Nomad" happened by...

A sort of, Nomad "continuity" just kinda struck me...

*Nomads rigs... Two hundred years apart*

... and though they may seem awful primitive to folks yondering with microwave ovens and flat screen tv's on the wall... those horse powered old timers had some high tech stuff too...

*an Indian Skylight?*

How'd you like to wake up in the morning and have this view.. rather then the textured fiberboard of your fiver's ceiling? :)

Across the road was some 'works' goin' on...

*Montana Ranch Horses waitin' in the sun*

 Half a dozen fellas were working what looked to mostly be a set of bulls, in pens just to the right of this pair of good cow horses...

They were there when we pulled out in the morning, and they were just finishing up, several hours later, when we came back past on the homeward leg of our RV Boondocking Day Trip, in the early evening. There's times, in soft weather like this, that I miss those doin's... and then, I'll see the same boys, shovin' cows into the wind, where they don't want to go, on a wet, windy day... my bones start achin'... and I don't miss it at all. :)

This run we made would be a sweet ride on the Bike... we'll have to do that one day too.

But, you know? That right there, is one thing a wandering, motorcycle waddie has to get a grip on; even IF, he had the dinero to keep his tank full, truck or bike, to run every day, all day... and lived to be a hundred and nine, a'fore he got hisself run down by a Freightliner...

... He couldn't travel all the roads there are to run... so... he needs to just learn to be content... with the ones he can.

Maybe think like a Buffalo? ... I sure doubt they lay about feelin' sorry for themselves 'cause they didn't ever get the chance to graze in the Adirondacks! :)

Mostly, they're likely glad they got the grass and cool water they do.

We stopped along the way for another crackers, cheese and summer sausage lunch, sitting on a rock in the sun... beside a big spring...

*WHoA! That sucker is C..C..C..COLD!*

where Buck took a couple of turns in the pond of the artesian spring... for a COLD... swim...

Ha ha... an then ran 'round goin' nine oh... in circles, like something had bit his bee-hind after each dip...

... then, of course, the silly bugger would dive right back in!




... but, with many miles left before we sleep, we climbed back in the ol' truck to roll on to complete our circle...

For anyone taking notes... that fifth picture up, from here, is along that road that runs twixt Wise River on hwy 43, and where it joins back up with Montana 278 to the south. If you're interested... that road is littered with good FS campgrounds and RV Boondocking opportunities... being listed as a scenic byway in Montana... it's also an awesomely pretty drive... or Ride, when you prefer to "put it in the wind".

... A soft and good day.

Take Good Care
Brian

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