[a/s] Miles City, Montana July 6, 2000

[HHamp5246@xxxxxxx]

Hi Gang,

Sorry for the long silence.  I spent a week in Bismarck at the International 
Airstream Rally... The "Big One" so to speak.

We were parked in a farmer's field.  A plowed field, full of furrows. Also, 
because of all the rain two weeks ago there was a bumper crop of weeds and 
mosquitos...not cute little east coast mosquitos.... huge, hungry, swarmy 
mosquitos.  Driving the rig across the furrows was a trip.... the parking guy 
kept waving for me to hurry up... yeah right.  Of course, the trailer was 
then parked for the week..but it was like being on a bucking bronco driving 
the truck in and out to the dirt road.  It hadn't rained since we got here so 
the road was a dust bowl.... I planned to be the last one out of there so I 
could drive straight along the row instead of back across it. It almost 
worked out that way.  When most of the trailers were gone I could see a road 
that wasn't straight across....

Someone bought a lawn mower the first day (c:  He mowed all the weeds down 
around his spot, then stuck a cup on it (for donations to a charity) and 
everyone can use it for free or a donation. Don grabbed it and mowed around 
my spot and his which makes things more pleasant.    I still am picking ticks 
off the dogs because of all the remaining tall grass.  

All of the activities are about 3 miles away at the Civic Center.  Personally 
I find this a real pain.  I liked Sarasota where it was all in one place.  
The civic center is also home to the email connections and other vendors. 

Bismarck was hot.... I mean high 90s.... It's unfortunate, they chose North 
Dakota because they expected it to be too cool to need air conditioning... 
NOT. At least it cooled off in the evening, but you can't sit outside because 
of the mosquitos. We were right at the edge of the central time zone... no 
lie, it stayed light til 11:00 PM!!

One night I had a little dinner party for all the Airstream listies who were 
there. It was great fun... I had a wonderful time.  The marguerites were 
flowing, as was the beer and wine.


The Fourth of July... Don, the dogs and I went to the fireworks display in 
Bismarck.  It didn't start til 11:00 because it doesn't get dark earlier.  We 
got a blanket and we all hunkered down in the grass.... within seconds I 
thought we would need a transfusion.

We ran for the truck and slapped skeeters on the windows so we could watch in 
peace.  

Woke up yesterday morning to no water and no power, fortunately I had been 
warned so I had put down my auto satellite dish the night before. Left 
Bismarck ... got right on 95 and headed west.  I was starving to we stopped 
for brunch and packed it in by 2:00 pm in Beach,ND which is 1 mile from the 
Montana border.
I saw a camping sign and we pulled in.  Followed signs down a mile of rocky 
road to a guy's farm/body shop.... he put in some hookups and calls himself a 
campground.  It was fine.  He let me use the line in the body shop.  His 
three dogs played with my dogs.

Last night got a bit hairy... horrible storms... The wind and the rain and 
the lightning...especially the lightning bursts were unnerving.  The worst of 
it missed us though, today we drove by a ranch where a tornado touched 
down.... 

Got to Miles City by lunch time, only 116 miles today....  dropped the 
trailers at the KOA and went exploring.  I didn't know much about Miles City, 
except back in 1995 The Great American Cattle Drive ended there.  I was going 
to go on the cattle drive, but didn't for some reason which I forget now.  We 
walked around downtown and then went to the Ranch Riders Museum.  It was 
chock full of memorabilia ... had old houses, recreated to the late 1800s... 
saddles, photos, guns, even a replica of a western town... with a hotel, 
barber shop, blacksmith office, school, post office, bank, ladies clothes and 
hats etc... It's so hot here, 94 degrees, that I had to leave the dogs in the 
truck with it running and the a/c on high... who thought Montana would be so 
hot??

So, that's what's happening.  Tomorrow we get off I-94 and onto 12 which is 
much more scenic. No idea to where... that's part of the fun (c:

Hunter