Today was cook, shower and do laundry day…in that order, oh and hit DQ to keep the boy happy.
We were 10 days out from our last shower (we did do a dip in a mt stream a week or so ago) and a lot longer since we did laundry. There is a small laundromat in town that offers showers for $3 and reasonable laundry machines (no motel or RV Park needed). We smell much better, but not bear food worthy.
We also cooked 4 meals so we can just reheat when we pull into a site.
A work day overall, but well worth it. When I took my hat off to take a shower, my hair stood straight up on its own😅.
We r staying in a nice town campground for $12 a night usd. It has 10 sites, all but 2 are filled right now and it is only 6:30. There is a sweet little river with a cool waterfall that used to be a sawmill. And it is all right within walking distance of town.
The little Rover huffed and puffed her way over Canada’s Glacier Park today. There was snow on the peaks and even down into the valleys. The park still isn’t fully open for the season because they are still clearing avalanches!
The coolest or perhaps the scariest part was the avalanche tunnels. Imagine being in one when an avalanche lets go? Egads….
Yesterday, a young man we met at a visitor’s center (who likes skiing at Jay Peak) told us we could camp free at Fernie Ski Area. During biking season (downhill crazy bikers) the ski area allows people to camp in their parking lot for free. Well, we are mountain bikers so we decided we would join the crowd. We pulled our Rover in amongst vans, RVs and such and assumed the posture of belonging. Before long we met some bikers and ended up keeping an eye on their husky for them while they went up the lift for a few more runs before the sprinkles started.
We had a fairly restful night considering we were sleeping in a huge parking lot. Darrin woke up every time the wind blew and I woke up every time a new rig pulled in, but hey…it was free and it had a great balsam pine smell in the rain…yes, it rained again during the night.
The Fernie Ski Area parking lot. There are rigs to the right and more behind me. Matsa, the husky, is sleeping in the red truck.Our view!
Part of stealth/guerilla/dispersed camping is the constant need to find drinking water. We could buy jugs in the grocery story, but we are all about saving our pennies so we can travel as long as possible, so we have a never ending search for free drinkable (non chlorinated) water.
A few places we normally get water:
1. Fire stations – they usually have a spiget out back, but it usually has chlorine.
2. Campgrounds – we pretend we want to look around for a site, quickly fill our 5 gallon jerry cans and decide not to stay.
3. City parks – they usually have spigets, but again it is usually chlorinated.
4. People feel sorry for us and give us theirs when they are heading home (this also works for free firewood).
5. Springs – people mark them on iOverlander (see previous post)
Today, we happened to pass a spring that had great water flowing right out of the Rockies. We have two 5 gallon jerry cans on the front of the vehicle and a 15 gallon tank inside. We normally carry 5 or 10 gallons during regular travel (it is amazing how little water you really need, but then again we are probably over due for a shower once again), we carry more if we know we are going to be way out for a prolonged period of time. We also carry a military grade water filter for emergencies.
Rocky Mt. Spring.Darrin filling 1 of our 5 gallon jerry cans..And into our 15 gallon internal tank (water is heavy so filling the internal tank keeps the weight low in the vehicle).
Part of travelling long term is making your dollars stretch. That means looking for free or cheap camping spots. There is a great app called ioverlander. People populate it with free or cheap camping sites they have used. They include descriptions and what amenities, if any, are available. All you do is open the map and look for spots where you plan to camp. It is amazing!
So, we crossed the border into Alberta Canada and needed a place to stay. We stopped at the tourist information center, which says you can camp in their back lot. We went in and talked to the nice young lady who informed us it was a national holiday weekend in Canada. Our chances of finding a campground, she informed us, was zero.
We opened iOverlander, looked about an hour up the road and found a spot. (We were not interested in staying at the visitor’s center in town, it didn’t have a good vibe). Up the road we went.
The place we had found was the back side of a small dam/hydro plant next to the stream. We found a little place to tuck in, made dinner and hung-out. We thought we were quite stealthy. To our surprise, in drives a white truck and out pops Alex, a Canadian Fish & Wildlife officer. We thought, uh oh, we are going to get tossed. Boy, we were wrong. He was a super nice guy. We chatted for a while and he said no problem, camping was fine. Phew!
Later that night another car pulls in and joins us, a young man there to fish for trout. Another truck pulled in in the morning and the guy set right to fishing. He pulled out a pike that must have been 3ft long. Alex, we can back up your claim that their are pike there!
Another free night on the road means we can travel that much longer!
In the words of some Newfoundlanders we met while travelling up there on our motorcycles a few years ago…”we got a bit of rain up here in Montana”. In Newfie, that means it poured!
We are now in search of higher ground that isn’t flooded!
Montana has had a bit of rain! Every body of water is over flowing!Our first glimpse of the mountains! Higher ground, here we come!
A beautiful dry blue sky day. We dried all of our soggy clothes, and even washed a few smelly ones, recharged the solar, ate breakfast and hiked up to the tower from our campground (Belle Fourche National Campground at the base of Devil’s Tower). We walked the perimeter trail around the tower and admired the rock climbers on the shear columns way above our heads (crazy dudes, and we rock climb!).
Back at camp a large group of Lakota (Sioux) had arrived during their annual Sacred Hoop Run. We were told that various members and children of the tribe cover 500 miles over 8 days via relays visiting traditionally sacred sites along the way to keep the younger tribe members engaged with their history. What a great addition to the campground for the night.
After recovering from our 3 hour hike, we grilled chicken over the fire with a few neighbors at the campground under the looming Devils Tower, as the Lakota drummed a bit into the evening! Magical!
What happens when the place you are supposed to camp is under water from the recent storms? You find a cheap motel and go to Cabelas!
An hour later and our daily budget has been stretched to bursting.
New air matresses so Mr. Sleeping Beauty can get his rest and a new stylin’ hat for me, I mean a very necesarry shade and rain hat that just happens to look awesome on me.
What chance is there waaaaay out here in WY of meeting up with family and friends. Well, not quite as slim as you think.
Our first meet-up was with Darrin’s younger(?) brother, Paul, and his lovely companion, Virginia (and of course Trouble, aka Beastie Boy, and Harley). They were travelling all the way up here from FL and we happened to land at the same campground. That’s our story and we are sticking with it!
Darrin’s younger brother Paul…where’s my walker?
Then we met-up with the Conways from NH at Devil’s Tower! We had a great reunion, catch-up, chow down and soggy hike around Devil’s Tower. Thanks for swinging by guys! Safe travels!
Our friends from back east!
We have had a great, if soggy, week in the WY Black Hills and Devil’s Tower area. We stayed at a great little campground in the national forest, Reuters. Randy, the amazing host took great care of us. Thanks Randy…hi to Boo and Shadow!
The whole motley crew…Paul, Virginia, Randy and well you know the guy on the end😎WY Black Hills. Camping in the clouds, 40s and 50s and raining.
They say the sun is supposed to shine tomorrow, but we are not holding our breath. Remember how we were complaining about the heat? Well, be careful what you wish for. It is in the 50s and soggy, but what a view! We’ll take it! Although I can’t figure out why Darrin keeps piling up his mash potatoes?
Thanks Jenny and Scott for the inspiration for the blog title and the sage. I think I’m feeling a little batty now😋 Hope you had a safe trip back to Laramie!
