Day 41- All about the Journey

My husband has worn off on me.  I can now not sleep unless the room is cool/cold.  Dad set the thermostat to  70 last night saying it was too cold.  Falling asleep was a struggle.  I like it at 68. Yes those 2 degrees do make a difference. 

Walked down to the breakfast area in the morning just to check it out. It was basic. But they did have single servings of vanilla Almond milk- so I grabbed a few for the road. 

Today has many stops and A LOT of driving- Over 430 miles today--But it was all about what we did on the drive.  Glendive is a pretty sleepy town without a lot to offer-the only brewery closes at 8pm so we missed out on that one. 

Petrified Wood Park
Lemmon, SD

Lemmon, South Dakota
Petrified wood park and museum
Didn't do the Museum- only the park which is free and in the center of town. I've seen a lot of petrified wood on this trip (See Previous Blog) but this was certainly the most artistic presentation. 

John Lopez Art Gallery

Kokomo Gallery- John Lopez was raised on a peacock farm outside of Lemmon, his mom beams about him inside the gallery- take the time to listen to everything she has to share- it's a gift. 

John started as a Bronze artist for 20 years, but for the last decade he has been working on large scale sculptures made of scrap metal, which he salvages from surrounding communities- giving the many scrap/junk yards of SD a new life. 

Enchanted Highway

Enchanted Highway- Put in to try to draw tourists to the small town of Regent, ND, we actually did it backwards as we started in the south and worked our way up to 94. If you've ever driven west on 94 to Montana you passed the Flying Geese off the HW but there are 6 more massive sculptures down that road.  Since we already had to go north, this was a fun way to do it.  

Roosevelt National Park-

•  I wish the loop was complete because it would have saved me 40 minutes of drive time retracing my steps, but other than that, I have nothing to complain about.  Dad thought a few of the roads were a bit narrow and needed maintenance. 
• I saw prairie dogs, bison and wild horses in addition to breath-taking views. To those who think the mid-west is "Flat, fly over land" you clearly have never been to the Dakotas.  The Bad Lands are nothing short of amazing. 
  

End: Glendive, MT- Wouldn't recommend it- very sleepy town, not much going on and no good beer choices after 8pm.  There was a brewery we thought about trying, but it was too late. 

Hotel Review- La Quinta

Pros: Right off the highway, mini fridge, microwave, coffee maker, desk, chair, plenty of lamps, night stand, tub I can soak in, extra towels in the room, convenient charging spots and plugs, black out curtains free wifi, free parking, morning breakfast bar.

Cons: Bed isn't supportive. There was a ticking noise that I didn't notice until I turned off the TV, but it was incessant. I unplugged EVERYTHING to try to find it- nothing stopped- it's still going in the morning. UGG. Also the door and blinds need a good Once...maybe even twice over with WD-40 because they are SQUEAKY and woke me up more than once.