Getting Closer to Yellowstone…& Spring - Near Livingston, Montana

“…Adieu to disappointment and spleen. What are men to rocks and mountains? Oh! what hours of transport we shall spend! And when we do return, it shall not be like other travellers, without being able to give one accurate idea of anything. We will know where we have gone - we will recollect what we have seen. Lakes, mountains, and rivers shall not be jumbled together in our imaginations; nor, when we attempt to describe any particular scene, will we begin quarrelling about its relative situation.…' “

-Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Ch 27

Going Places - East Missoula, Montana

“Montana, you go fifty-five you never get anywhere. When you do get someplace, it is North Dakota.”

-from The Tumbler, A Gabriel Du Pré Mystery by Peter Bowen (1945-2020), page 4

Side Road Shadows, I-90, Western Montana

Long afternoon shadows stretch across the winter whiteness, adding gentle drama and contrast.
Sunset this week, in Missoula,Montana, officially occurs successively from 17:23 to 17:29. Which translates to driving home in reflective daylight glow instead of in the dark - hooray! Since the sun is shining bright today, I better get out in it and store up some organic Vitamin D in my winter fat layer. Tarah! Off I go!

Descending Fog, I-90 Roadside, Montana

Fog by Carl Sandburg

THE fog comes

on little cat feet.

It sits looking

over harbor and city

on silent haunches

and then moves on.

 

 

 

 

To top off the snow and cold, we've had fog the past couple days.

Arriving at work, I stepped out of my car and felt unseen sparkle on my face, an almost-nothing awakening touch, like that of a baby's fingers exploring a trusted face.

Sign of Sunshine, Haugan, Montana

The sun was shining brighter than, well, a silver dollar - or even 50,000 of them!- in spite of fire haze still lingering. When I was a kid, this all-encompassing travel stop on the I-90 route to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, was the 10,000 Silver Dollar Store. You can buy a silver dollar for a buck & they'll add yours to the collection.