September 22 Sunday

We left Seattle Sunday morning after having breakfast with Robert and Stephanie. We headed to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, to Boondock at the home of the Coles, members of Boondocker Welcome. We got there after dark because we took route 26 through the desert and stopped for lunch in Matilda. It was rainy and foggy.

September 23 Monday

We drove the back roads into Montana. Beautiful open spaces and rolling hills. Ate at Cracker Barrel in Missoula, MT. Kept driving the back roads towards Helena, the capital of MT. We’re definitely in cattle country. Boondocked at a Super Walmart that was very nice and quiet.

Sept 24 Tues – Sept 25 We’d

Windy today on Hwy 12 in Montana. Loving the views and peaceful drive. Had lunch at a rest stop in Marlowton, MT, and the wind gusts were shaking our RV. Stopped on the roadside to take photos. Mountains of the Big Belt Range can be seen in the background. Rachel was a good steward and picked up roadside garbage. Later we had a delay for road construction. The winter snow melt washed out a four mile stretch of road. We had to follow a pilot car and line of traffic over a washboard dirt road. Arrived at the Miles City, KOA, where we stayed two nights. The campground was situated on the battlefield where Little Big Horn fought Custer. Used the convention oven to cook Stouffer’s lasagna for dinner.

Sept 26 Thurs

Picked up new windshield wipers at NAPA Autoparts in Miles City before we left. Also topped of Matilda’s oiI —it was 1/2 qt low. We drove out of Montana today, through the bottom corner of North Dakota and across the Missouri River into South Dakota. I made reservations online to spend the night at Indian Creek Recreation Area outside of Mobridge, SD, right on the bank of the Missouri River. Beautiful location with electric. The burial site of Sitting Bull is nearby.

Fri Sept 27

Matilda now has over 46,000 miles on her! Stopped for gas in Shelby, SD, and guy at the next pump recommended their local downtown cafe when Rachel asked about a place to eat. The Cloverleaf Cafe is nothing fancy, but burgers were good.

I was surprised when our older waitress came to take our order using an iPad with Apple Pay attached. Again, I went online and made reservations to spend the night at Big Stone Lake State Park just over the Minnesota border outside of Ortonville. Another nice site with electric. We got there after dark and the next morning saw we were close to the lake.

Sept 29 Sat – Oct 3 Thurs

Drove down to Ulm, MN to the Super Walmart to pick up prescription med refills and replenish some supplies. Ate lunch in the parking lot to save time & money. By now, Matilda had bugs and dirt collected on her, and I was anxious to clean her up. Harmony, MN had a large, brightly lit self-serve car/truck was, and I scrubbed her down. Passed an Amish horse and buggy in the dark afterwards on our way down into Iowa.

We again arrived after dark at our campsite at Little Paint Campground in the Yellow River State Forest near Harpers Ferry, Iowa. The ranger, Rylan, was there to help us find our spot, and suggested a more secluded location with a gravel parking pad. We had to cross two small river streams in the process. Monday morning he suggested we cross back over the rivers because they were expecting 2-3” of rain Tues morning, and we might get stranded if the rivers rise.

We’ve been reading, playing travel Rummy cube, snacking, napping, and making To Do lists for our next trip coming up in a couple of weeks. We also drove to fill the water tank, then drove up a steep road to two scenic overlooks. There was a Little Library box at the water station, and Rachel exchanged two books she’d finished and picked up a couple more. There’s no internet or hookups, so we are definitely off the grid, so to speak.