Continued from the previous page.

DAY 5, THURSDAY, MARCH 3:  the funeral + driving to Butte, MT

The funeral and solemn military inurnment at the cemetery were over by 1 PM.

We were drained emotionally and physically by then and decided to start the long drive back to Arizona that afternoon and take two and a half days to get there so it would be less stressful than the drive earlier in the week.

After running a couple errands in Billings we drove 212 miles in about three hours, heading west on I-90 to Butte.

Although the tangent we took to connect I-90 east with I-15 north on Tuesday at the western edge of Yellowstone National Park was shorter and more scenic, it was also slower and more hazardous in the snow and wind so we stayed on I-90 west on the way back until we reached I-15 south.

It was overcast and in the upper 50s F. -- not so bad for Montana this time of year -- but harsh winds made it feel much colder. We could definitely feel the headwinds when we were driving.

Above and below:  Crazy Mountains in the distance;
the range stretches for 40 miles and tops out at 11,214 feet.

 

We got closer to snow as we gained elevation.

Traffic was light except around Bozeman. The road was dry. We saw an increasing amount of snow on the ground around us as we headed west, mostly because we were gaining elevation.

The highest elevation this day was at the Continental Divide between Bozeman and Butte (6,393 feet).

LaQuinta Inn, Butte, MT:

This chain of motels usually allows dogs in designated rooms on the ground floors, where it's easy to take them outside when necessary.

This particular motel apparently allows dogs in every room. When Jim checked in about 4 PM we were upgraded from a basic room to a suite at no extra charge, which was nice. The suite was near the back door to our hall, with easy access to the car and grass for the dogs.

We had a king bed, comfortable chair, ottoman, end tables, and large TV on a long dresser in the bedroom; a long vanity in the bathroom; an alcove with refrigerator, microwave, and second sink; and a living room with love seat, coffee table, end table, desk, TV, and another dresser. The space and accommodations were an excellent value, especially at the original (lower) price we'd been quoted for a regular room.

A city park is located below the hotel so we were able to give the dogs some exercise after we brought our things inside. Some of the grass and the ball fields had snow, ice, and puddles of snowmelt that Casey had fun running through.

 

We found a drier grassy area to throw the ball for Casey and a paved path going around the perimeter of the park where we walked the dogs.

We brought the dog beds inside this time so they could sleep comfortably in the living room. Cody got adjusted to our suite very quickly but Casey moved around a lot as we ate supper, watched TV, did stuff on our computers, etc. Jim joked that she missed being in the car all night. I'm glad they were inside with us because it got down to 18 F. overnight, even lower than in Billings. 

While Jim was eating a microwavable dinner, one of his upper side teeth with a filling broke off. Oh, no!

The good thing was that it didn't hurt. The downside was that instead of leaving on Sunday for our next destination in southern California, we decided to stay at YPG long enough to get a new bridge and crown built. We'd already had some dental work done and wanted to go back to the same dentist in Yuma.

That actually turned into a good thing.

DAY 6, FRIDAY, MARCH 4:  Butte, MT to Fillmore, UT

Not only was this a rather long day on the freeway, it also didn't start off very well.

When Jim began taking things out to the Odyssey in the morning he discovered that neither sliding door would open. We've never had that happen before. The front doors and back hatch door opened OK. Even though Jim turned on the heater full blast for about 15 minutes, the doors were still frozen shut when it was time to go and wouldn't budge, even with some manual force.

I-15 is very scenic -- even in the winter -- as it winds through southern Montana (above), Idaho, and Utah.

Both dogs were able to jump onto the front seats and walk over the console to get to the middle of the van where they travel. (The middle row of seats is in storage, never used). There was some snow and/or sleet overnight so Jim had to scrape ice off all the windows.

The sliding doors finally opened when we made our first stop a couple hours later.

Route:

The motel in Butte was near the I-90/I-15 intersection. Our route was simple -- just head south on I-15 through Montana, Idaho, and Utah until we got to Fillmore, which is south of Salt Lake City. We had already made a reservation there for the night, knowing the dogs could sleep inside the room with us again.

We had bright sunshine and the freeway was clear all day, winding up and down through several snow-capped mountain ranges and scenic rangeland in southern Montana and northern Idaho:

Nice ranchland in Montana (above), with a big house at the base of the mountain (highlighted below)

 

 

Above and below:  Scenic frozen lake in Montana

 

Corral for horses or livestock?

The deepest snow was before and after Monida Pass on the Continental Divide (6,870 feet) in Montana:

 

 

 

As we approached Idaho Falls we could see the iconic Grand Teton peaks in the distance more clearly than we could on Monday when they were obscured by clouds; we were much closer to them that day. (No pictures of the Tetons on the way south because I was driving then.)

Because we were at lower elevations at and below Idaho Falls, we didn't see any more snow close to the road and in the fields/rangeland until we got back over 5,000 feet elevation at Malad Summit (5,574 feet), about 20 miles north of the Utah border.

The snow on the peaks all along the Wasatch Front was very pretty, too.

 

 

Traffic was light and moving at 80 MPH or more most of the way to Ogden, UT.  Even though we passed through the very long Salt Lake City metro area before "rush hour" -- about 100 miles from Ogden to Provo -- traffic was heavy in both directions but moved mostly at the speed limit.

We've been in that area several times and continue to be amazed at how much traffic flows through there at any time of day.

 

As you can see by these photos, it was sunny all day.

What you can't see is that we had minimal wind and it was noticeably warmer by the time we got to Fillmore. Yay!! That's more to our liking, although seeing all that snow this week was fun, too.

Best Western Paradise Inn & Resort:

It took us less than eight hours to drive 567 miles with three stops this day. We were happy to arrive at our overnight destination well before dark so we could get out and walk the dogs near our motel and stretch our legs.

We haven't done this much driving for a while and we missed the long hikes and bike rides we were accustomed to doing every day.

This motel is far from "paradise" but at least the dogs were allowed in our room for an extra $11 for both. The total cost per night was about the same as the large suites we had in Billings and Butte but the room wasn't nearly as nice as those suites -- older, much smaller, not as comfortable or as attractively decorated.

Last snow before Fillmore

For folks who like to eat out, this motel complex has a restaurant, pool, and golf course. We didn't care for anything on the dinner menu that night so we warmed up microwave entrees we'd purchased in Billings. We had a microwave and refrigerator so we could fix our own meals. 

The price we paid for our room included a hot breakfast. In order to save time in the morning, Jim was able to get two free hot breakfasts at the restaurant in the evening; he warmed them up in the microwave before we left Saturday morning. (I preferred to eat jazzed-up oatmeal we took with us.)

Despite not traveling in our RV, we didn't eat out much on this trip. We ate at restaurants only twice, both times in Billings.

We saved a lot of time and money -- and had healthy foods we like to eat -- by buying produce, dairy products, bread, sliced turkey, microwavable entrees, etc. in Yuma and Billings, keeping them in a cooler in the car, and preparing them as needed. Each room we reserved had a microwave and refrigerator for that reason.

DAY 7, SATURDAY, MARCH 5:  Fillmore, UT to Yuma Proving Ground, AZ

We had more miles to drive on our last day, with more two-lane roads and towns to go through -- 583 miles in a little less than nine hours with only four stops.

Route & Road Conditions: 

Same as last Sunday going northbound, but in the opposite direction:  I-15 south to I-515 in Las Vegas; US 95 south through California to Needles; east on I-40 for a few miles; south on US 95 to Blythe; east on I-10 to Quartzsite, AZ; south on US 95 in Arizona to Imperial Dam Rd. and our RV park at Yuma Proving Ground.

Traffic was light everywhere except St. George, UT, and Las Vegas, NV, the two largest metro areas. I-40 and I-10 were much busier than I-15 through southern Utah. Speed limit was 75-80 MPH on I-15, 75 MPH on I-40 and I-10, and 55-75 on different parts of US 95.

The northern part of US 95 is four-lane to Needles, then two-lane with lots of dips in and out of washes.

Those are fun to drive fast when we're not hauling a 5th-wheel coach!

Terrain/scenery/weather:

Perfect weather -- sunny all day, minimal wind, 40s F. in Utah in the morning and 80s in southern Arizona when we got back to the RV park. That's what I'm talkin' about!!

The highest we got this day was 6,500 feet but there wasn't any snow near the road, only on the mountain peaks in southern Utah. North of St. George, across from the area with Zion National Park, we passed a lot of colorful orange and red hills on the west side of I-15 where I could take pictures the best while Jim was driving:

 

 

Descending into St. George

How would you like that in your back yard??

The most beautiful section of road was through the Virgin River Canyon south of St. George. I showed several pictures going northbound on the first page of this entry.

The Virgin River has probably done more for tourism in southern Utah than any other phenomenon over the past few millennia. Farther upstream, it's the river that gouged out The Narrows and other deep, gorgeous canyons in Zion National Park.

The rock it cuts through here is beautiful, too. The variety of colors and the height of some of the canyon walls rival those found in state and national parks in Utah -- and it's all free in this canyon!

The descent into the canyon begins soon after the Utah-Arizona state line:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think it's more scenic driving southbound (downhill) through this canyon because you can see more than when you're going up that long grade.

The long ascent may be a chore for Jim hauling the Cameo in several weeks when we go from Las Vegas to Zion. There is construction in both directions, making the hilly, curving roadway even slower than normal through here.

 

There's the river, finally; it's hard to see in either direction when it's this low in the winter. 

Driving both direction during this trip we noted numerous acres of solar panels on US 95 south of Henderson, NV.

At first glance, from a long distance, it all looks like a very long, thin lake below a range of mountains:

I was able to take better photos in the passenger seat going southbound than northbound, so now we're certain that it's a huge power-generating operation after zooming in on the pictures:

 

I also noted some orange wildflowers along the roadside and lots of yellow flowers on the creosote bushes on US 95 south of Quartzsite:

The creosotes have been blooming near Imperial Dam LTVA and on base for a couple weeks now. I'll have lots of spring desert flower and other plant photos in the next entry.

BACK "HOME"

It was a relief to get back home to the Cameo after being gone for a week to such a different part of the country. The death of a close family member was stressful, and so was the journey to Montana and back. Hate to say it, but we aren't as young as we used to be!

After Jim broke a tooth on the fourth day of the trip, we modified our travel plans for the next six weeks.

We originally had reservations at three different RV parks in California and Nevada for two weeks each, beginning March 6. In order for Jim to get a new crown and bridge built, we stayed in our same site at Yuma Proving Ground until March 20 and reduced each of those reservations to one week. We lucked out in that regard, as full as RV parks are this time of year in these areas.

Staying put worked out quite well, in fact. It was less hectic after all the recent stress to mostly relax at YPG another two weeks instead of starting to move from place to place again -- we have several new destinations planned in 2016.

Scene along US 95 in California between Needles and I-10

More interesting hills on US 95/I-10 west of Quartzsite, AZ

In addition, since the afternoon temps were getting hotter by now, more than half of the folks at our end of the campground had moved on by the time we got back. It was much quieter and we could enjoy sitting outside again, with more privacy and fewer distractions.

We got out every morning while it was cooler to ride our bikes and walk the dogs in our favorite places at the nearby conservation area and lands surrounding the Imperial Dam LTVA. I really enjoyed seeing so many pretty spring flowers in the desert and on base. When we were at the LTVA four years ago, we left before most of the flowers were blooming.

Next entry:  spring desert flowers and other interesting flora in far southwestern Arizona

Happy trails,

Sue
"Runtrails & Company" - Sue Norwood, Jim O'Neil, Cody the ultra Lab, and Casey-pup

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© 2016 Sue Norwood and Jim O'Neil