Buffalo, Montana

Mike & I just returned from a quick Montana trip to visit Mike's Mom. It was kind of a quick trip and we spent much of it in the car but it was really quite delightful. Although Mike and I have made this trip many times, we decided that this time we were going to take some different routes and see some places we'd not seen before. So, on the way up we explored Buffalo, MT. There are still a few people who live there, and a church that is being used, but much of the town is fading away.

It was fun to imagine people from the past coming and going from this bank.

 I find I love taking photos of old, abandoned buildings.

I enjoyed looking around the area.

 Was this maybe the train depot?

What stories could it tell of people arriving and departing?

What a pretty little church, huh?

 Who do you supposed lived here?

When did the porch fall off?

 The school looked pretty good from a distance but closer up, a little sad.

Still, it was pretty easy to image kids playing outside or

 a group of high school boys trying to impress high school girls.

Maybe this place was someone's first home?

We especially loved the chimney.

Looking at all that evidence of days past is kind of neat, but also rather bittersweet. I think about the people who worked hard to build a life there, and now it is over. They may have descendants scattered far and wide who may not even know of this place or their roots here. It really makes me think about how short our time here really is, when considering the grand scheme of things... dust in the wind and all that.

Wyoming Wildlife

I was snooping around on Mike's phone this week-end. OK, I wasn't reading his texts or checking his phone messages. I was snooping through his photos to see if he had any good ones. He did! Two that I found were typical Wyoming shots so I thought you might like to take a peek as well.

This one was taken from the front door of our church. We often have antelope meandering across our parking lot and munching around on the lawn. One day Mike came out and saw a baby antelope. That's not something you'll see in the city now, is it?

This other photo must have been taken last time he was in Yellowstone Park. By the way, if you've never been to Yellowstone, it is time to plan that vacation.  Here, take a look...

When you visit, just remember that you aren't supposed to pet the buffalo.

It is a really bad idea.

Last time we were at Old Faithful, waiting for the eruption, we noticed the

crowd along the boardwalk kind of moving and murmuring. Eventually we realized a bull buffalo was coming down the boardwalk and people were just moving aside only enough for it to pass.

When we saw it, we promptly got out of the area. Often the buffalo just ignore the people but sometimes they do not.  I discovered that YouTube is full of buffalo attack videos. This one was shot right by Old Faithful, near where we saw one wandering along that very boardwalk. Don't watch it if you think it will give you nightmares but it isn't bloody or anything. It will just scare you to see how stupid people can be sometimes.

Hmmm... I didn't know I was going to lecture about buffalo safety when I started this post. That was a surprise to me as well.

More Than Sagebrush

I love the drive from our town to the town where my mother, sister and other relatives live. It is only a two hour drive across part of Wyoming. It isn't through the mountains but rather covers mostly prairie. I've heard people say it was a boring drive...nothing but sagebrush...a whole lot of nothing, things like that. I disagree!

On my way home last week-end I decided to make a few stops to take some photographs. Let me share with you some of what I saw.

I saw a lot of horses.

They are so beautiful, aren't they?

Also, do you see the antelope behind this horse?

 Cattle are abundant in Wyoming.

 I saw a couple of buffalo herds.

This big guy was pretty majestic looking.

 Driving along there, you can almost feel the history.

It is not hard to imagine Native Americans riding living their nomadic life in this region.

Early settlers must have had adventures here.

It must have been a challenging environment!

My own great grandparents homesteaded very nearby.

Although it is easy to feel like few have been out in that lonely area before,

there are markers to tell you that the land is covered in history.

There really is a lot of sagebrush along the route.

I kind of like it.

 There are many, many weird rock formations. 

I couldn't stop to photograph all of them but you get the idea.

The landscape changes frequently.

I enjoyed watching this hawk soaring overhead.

On a previous trip I saw two bald eagles!

Sorry, not photos of them. 

Mama Deer led her twins to safety.

I was thrilled to see a badger up close.

He was in the middle of the road; I thought he was road kill

but he got up and scurried to the side of the road,

turned and looked at me as I passed.

A badger is kind of a rare sighting, especially during the day.

Sorry I didn't get a photograph.

I'm telling you...

... it is a beautiful drive.

A Waterfall and a Buffalo

It was just an ordinary Thursday yesterday. However, for a few hours, I felt like I was on vacation.

 With Maria and the granddaughters I went to a little waterfall. It is a beautiful little setting and only about 15 minutes away!

Both girls enjoyed the water. The spray felt good!

Cordelia and I were wearing flip-flops so we felt free to splash through the shallow creek at the bottom of the waterfall.

Elise thought she should do the same.

It was relaxing and fun.

I had beautiful company...

...and lovely water. 

It just doesn't get better than that!

We drove back into town for another adventure. Maria had received notification that Cordelia had won a little drawing at a local grocery store. Her prize? A Buffalo! She wondered on the way there if it would be a real buffalo. Were you wondering that as well? That would be absurd but my Mom once won a Shetland Pony!

Thankfully, Cordelia's buffalo was a manageable size.

What a sweet couple of hours out  of my day! 

An Afternoon in Buffalo

Yesterday was lovely.  The weather was beautiful, absolutely wonderful.  I drove to Buffalo, Wyoming to meet up with my Mom, an aunt and a cousin.   We met for lunch and then went to visit my great aunt.  It was an afternoon of hearing old, old family stories.  I loved hearing about my grandparents' romance, "Red was crazy about Rose from the first time he saw her."  Although they'd both been planning to marry others, they married just 2 months after they met.  

I heard about my great grandma's strength as a homesteader, "She was amazing".  She raised her children so far out in the country most of them did not see town until they were old enough to go in to board for their high school years.

I looked at old photos and could easily see my youngest son, Sam, in the young face of the man who became my Grandpa.  That made me happy.

My great aunt. Elsie is in her 90's but still living alone.  She looks a lot like my Grandma Rose... so much it made me a bit teary, missing my Grandma.  She had the same dimple I loved seeing when my Grandma smiled.  I always wished I'd inherited that dimple!

 I enjoyed the chance to get to spend an afternoon at her apartment.  I loved listening to the conversation and was so glad for that opportunity!  I did remember to pull out my camera for a photo of Elsie but she didn't feel she was looking her best so I promised I wouldn't put it on the internet.  I will tell you this, though, she looks much younger than her true age.

I have always loved Buffalo, Wyoming.  The drive there was windy but clear and bright.  The scenery was fit for calendars and the town is charming.  I took some photos so my readers could enjoy a bit of the beauty of this lonesome state.  Enjoy!

On the ride to Buffalo I was thinking about all the places in the world that I'd like to visit.  I LOVE the ocean, I enjoy tropical places, I want to see Alaska and I'd love to explore more cities.  As far as where I live, though, I love the West.  I love the open spaces and I love the casual lifestyle. I'm pretty adaptable and could live most anywhere, really, but I'm grateful that I do life in the West.