Medora, ND to Great Falls, MT

Today I made the relatively long drive to Great Falls, MT. The main attraction of Great Falls is that it is only about a 6 and a half hour nominal drive from Medora. With stops, it was more like 8 hours. It was not a bad day to gain an hour.

The day was mild, with highs in the high 50s, although I did get a few raindrops along the way. Almost the entire route was a two lane highway, often with a posted speed limit of 70 mph. It is pretty disconcerting to have a semi coming at you at 70 mph (or greater) with very little road to spare. I was on high alert for the entire trip. And, again, I made sure to start looking for a gas station at the half tank mark as there were long distances of isolated road with no services.

It was pleasant to arrive to a nicely appointed Springhill Suites in Great Falls after the Americinn dump I stayed at in Medora. Last night featured being woken up by the front desk person sometime in the middle of the night because someone had complained about a loud TV and obviously he got the wrong room.

Regardless, Great Falls is only a one night pit stop. I had hoped to visit Buffalo Jump State Park tomorrow on my way out to Whitefish, but winter hours dictate closure on Mondays. And of course, Glacier NP closed at the end of September, so I will have to visit that park on a separate visit. That leaves my big destination tomorrow as yet another appointment with Firestone to check out my door and adjust my tire pressure.