Snow, Snow & More Snow!

Being Oklahoma natives, we both grew up hearing “If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute . . .” Well, it’s true in Montana too!

On Wednesday (3/28) we were ‘threatened’ with 3 to 6 feet of snow, per the media. Thankfully Billings did not get hit with anything but a light snow – just an inch or two. Many of us sat in training that day watching the snow fall and wondering if we are ever going to ‘get out of Dodge’ – or Billings, anyway. No sweat, by morning it was gone. (We did learn that the storm had gone ‘around’ Billings and most of the highways leading out of Billings were closed.)

Thursday (3/29) we sat in training and watched the landscaping company mow the grass around the building! Sun shining – a beautiful day.

Then Friday . . . April Fools a bit early! We had ordered a couple of “KOA yellow” umbrellas and they arrived just in time for us to use them to get to our truck. Not rain, but snow – and lots of it – raining down upon us. That evening our group had dinner with the CEO of KOA, Jim Rogers. As we sat downtown at Jake’s – dining on roasted pork shank (Twylah) and seafood alfredo (Roger) we were encouraged that it was ‘letting up’. But when the guys went to get the truck they had quite a job getting the snow cleared off enough to drive. And then as we got on the interstate and headed west it just kept getting harder and harder – making it difficult to even see the lines on the highway.

By morning we had over a foot – that’s 12 inches plus, folks – and it was beautiful. As we were making our way over to the Cracker Barrel for breakfast, one of the teams spied us out their room window - and called to tell us to save them a spot. Like us – they couldn't face another ‘continental’ breakfast. With the predicted high of 60 degrees for Saturday, everything had started to melt by the time we finished breakfast.

Laundry to do, a prescription to fill . . . Roger dropped me off at the laundromat and he went to run the errands. Think all of our yellow trucks were parked in front of that laundry sometime that morning – it had been a long week. Laundry done – it’s time to shop. I had spotted one of my favorite stores (Catherines) and a couple of us left the guys watching basketball and we headed out to do some shopping. Found the clearance rack and I bought four tops and Rita bought two.

Later that day we went to look at a Hitch Hiker fifth wheel Roger had seen earlier in the week. Then we stopped by the World Market store and wandered around there until supper time.

“Having” to eat out every night is tough (NOT!). Headed to Outback Steak House – where I ordered a steak and Roger ordered shrimp. We both shared so that we had ‘surf & turf’ – it was delicious. Often times when we are with this bunch we order a couple of desserts and share. So Roger ordered the “Thunder from Down Under” and then nobody would help him with it. By the time he finished, he had truly ‘frogged his sides’!

Sunday morning (4/1),and we loaded up in rental vans and headed for a couple of ‘days away’ from the training grind. Our boss had made arrangements for us to stay two nights at the Paradise Gateway Bed & Breakfast in Emigrant (just north of the north gate to Yellowstone) – which is also only a few miles from Chico Hot Springs. After doing a trial ‘review’ at the Livingston KOA, we adjourned to one of the guest houses to go over our observations.

Free for the afternoon, several of us headed to the hot springs for a ‘soak’. They have two pools, one that is about 105 degrees and one that is 118 degrees. Now these aren’t hot tubs, but actual swimming pools that are heated by natural hot springs. No chemicals are used in the water because the water flows through the pools at a fast enough rate that they are not needed. It didn’t take long for us to get our fill. We dined on salmon & prime rib at the resort that evening. Some stayed to catch some action at the bar, but Roger & I elected to head back and hit the sack – at 8:30! Some party animals we are!

After a bountiful breakfast provided by our hosts, Pete & Carol Reed, three vans loaded up and headed south to Yellowstone National Park. It was just barely snowing when we left, but by the time we got to the gate, it was really snowing. The ranger warned us that the forecast called for 9”! But, onward we go. By the time we arrived at the visitor’s center (just 5 miles further south), we were in REALLY heavy snow! Our fearless leader, a native Montanan – decided we would watch a video about how they have reintroduced the wolves to Yellowstone, and then we would decide whether to go home or drive on in to the park. The video was really interesting, but I know I (and several others) sat there wondering just how bad it would be when we went back outside. Much to our surprise – the sun had come out and the streets were already melted!

So off we went in search of buffalo, deer, wolves, bear, etc. Our very first encounter was with a lone buffalo headed the opposite direction. He looked the friendly sort, but we didn’t test him. The further we drove we found several herds of buffalo and a couple of elk. The wildlife was really on the move as we headed home and had to stop once for the buffalo were standing in the middle of the road. Got some really great shots – but Roger kept telling me to get a ‘close up’. My window was rolled down and I was feeling very vulnerable being so close to such a huge animal. Didn’t get the close up Roger wanted, but everyone had a good laugh at my reluctance to get ‘up close & personal’ with the hairy beast. Came across several very large herds of mule deer and got some really great shots of them. Didn’t catch sight of any wolves or bear – but seeing so much wildlife was a real treat. When we were here in August of 2002, we didn’t see any at all.

With a couple of hours to ourselves back at the Reed's, we were hanging out at our cottage. I had ‘reclined’ on one of the couches, zoning out to my new Vince Gill tunes, when Roger tapped me on the foot. We had two visitors right outside our window – white-tailed deer, just munching away. They were very skittish and darted away at the very first sound we made inside. It’s very easy to see why people love Montana.

Supper was at the Livery Stable, which was attached to the “Old Saloon” – built in 1902 and remains much the same, with the exception of indoor plumbing. However, when I visited the ‘facilities’ I’m afraid they looked like they were added somewhere in the 30’s or 40’s and haven’t been updated since!

We did discover they do know how to make a very good chicken fried steak! Our group of 19 people took up practically the entire restaurant, but this early in the season, they weren’t exactly standing in line. We retired to one of the guest houses for “Moose Tracks” ice cream and cake, served up with the basketball game, before heading to our respective cottages to call it a night. Headed ‘home’ to Billings tomorrow.

Tuesday dawned with yet more snow! We stopped for a quick breakfast at a little place called "Howlin' Hounds Cafe" right in Emigrant. As we spied the 'hound' decor, we had to ask what kind of 'hounds' they had. Much as I had suspected, they did indeed have a Basset hound named 'Duke', as well as a Beagle. The roads were a bit treacherous for a ways, but our breakfast stop allowed the sun to pop out and it didn't take long for them to turn to mush. We were delighted to find that the closer we got to Billings, the less white stuff we saw. But our hopes were flattened a bit, for when we went out with the group for a light supper, we were indeed having snow showers once again.

So now it's back to work for our last 3 days of training. If all goes well, and the weather lightens up, we'll head home Saturday morning.

Stay tuned!