Lewis & Clark National Forest

This morning, after Chris went into town to man his post at the meat counter of Edwards Grocery, we took a leisurely drive through the Lewis & Clark National Forest, along the Kings Hill Scenic Byway.

What should have been a two-hour drive to the town of Great Falls (and the nearest Wal-Mart, where we had some errands to run) ended up taking us three and a half hours. We felt compelled to stop at nearly every scenic turnout in the Little Belt Mountains to admire the surroundings.

Nestled in these pine-covered mountains are the historic mining towns of Neihart and Monarch, where relics of times past still remain. We hiked up along Belt Creek to Memorial Falls and also paused to gaze upon the untouched beauty of Sluice Boxes State Park.

After finishing our shopping in Great Falls, we visited the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center at the site of the Corps of Discovery's famous portage around the rapids. Through pictures, models, artifacts, and ranger talks, the center brings to life the exciting adventures of these brave men (and Sacagawea, of course). One historic interpreter's short but entertaining presentation shed light on the origins of several idioms still in common usage today, such as "flash in the pan," "lock, stock, and barrel," "going off half-cocked," "skin-flint," and "get the lead out."

At the end of our day, we returned to the ranch where we realized the true value of staying with a cattle rancher/butcher: Dinner was superb!

Tomorrow Chris has the day off, so we will stick around to visit and get some much-needed rest. It's been a busy week!