May 29 – Friday – June 7 – Sunday morning After a wonderful night’s rest, Gary decides that the very dirty Roadhouse needs a wash along with our very dirty truck.  We got into several rain showers over the last two days & boy, are we a dirty looking mess.  So he goes to work on this cold morning while I dealt with some laundry & tidying up the inside.  Gosh, everything looks so clean & nice.  Well, we could have saved our breath.  The entire time we’ve been here the rain has fallen at some point in the day or maybe twice or three times.  Gary managed to fish several times in between storms.  No more than a few hours a day.  Nix on the golf……the course is too wet.  And we had to have a little drama to spice up our time here.  Me & my recurring problems with kidney stones ( makes me crazy).  On 5/30, while Gary was fishing far from the campground, I was hit with incredible pain as a stone stuck en transit.  Janet, campground owner, ran me over to Barrett Hospital’s ER.  I wasn’t too thrilled to be at a hospital where the town has 4200 souls living here.  However, this town also services a region that has tiny towns and so people travel from miles around to use this hospital.  They replaced the old hospital with a newly completed campus last year that has, in a small way, state-of-the-art equipment and what seems to be a very competent staff in the ER.  I was treated quickly and effectively and Gary had arrived on scene and was able to take me back to the Roadhouse.  So, the next day I had to go back to have a couple of tests.  They declared me fit as a fiddle and to just continue on with our vacation.  Still feeling fine.  We did a little shopping around town and the time has flown by.  We’re off to Livingston, MT for a couple of nights as we make our way to North Dakota. As I’ve written about Dillon several times, we will try not to repeat what we’ve written before.  Dillon was developed as the railroad came through many years ago.  It became the county seat.  It is largely agricultural with beef and grain being the two big commodities.  It is home to the University of Montana-Western, a high school whose students are bussed in for miles to attend, a very complete museum of the Beaverhead County relics and sample buildings that have been moved on-site, the county court house and the aforementioned hospital.  The business district, both historical buildings and newer, boasts many bars/restaurants, 2 chain supermarkets, 1 local brewery, a car dealer, miscellaneous shops, 3 computer technicians offering a variety of services, 3 large ranch supply stores that sell everything from tack to feed to clothing, 3 or 4 guide services for both hunting & fishing, a daily newspaper and a weekly, a True Value hardware & Ace hardware and a custom boot maker known around the world.  That’s a lot for 4219 residents.  However, if you need a big box store, it’s off to Bozeman, 120 miles away.

This pretty pair were as curious about us as we were about them.

Outside of Dillon, on a dirt road that we drove for several miles, we saw many contrasts.  Along the way there were a number of prosperous looking modern ranches.  Tucked away was the evidence of ranching long ago.

Dillon’s cemetery rules are interesting to read.  I laughed & laughed in this solemn place.  I especially like the ‘no hunting’ sign.  I’m pretty sure I ran this picture in a past year, but couldn’t resist sharing it again.

Just a sample of the weather we’ve been experiencing.  Wish I could bring all this water home!

An osprey keeps her eggs warm & dry on this drizzly day.  Like moms everywhere, she is on constant guard to protect her babes-to- be.  There is a river nearby where they get their food.

In the middle of a bustling campground, this momma duck escorts her extremely young ducklings along the stream/canal that cuts through the grounds.  Just days old, they scoot ever so quickly through the water.  At the slightest hint of disturbance they quickly disappear into the grasses along the water.  Mom looks a tiny bit frazzled.  The chicks, full of energy, just bounce around on the water & land.  Great viewing for us as we are parked along the waterway.

Another weather update.  As these storms move quickly in and out of Dillon, wind is busy pushing them.  It doesn’t last long, but we keep the awnings rolled up as we are never sure when the quick-moving wind will arrive.

Spring/summer flowers are having a tough time with all the cold, wet weather.  But they are bursting out in spite of it.  The hardy, little blue Montana wildflowers strain towards the warmth of the sun as the young lilac bushes display their beauty & fragrance.  The hothouse-grown colorful flowers were just put out around the campground to give those pops of color we all enjoy.