DAY 2

Our second day involved heading south.  And so we left Red Deer, drove to Calgary and had three stops while there – not backtracking north at all – and finally made a bee-line for the border!  One of those stops was at the Calgary Bus Depot to pick up our passports.  Yes, we forgot them and realized it in time to have Gina Marie, our coworker in Regina, package and send them on the bus.  Even though we have traveled a lot in our married life, we still overlook items, sometimes crucial items.  Thankfully, this was an oversight that could be managed without much hassle.  Thank you, Gina Marie!

We made it to Great Falls, Montana that evening.  There was some snow on the ground, but we could already feel the warmer air and moderate temperatures.  Our goal was to travel until we were tired and put in a bigger drive on Monday.  We stayed at a hotel with breakfast included, and crashed!

DAY 3

Like the middle-aged people we are, we awoke at 6:30 am (7:30 back home in Saskatchewan) and got an early start to our day.  We had breakfast and were packed and back on Interstate 15 by 8 am.

Heading towards Helena, the state capitol, there was little traffic on the clear and smooth interstate highway.  A gorgeous pink and gold light reflected off a butte to the west, giving a beautiful blessing to the start of this day.

The state of Montana had record low amounts of snow cover this winter and we can attest to that.  The mountains in the distance were snow-capped, but virtually none covered the ground in any direction.  We rolled along, hour after hour, listening to a Louis L’Amour audiobook and only stopping for fuel and bathroom breaks.  We drove through Idaho for a short distance, then entered Utah.

Hitting Salt Lake City just a little before the rush hour, Walter maneuvered his way from lane to lane, always keeping an eye on the signs pointing to Las Vegas, still on Interstate 15.  The number of Mormon church steeples we saw was beyond count and I found myself praying for the city as the spiritual need and darkness was very apparent.  After about 45 minutes to an hour along this busy and billboard-laden freeway, we finally breathed a sigh of relief.  We were out in the country once again. 

The sun was getting lower in the sky and it struck me how the Lord had blessed us from the rising of the sun to its setting.  The sweet light on the mountains was breathtaking!   

We began to wonder where we ought to stop for the night.  Since we didn’t have any GPS available on our I Phones for the U.S., we were relying on the Spirit to lead us!  We read the town of “Fillmore 67 miles” on a sign and thought we would aim for that as our resting place. 

I’ve taken to praying on our trips for the accommodations we will be staying in each night.  So I prayed for a safe and clean hotel and wisdom in choosing a good restaurant for our evening meal.  We saw the exit sign with Best Western Motel and Restaurant and took our chances.  It turned out to be a lovely room and we brought in our luggage.  Then we headed over to the restaurant, glad to stretch our legs a bit.  The place was quaint and had a “coffee row” feel.  We both ordered the special, pork chops, and were entertained by the chatter along the counter where locals were visiting, and by the joke books set on the table.  Supper never tasted so good.  We didn’t linger long as it was almost 8:30 pm by the time we finished our meal.

After showering and watching some mindless t.v., we couldn’t keep our eyes open past 10 pm.  Walter had put in 10 hours of driving and me, just keeping him company.  We fell asleep almost immediately.