Bismarck, ND

Well, we woke up to snow on the ground in Caspar, WY and wondered where we made the wrong turn into January!  Snowflake (our Impala) was covered with snow, but it was right around freezing so it was easy to clean off.  Headed north out of Caspar and it actually got warmer as we went further north - crazy weather. Went through Buffalo, WY which is on the eastern slope of the Little Big Horn Mountains.  We saw a lot of signs saying "Interstate Closed When Flashing" - thank goodness the lights weren't flashing! 

Wyoming is kind of a fascinating state.  It seems to have all kinds of natural resources - coal, oil, cattle, sheep, wind farms, etc.  Didn't hit many mountains, but mostly rolling country side where you could see for miles in every direction.  Went through the Custer National Forest which spreads across a lot of Montana, Wyoming, South and North Dakota.  I'll send pictures on SkyDrive of some of the territory. 

As we drove north through South Dakota into North Dakota, we saw a lot of deserted farmsteads.  Some had complete buildings, including farmhouses, barns, etc.; others you could tell from the tree breaks used to be farms.  Now the big farms have taken over and absorbed the small government farms from the old days.  Saw a lot of pheasants along the road - there were also a lot of dead ones on the road - not too swift a bird.  Pretty, but not too smart!  Came north along the Enchanted Highway which has a lot of neat artwork (neat and huge).  We stopped in Richardton, ND at St Mary's Cemetery to see where Vi's Aunt Stella was buried, along with her husband John.  We were lucky enough to talk to a local employee who gave us instructions on how to find the gravesite.

One of the reasons we went the way we did was to find St Peter and St Paul Cemetery where Vi's great-grandfather was buried.  I had been in touch with St Ann's up in Hebron to find out where it was located.  Talked to the caretaker before we left Reno and was able to get directions to the old cemetery.  The church is still standing, although in an advanced state disrepair.  It's down about seven miles south of Hebron, ND - all red dirt roads.  It's a good thing it hadn't rained lately, so it was pretty easy driving.  We have been stuck on North Dakota mud roads and it ain't fun.  Originally, we had planned on staying in Mott, ND, but we were ahead of schedule, so stopped at St Peter and St Paul and then headed east on I-94 to Bismarck.  Must be something going on because we were turned down at several places before finding a good room.

Heading into Fargo tomorrow, so it's the last opportunity for you all to head out of town.  Don't think you'll have many options since the graduations are on Sunday!