Now in the West

Saturday we crossed most of North Dakota and watched the scenery change from Prairie to Plains.  We stopped in Minot at the edge of their “oil patch”.  Today we saw even more of the Plains.  Now that we have also crossed into Montana and the Mountain Time Zone, we can officially say that we are in the West.  Most of our clocks have been reset, with just a couple left to do (of course, Paige always stays in Central Time!).

Something else we saw were the ND “man camps” – lots of RVs, mobile homes, modular housing, etc., packing available space near truck depots and oil well sites.  The western end of ND is filled with them, and they are filled with guys.  Because of the oil drilling, grain harvest, and major road construction, there is almost no unemployment.

After 3 straight driving days, we are staying put right here tomorrow.  We are at a very quiet Corps of Engineers facility at a dam on the Missouri River; Lewis and Clark country.  Seniors like us get a 50Amp site for $9/night.  We will tour the power plant and do some surfing on the Internet, after sleeping in a little more than normal.

Paige is also taking this time to create a treat for us.  We bought some huge Colorado peaches while getting the tires fixed in Virginia, MN.  It was a fundraising sale.  These peaches are delicious but huge – one peach is enough to split for both of us for breakfast.  In order to use the peaches before they spoil, Paige found a recipe for Peach Crisp today.  It’s in the convection oven now and smelling good in here!  Yum!