Alaska Trip - 2007 - Week 6

Day 36 - August 01 - Calgary,AB,  to Medicine Hat, AB Miles Driven - 270 miles

This begins the sixth and last week of the trip. Today was Jeanne's birthday but she didn't want to celebrate it. So we sent her an e-card that said, Happy Whatever it is your aren't celebrating day card. We left a very busy Calgary at 8:00 AM heading for Medicine Hat with an intermediate stop at the Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump in the Fort MacLeod area. The center is on the land of the Blackfoot Nation in Alberta. The site consists of an interpretative center with five levels of displays dealing with the life of the natives and their dependence on the buffalo. There are numerous artifacts such as bone tools, buffalo bones, arrowheads etc that have been found in the remains left behind by over 6000 years of use as a buffalo jump. The center has been built into the side of the cliff that comprised a portion of the jump. It is a very impressive place to visit. We had been to a buffalo jump in Montana previously but it was only an archeological site with some explanation panels. Here the Blackfeet have created a site which has been  designated as a World Heritage site.

It is estimated that the buffalo jump was only used once or twice a year with about 100 to 200 buffalo meeting their maker each time. You can see that with the passage of 6000 years the bones and other artifacts left behind would be enormous. At the present time digging into the spoils has reached at least 10 feet and there is no estimate of how much more lays below. The edge of the cliff over which the buffalo were driven lays on a downhill slope which makes it a perfect setting. Since the land below the 100 foot or more drop continues to the horizon, it creates an optical illusion which hides the drop. The buffalo generally grazed in an area about 6 miles away from the jump so the natives developed traffic lanes into which the buffalo would be goaded. The traffic lanes became more and more constricted as the edge of the the cliff neared. After the jump, the natives would be waiting on the bottom to kill any buffalo that survived the crash. With the introduction of firearms into the Indian lands the use of buffalo jumps became obsolete. What had been in use for thousands of years came to an end in a few decades. It is estimated that the Head Smashed in Buffalo jump was last used in the 1850's.

We were also treated to a performance of Blackfoot Dancers and singers accompanied by drums. The dress of the dancers was very colorful and the dancing was well received by the audience. 

After arriving in Medicine Hat we saw a sign that pointed us to the "Worlds Largest Teepee". We decided to visit it after dinner. The teepee is a steel structure which stands 215 feet in the air with a 160 foot diameter at the base. It was created for the 1988 Winter Olympics is Calgary and stood over the Olympic flame cauldron during the opening and closing ceremonies. The teepee was called the Saamis Teepee which stood for the headpiece worn by the medicine man. This "hat" of a medicine man was thus moved to Medicine Hat. The Teepee is 15 feet shorter in its new permanent site. Around the base of the teepee are panels describing the history of the native peoples in the North American Plains and painted discs are suspended between each ot he supporting legs.

For dinner we went to a place called Montana Road House and Saloon. It is a restaurant close to Texas Roadhouse which was the opening dinner for us on this trip. By accident and I mean accident Jeanne was seated under a sign that read "We dare you to tell us it's your birthday" Jeanne agreed and the treatment she got was unbelievable. She had the choice of wearing either a hat with buffalo horns or moose antlers and she chose the horns. While wearing the hat, the waiters and all sang "Happy Birthday" A free desert was also provided. A great conclusion to a great day.

Buffalo depicted going over the cliff

Buffalo Statue in front of center

Cliff face of Jump area. Erosion has taken its toll on the depth of the drop

Blackfoot dancers

Men's Traditonal Dance

Men's Traditional Dance

Women's Traditional Dance

Jingle Dress Dance

Men's Chicken Dance

Womens Fancy Dance

Bradley the closen buffalo dancing

Men's fancy Dance

Mom waitng dinner at the Montana Road House

Jeanne wearing her horns hat - note the sign

Saamis Teepee in Medicine Hat -World's Largest Teepee

Painting at the Teepee

Day 37 - August 02 - Medicine Hat, AB to Minot, ND, USA - Miles driven 512

We were heading for the US border today and it was to be a long day looking out the windshield at nothing much more than prairie, cattle, amber waves of grain, oil wells and later fields of sunflowers. Besides that we were giving back an hour that we had gained on the way out. No real stops were planned for the day other than lunch in Moose Jaw and a stop at the Walmart to find some crocheting yarn for Mom. I keep referring to Mom needing more rope or string.

We arrived in Moose Jaw at noon time and went to the visitors center where there is a statue of "The worlds largest moose". I believe there are other "Meese"  in Canada claiming this distinction but we will stay with this one. At the visitors center Mom spotted T shirts that read "Duck, Duck, Moose - Moose Jaw" an obvious parody on the game "Duck, Duck, Goose". Alas there were none in the size she wanted and they were only sold at the visitors center. We saw other shirts that mom wanted and were steered to a store in the local mall where they would make them up on the spot. After lunch at Tim Horton's we did the extra shopping and visited the Walmart as well.

At the visitors center we learned that Moose Jaw during prohibition in the US was known as "Little Chicago on the Prairie". It is reported that Al Capone and his gang sometimes hid in tunnels in Moose Jaw to avoid authorities. When mom asked how Capone could get here in the 1920's when it is a chore to do so now  80 years later, the answer was that there was direct rail service to Moose Jaw from Chicago on the Soo Line. There are tours given of the surviving tunnels under the streets in Moose Jaw. It would be fun to take someday.

While going through small towns we kept running into "big" things. In Estevan we ran into a statue of "Lignite Louie" but he was tough to photograph at 40 mph. I could copy him from the net but choose not to. Estevan also claimed a "big" oil derrick and another town claimed "big" sheaves of wheat. Anyone interested in more of the "big" things in Canada should Google "big things in Alberta", big things in Saskatchewan" and "big things in Manitoba" and then get an eyeful of these amusing items.

We crossed the border at North Portal. The customs guard here was the most thorough we had on this journey. He also had a sense of humor but it was all directed in seeing if would be nervous about our answers. We had nothing to hide. When he asked if we had any citrus fruit on board Ken said no. I hoped that no-one had picked up an orange at the continental breakfast as we sometimes do. There was also the question if anyone was carrying more than $10K as well as the request to shut the engine off while he checked the rear of the van. He asked if anything was going to fall out if he opened the rear door. We said "we hope not". The worst that could happen to him would be to get hit in the face with dirty laundry. He opened the door with no incident and then came forward and said "Welcome Back". A real nice experience.

We arrived in Minot around 7:15 PM just in time for dinner at Applebees next door and then retire.

"Big Mac" the Moose in Moose Jaw

Grain Elevator along the road at 70 mph

Amber waves of grain in Saskatchewan

Large grains of Wheat through the windshield

Big Oil derrick in Estevan

Amber waves of grain and an oil well - perfect together

Sunflower field at 70 mph

Teepee against a setting sun in Minot, ND

Day 38 - August 03 - Minot, ND to Fargo, ND - Miles Driven 320

Today's objective was to reach Fargo with an intermediate stop in Jamestown where Jeanne wanted to visit the sister of a friend from Charlotte. Other than that it was primarily a driving day although we found a couple of "big" items along the road. One of them I knew about and had seen before and the other was a drive-by visit.

While heading to Jamestown, ND on I-94, we spotted a sign that read, "World's Largest Sand Hill Crane". Naturally we had to have a picture of it and pulled off to see it. We knew that at Jamestown there was the "World's Largest Buffalo" and mom and I had seen it on our cross country tour in 2002 but we needed to see it again and besides Jeanne and Ken hadn't seen it. The buffalo statue is on the grounds of the Pioneer Village in Jamestown which is a free attraction along the interstate. After the visit to Pioneer Village, we visited the St. James RC Basilica Church in Jamestown which was built in 1910 and became a basilica in 1989. It is a beautiful church with great stained glass windows and is on the register of National Historic Places.

We visited with Jeanne's friend Evelyn for about an hour. She is a super person well into her 80's. She talked about her life in North Dakota and the times on the farm. Her nephews still farm raising wheat and soy beans. This is one of their busiest times of the year.

We continued on to Fargo and after supper visited the Roger Maris Museum which has been set up in a shopping mall in Fargo. Roger Marin 196s was born in Fargo and in 1961 broke Babe Ruth's record of 60 with 61 in 61. The museum displays memorabilia dealing with his life in baseball and a separate room plays a video which has been seen on ESPN. The display calls attention to the fact that Roger Maris has not been inducted into the hall of fame despite his many accomplishmetn's on and off the field. Roger Maris died  in 1985 and the NY Yankees only placed the center field marker in Yankee Stadium in 1984.

Sunrise in Minot, ND on August 03, 2007

Worlds largest Sanhill Crane in Steele, ND

Worlds Largest Buffalo in Jamestown, ND

Pioneer Village street scene in Jamestown, ND

There are horse drawn coach rides in Pioneer Village

St. James RC Basilica in Jamestown, ND

Stained glass window in St, James Basilica

Altar at St. James Basilica in Jamestown, ND

Front of St. James Basilica in Jamestown

Sign for Roger Maris museum in West Gate Mall in Fargo, ND

Replica of plaque in Yankee Stadium Honoring Roger Maris

Painting or Roger Maris in a Yankee uniform.

The Mick and Roger - No. 7 and No. 9

The other teams Roger played for - Cleveland, St. Louis and Kansas City.

Painted Buffalo in West Gate Mall in Fargo, ND

 Day 39 - August 04 - Fargo, ND to St. Joseph, MO, Miles driven 560 miles

This was another driving day but much longer than yesterday. We are all antsy to get home and lately a lot of the conversation coming from mom and Jeanne deals with things that will be done when we arrive home. I kind of feel the same way. I am anxious to resume my other life. Travel is fun but so is the routine of family and other interests.

We knew today would be a tough day as it involved a lot of driving. Making stops thus makes the day longer. However we will only be around here once and if we have motel reservations we aren't going to sleep on the street as long as our bodies can hold out and tour.

Our first stop today was in Sioux Falls to visit the USS South Dakota memorial. This ship of the WWII era was one of the most decorated battleships receiving a Navy Unit Commendation as well as 13 battle stars. It performed in both the Pacific and Atlantic campaigns but it's biggest honors were in the Pacific. At one time the Japanese thought that they had sunk the South Dakota but she had survived the battle of Guadalcanal but with damages. From then on the ship was referred to as Battleship X. After Guadalcanal and repairs the South Dakota served in the Atlantic working with convoys and working with the British Navy off the coast of Norway. In 1943/44 she returned to the Pacific and served in numerous battles including Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The South Dakota was engaged with other ships in the historically first ever sea shelling of the Japanese mainland from sea.

Obviously it is not possible to float a battleship in an inland state. After decommissioning in 1947, the South Dakota went into the Naval Yard in Philadelphia. In the 1960's she was prepared for scrapping. The memorial in Sioux falls consists of a concrete wall shaped like the outline of the actual size of the ship with several gun's on display with a building in the middle shaped like a gun turret which in reality is the museum. There are numerous artifacts relating to the ship. Amongst them is a Japanese Flag confiscated from the battleship Nagano in 1945. It was the only Japanese battleship still afloat at the end of the war. There is also a remnant from the USS Arizona which was sunk on December 7, 1941. Pieces of this ship were taken for display in other naval sites when the Arizona Memorial was built. It was a very moving visit to a tribute of America's finest.

From Sioux Falls we headed to Sioux City in Iowa where we visited the Lewis and Clark exhibit. The exhibit here is primarily dedicated to Sergeant Charles Floyd.  Charles Floyd was the lone Corps of Discovery member to die during the voyage of Lewis and Clark. He died of appendicitis while in the vicinity of present day Sioux City and is buried in Sioux City. A Washington like monument marks his grave along interstate I-29. Charles Floyd was originally buried on the bank of the river but was moved 4 times due to the ravages of the waters. The museum is housed in the US Corps of Engineers Riverboat named Charles Floyd. It was built in 1932 and used on the midwestern rivers for inspection purposes. After retirement, the boat was moved into the parklike setting it now occupies. It was a very interesting site to visit.

After the Lewis and Clark thing we went over to Trinity Heights in Sioux City which houses a Catholic Sculpture Garden. Outside there was a wedding party taking photographs and after they were finished, the bride and all the rest of the party in tuxes drove off in pickup trucks. The temperature outside was in the high 90's and so was the humidity. We didn't tarry outside. We entered one of the display buildings which housed a life size replica of the Last Supper by DaVinci. The one difference here was that it wasn't a painting. The whole scene was carved lifesize in wood. The priest who carved it took seven years to do the task. Assembling the wood for the project was a chore by itself. He took 2 x 4's and glued and screwed them together. When the glue set he removed the screws and then kept adding wood in the same fashion until the block was of the size he needed. He later acquired a hydraulic press which saved him the trouble of screwing the pieces together. The carving is very beautiful. I can't believe that one person could do that in seven years.

We arrived in St. Joseph at 8:30 PM. A long 12 hour plus day but enjoyable also.

Captainn Ken at the wheel.

Concrete outline of the USS South Dakota in Sioux Falls

Japanese Flag on right and a piece of the Arizona on the left. Flag taken from the battleship Nagano

Naval Unit Commendation earned by the USS South Dakota

US Corps of Engineers Inspection Vessel, Sergeant Charles Floyd

Sergeant Charles Floyd of the Corps of Discovery

Photo of a photo of the Charles Floyd on a river

Photo of a photo of the Charles Floyd Memorial in Sioux City, IA

Virgin Mary at the Trinity Heights sculpture garden

Lifesize wooden carving of the Last Supper

From the Last Supper Carving in Trinity Heights, Sioux City, IA

From the Last Supper Carving in Trinity Heights, Sioux City, IA

 Day 40 - August 05 - St. Joseph, Mo to Lebanon, TN(Nashville) - Miles Driven 640  

 The picture on the left has nothing to do with today's activities. I took it on August 1 at the Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump and forgot to include it in that days pictures. Click on the picture like all the others on this site and it will enlarge.

 

Today was a driving day. Nothing was planned and besides it was too hot to do anything outside. It was in the 90's and going thru Stl Louis the temperature was approaching 100. Not a good day to be outside. We made real good time on the road and changed our planned stop of Paducah, KY to Lebanon, TN which is 30 miles east of Nashville. it will give us an easier day tomorrow to get into Charlotte at a reasonable hour. Besides, it will take time to unpack the van tomorrow so mom and I can get a good start for home on Tuesday.

Day 41 - August 06 - Lebanon,TN to Charlotte,NC - Miles Driven 401

We arrived in Charlotte, NC at Ken and Jeanne's house at 3:45 PM. It was a driving day. The biggest event of the day was stopping along I-40 at a Hardee's for a Orange Shake. We tried to buy these yesterday around St. Charles, Mo. but they were out of ice cream. The girl there at Hardee's said that if we were willing to wait an hour for the truck, we could have the shakes. We moved on yesterday and took a chance today. They were good.

We also calculated the total miles driven in the past 41 days - the total trip, door to door from Charlotte was 11320 miles. Of course for us Jerseyites we need to add another 1320. So ends the saga of a great trip. I don't need to go to Alaska again. We would however like to go back to British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba to see some more of the BIG things that are along the road. Who knows when.

 

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