A 944 Mile Journey To Bismarck

I'm sure you've heard me mention the love of my life--Sherry.  She came to visit Bismarck and flew in to visit me and do the Chicago concert together.   She decided to come for another visit---so i must be doing something right, eh?   She put together a little blog about her drive from Spokane--in Washington State to Bismarck--944 miles from there to here!

I took a few days off of work and hopped in my new Subaru Outback to drive from Spokane, Washington to Bismarck to hang out with J.J. for a few days.  I got home from work on Wednesday, mowed my lawn, sprayed some weeds, packed my things, and got up early Thursday and embarked on my 944-mile drive 4:45am (Pacific time).  I made my way on I-90 through Eastern Washington, the crooked roads of North Idaho (my home state!), and into Montana.  I kept to the speed limit (mostly 75 mph) while listening to JJ do his COOL 98.7 broadcast (and subsequent remote broadcast at Keller Hearth and Home) via the RadioPup app on my phone.  

The 944-mile drive takes about 13 hours, and I kept going through road construction on the interstate (with speed limits as low as 25 mph), so I didn’t make a lot of stops, only stopping for gas and to stretch my legs during the long drive.  Finally, I crossed into western North Dakota.  The first town I came to was Beach (although I didn’t see any white-sand beaches there!!!), then I drove through the badlands near Theodore Roosevelt National Park; the rock formations were amazing.  I noticed the brick/rust-colored soil, which I hadn’t seen prior to driving to North Dakota (I saw it on the back of a few trucks too, and I assumed they were working in the oil fields).  As I drove on towards Dickinson, I started to notice the oil wells along the way along with the oil storage towers.  Across the freeway, I saw many oil trucks carrying oil westbound.  If someone didn’t already know that oil is a huge industry in North Dakota, they would quickly figure it out just by observing the sights while driving the first few miles into the state. 

I wanted to take more pictures on my way; however I was anxious to get to Bismarck and traffic was picking up around Dickinson, so I didn’t take any pictures.  However, I did get two quick pictures of the Montana mountains as I was driving along I-90 (NOT a safe thing to do, I know!)  I finally got to Bismarck at 8:30pm (Central Time), and the traffic was not bad at all.  This is only my 2^nd visit to North Dakota, and I am looking forward to having a fun weekend exploring Bismarck!