We were in Butte, Montana overnight and then headed to Great Falls before crossing into eastern British Columbia. Cheryl had a western art museum on her agenda for the day. I was skeptical of my interest in that, but knew I was along for the ride. Cheryl and I tend to enjoy the same things, though, so I kept an open mind.
A privately funded foundation had built the museum in what I could only describe as an odd location. It is in a residential area, but I am certain there was good reason for it. The artist’s name was CM Russell, and frankly, I was amazed at how interesting it was. I could have stayed longer than we did, but my back and legs were giving out by the time we left. It includes an excellent collection of old guns which have been carefully curated and interpreted by the designer.
In addition to many pieces of well-framed and beautifully done pieces of art, there were also sculptures and historical pieces. After the day before with so many missed opportunities, this museum was a great find.
Next on our agenda was lunch. It was now 1:30 in the afternoon and it was Mother’s Day. We chased the most interesting looking restaurants in the city, all of which had over an hour wait. We finally ended up at an Applebee’s as their wait was only about 15 minutes. Our server was a nice young man but to any restauranteurs who are reading, “PLEASE, TRAIN YOUR PEOPLE.” When we asked our server where the “Great Falls” were, he said he didn’t know. We then asked him where he was from. He said “Here.” How did a local boy get out of high school without knowing that that little bit of the history of the city? The only falls we saw was a dam across the Missouri River, and we suspected that was not the city’s namesake. Given the unknown border crossing, we moved on.
Turns out there are three falls that give the city its name. Lewis and Clark were amazed by them and ultimately gave the city’s its name. Today they are dammed and provide electricity to the community creating a very environmentally friend method to power the town.
Our stop for the night was a small hamlet called Seeley Lake. The AirBnb said rustic. It forgot to say includes mice for free. While I did not see one, Cheryl did and had a challenging night of sleep. We had gotten in relatively late and we headed out quickly the next morning. We determined there was nothing worth going back for in Seeley Lake.