- Flathead Valley, Montana to Yuma, Arizona
- Day 1 of 5
- December 31, 2020
Dillon, Montana is my destination for today’s drive. Google Maps states the drive of 286 miles to Dillon should take 4 hours and 38 minutes. My biggest concern for the drive is the possibility of snow-covered highways. With luck, the highways will be clear of ice and snow. My reservation for the night is at The Beaverhead RV and Campground, one of several RV parks in Dillon. The majority of RV parks in Montana close for the winter on or about September 15. But there are a few like this one that stay open all year.
The first thing I did upon waking up was to check the 10-day weather forecast for the main cities and towns along my route including my destination for the day. Snowed covered highways was my biggest concern. The forecast was the same as it had been for the past several days. Leaving home today there was a chance of less than 1 inch of snow. The same for passing through Missoula. The forecast for Dillon was cold, but no snow. Less than one inch of snow also was forecast for Pocatello and Twin Falls, Idaho.
After checking the forecast I went outside and took a photo of the mountain behind the house and to see how much snow fell overnight.
Though I woke up early enough, I didn’t start my journey until 1:25 PM and arrived at the Beaverhead RV and Campground in Dillon at about 8:20 PM.
Can’t explain the late departure other than there were last minute details to care for including a bit of housekeeping at home and a few more items to move to the RV.
About four inches of snow fell yesterday so I had to shovel my track to the RV to facilitate carrying gear by cart to the RV. Snow was light weight and fluffy so it was easy to shovel.
I had been loading the RV for several days. And last night I loaded the rear end of my Jeep with items too big or unwieldy for the RV. With everything loaded it is time to hook up. Hooking up the Jeep to the RV was no problem. The task was completed in short order.
My next concern was driving the gravel road to the paved highway. The gravel road was not a problem. There was a fresh four- inch layer of snow covering it. But I knew the weight of the RV would give me traction. I was not so sure about getting over the small hump to be climbed where the gravel road intersects with the paved county road. Earlier in the morning someone became stuck trying to drive over the hump and needed a tow truck to get out. Whoever towed that driver also graded snow from the hump. Thus, I had no trouble driving the 1/8th of a mile to the highway and driving up the hump to make a left turn on the paved road.
Once on the paved road I could see that it had been graded. There was only a slight cover of snow and ice over the pavement and I had no trouble reaching the highway. Happily the highway was clear of snow and ice and just bare pavement.
Highway conditions remained the same all the way to Missoula; “clear of snow and ice and just bare pavement”.
While descending the Grade down US 93 to I-90, I received a telephone call from my friend and ex-neighbor in Washington State. That was about 4:00 PM. We had been neighbors for about 10 years and the two of us with a couple of other guys would take road trips to Yellowstone and later to Glacier National Park. We talked for about 30 minutes while I’m driving and it was a pleasant visit and made the drive a bit more enjoyable.
4:23 PM. I take my last photo of the day as the sun has set and the light was not good enough for any more photos today. The location where that photo was taken was about seven or eight miles north of Drummond, Montana.
5:03 PM: Do I fill up now, or, take a chance I can make it to Deer Lodge? Not wanting to risk running out of fuel, I take the Drummond, Montana Exit 153 that puts me on E Front Street. I follow E Front Street to Fic’s Conoco at 418 East Front. There, I buy 17.873 gallons of diesel at $2.389 per gallon for a total of $42.70. I had driven 200 miles since my previous fill up at home and got 11.2 miles per gallon on that tank. After filling up I continue on East Front to the on ramp to I-90.
5:49 PM. I’m hungry and need food so I pull off I-90 at Deer Lodge and pull into the McDonalds located at 133 N Interchange and buy a Quarter Pounder with Cheese and a small order of fries. I take the food back to the RV and have my dinner. Then, thinking I still have a ways to drive, I go back in and get a cup of coffee to go. Then I’m on my way again.
Approaching Dillon, Montana at about 8:00 PM, I cross the Beaverhead River and exit I-15 at Exit 63. My smartphone takes me across I-15 and puts me heading northeast on Business I-15 and turn right on Swenson Way and follow it to South Bozeman Street and follow it for a couple of blocks.
I then turn west on West Park Street and soon I’m at the entrance to the Beaverhead RV and Campground. After entering the park, I mistakenly turn to the right, a mistake that leads to even more confusion. When registering I was told to turn left. Had I followed the instructions I would have soon found my site, Site number 8. However I spent more than 20 minutes driving around in the dark totally confused as to where site 8 was located. I finally found it and set up for the night, ate supper and was soon in bed.
