Bozeman on My Mind

A belated report on our short visit to Bozeman, a nice, mid-size city about 90 minutes north of Yellowstone. Compared to Cody and West Yellowstone, it was like being in a metropolis. It had strip malls and chain restaurants (not saying that's necessarily a good thing). We stopped in Bozeman to visit the Museum of the Rockies, which houses the world's largest T-rex head fossil (not a cast replica) found in Montana, as well as other dinosaur fossils found in Montana and Wyoming. They also had a planetarium and exhibits about Montana's history.

The GPS directional failure and lack of strategically placed signage caused us to get a bit lost, but it was worth taking the time to find the museum. The fossils were great - and huge! The key dinosaur exhibits there were of T-rex, triceratops, and duck-billed dinosaurs, but there was also fossilized egg clusters and other dino types. Wyoming and Montana are chock full of dinosaur fossils. Seeing the fossils up close and personal really hit home about how huge they were. The teeth on the largest T-rex fossil ever found - five feet long and about that high - were longer than my fingers! We also attended a show on the planets at the planetarium - it was pretty entertaining.

The Montana exhibits were also really interesting. They showed how Montana was settled, and it was humbling to see the houses the early settlers lived in. They also had a "sheep wagon" on exhibit that a sheep herder would live in. It had a little bed and kitchen, and at night the man would gather his sheep near the wagon so he could watch them. Experiencing the wind here - during the summer - really gives you an idea of the hardships early settlers must have experienced. The Native American exhibit was also very good.

A visit to the West Yellowstone airport to visit TSA colleagues, a final drive through Yellowstone and the museum stop pretty much ate up our day. We arrived at the campground at Bozeman around 7:30 p.m. and were surprised to find out we got one of the last available RV spots. The kids got in a round of miniature golf before dinner, and after dinner we went for a dip in the pool. They must be part polar bear, because it was a chilly night and when Ruth got in, I could tell the water was cold. But she didn't care - she dunked herself under and kept swimming. I took that cue and headed for the hot tub instead. It was fabulous.

Nice way to end the night.