23-May-2002 -- I departed 46°N 105°W around 1:00 PM and drove about 2 hours north to Miles City, Montana. I spent about an hour there at a high-pressure spray carwash knocking the mud out from under my truck and from behind the wheels. There was enough "gumbo" mud stuck underneath to fill a couple of wheelbarrows and once it was gone, my truck stopped shaking, thank goodness. I continued north from Miles City towards this confluence.

It had turned into a beautiful day and I was glad I had decided to continue on my confluence-visiting vacation. It was 47°F (8° C) and the sky was blue with scattered white clouds. I drove across the inevitable bumpy cow pastures, saw several antelopes and dodged cows. For a while a tiny yellow or golden bird (American Goldfinch?) flew along with me. I was going slowly and he would fly low to the ground, staying slightly ahead of me. He would stop and wait for me, then dart ahead some more and wait again.

The land here wasn’t as desert-like as the confluences I had visited in the last week. There were rolling grass covered hills and plowed fields. It was very picturesque. I was able to drive to within 0.8 miles (1.3 km) of the point and had to hike across a ravine and a newly plowed field to reach it. I took the photos and hiked back. While hiking through the lush ravine, I saw a rabbit and was able to walk up very close to it and take a picture before he ran into his hole.

I departed and drove towards the next confluence, 47°W 107°N. I stopped about 17 miles from it and camped out in a pasture for the night.

Danny Strickland
www.artgaga.com