Road Construction Nightmare - Monday, June 22, 2020

Travel day today and we've chosen a relatively easy drive of 188 miles from Reed Point, Montana to Helena, Montana. Our route will be I-90 west to U.S. 287 north. The scenery was mountain range after mountain range. From the Absaroka & Beartooth Mountains to the Crazy Mountains, this is where we started seeing snow on the high peaks. We also went from grasslands to hills and the front range of the Rockies.

Yellowstone River near Billings, Montana.

Near Alpine, Montana.

I-90 at Big Timber.

Bozeman Pass on I-90.

Downhill run from
Bozeman Pass on I-90.

Absaroka Range as seen from I-90 West.

Crazy Mountains from I-90 West.

Crazy Mountains view #2.

Everything was going so well. We stopped for diesel and lunch in Bozeman, Montana. For lunch, we shared a Chicken Salad Sandwich at Arby's which is huge enough for two people!

Things got "interesting" when we turned north on U.S. 287 toward Helena. I had been reading the map and not paying attention to the road ahead. Everything looked great when we started on U.S. 287 north. I remember remarking how beautiful the clouds were. 

U.S. 287 north from I-90. Open road
and clear sailing, or so we thought!

I don't remember how many miles we had gone when the major, nasty road construction came into view. All I know is that the road was completely torn up, gravel, dusty, and full of potholes, some drop-offs on the sides of the road, and only one lane in each direction. When we got there, the speed limit was posted as 35 mph. Let me tell you, 35 mph was going to damage our alignment and suspension! We opted to go between 25-30 mph and thought that was too fast. Miles ahead, we could see dust clouds rising up from the construction traffic. Ugh!

Here are photos from what ended up being over ten miles of road construction. 

Yep, gravel two-lane road. 

You can't see the potholes and washboard
road, but you can feel it!

Active construction going on.

It keeps going and going and going!

This is ridiculous!

I asked Bob if there had been any signs at the start of U.S. 287 north of I-90 that indicated there would be terrible road construction. He said there was a readerboard, but what was on it flashed by so fast he didn't have time to read it. It sure seemed like they needed more signage! We would have gone a different route if we had known. I started "shoulding" on myself. Why didn't I check the route online beforehand? Surely there would have been major warnings and delays mentioned! Live and learn. We will not be coming back this way even though we're going to take U.S. 287 south from I-90 to get to Idaho. 

Apparently, this construction is the Toston Structures Project. The "official" word is that this is 3.5 miles long. Oh, no, it's way longer than that. The 3.5 miles is only a "new roadway." They're replacing three structures, lots of other old roadway, and all existing culverts. Beware, fellow travelers! Find a different route.

After we made it through the construction, the road was much better. The new scenery was Canyon Ferry Lake. 

Canyon Ferry Lake (in front of the mountains).

We arrived at North Helena KOA mid-afternoon. After we settled into our site, I did six loads of laundry. I'm glad the laundry room was air-conditioned!!

Our site at North Helena KOA.

Our campsite.

For dinner, Bob surprised me and we went to the Grubstake Restaurant which was just a mile down the road from the KOA. We wore our masks into the restaurant, but not one other person was wearing a mask, including the wait staff. Hmm. Apparently, Montana is not doing the mask thing. 

I was thrilled to get a wonderful Montana beef steak cooked to perfection and served with a baked potato. Bob and I both ordered side salads. Bob decided on a calzone for his dinner. This restaurant is actually two-in-one. We sat in the main dining room and they also have a bar with a pizza oven, so they can do all kinds of good food!

After dinner, we drove around downtown Helena and shopped at Safeway. We wore our masks in Safeway and saw a couple of other people with masks, but mostly they didn't wear masks. Bob also checked for bike paths while we were downtown. 

Tomorrow, Bob and I are meeting Diane Howell Evans so we can both complete our U.S. capitals Volksmarch book. Helena is her last capital as well! We didn't know each other until she wrote to me on the AVA: America's Walking Club Facebook page and asked if she could walk her last state capital with me. I was thrilled. They drove from Seabeck, Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula to meet us. 

[Note: I already posted my blog on our Helena capital Volksmarch. Click the link to read that one too.]