National Parks...

I'm getting out of chronological order here--I intend to post some pictures from a couple of small towns along the way, but I wanted to get some pictures from Yellowstone and Teton National Parks in here.

Because I was in a bit of a hurry to get a camping spot in Teton NP, I breezed through Yellowstone without taking too many pictures.  Yellowstone has been photographed enough as it is.  Of course, so has Teton, but I'm going to put in a few that have a little different spin on the photos that everyone takes.  I may put some photos of Yellowstone up later, but I wanted to get some of my Teton photos in:



Yeah...gotta have a picture of the entrance sign...



Here's a picture from Oxbow Bend.  The streak above is an airplane on approach to Jackson Hole.









What can I say?  My mother told me not to play in the middle of the street, but I do it anyway.





The mountains from the Snake River Overlook



The Trip Begins

I've given you a litle history of this project, and a little history of the interstate system, so without further ado, here we go!

I left Mom and Dad's house on the morning of September 21, 2010, and headed northwest to Choteau, Montana, which is the northern terminus of US Highway 287.  Why did I pick 287 you ask?  Because it runs through some spectacular country, and because it begins and ends near places I need to go--the north end is near Mom and Dad, the south end near my home.



Here I am in my new 2000 F250, all ready to go!

The first stop was Choteau, the beginning of Highway 287:










Here is the Teton County Courthouse.

To the right of the courthouse in the picture above is the beginning of US 287:

A little history of the US Highway system...

Route 66.  Everyone hears about Route 66.    You can buy Route 66 memorabilia in any town that lies within about 200 miles of the original track of Route 66; coffee mugs, koozees, purses.  I’ll bet there’s even someone out there wearing a pair of boxer shorts that say “Route 66.”  If Route 66 memorabilia were outlawed, there’s probably a small town in China would that would have to close a factory and file bankruptcy.  Songs have been written about it (trivia for those of you old enough to remember:  Bobby Troup, who played Dr. Early on the 1970’s series “Emergency”, wrote it).   The fame of Route 66 comes from the fact that it stretched from the East Coast to the West Coast—and a damn good PR/marketing department.  Route 66, however, is only one of many US highways that run from east to west and north to south (more on that logic later).

                While the concept of the Interstate system as we know it today was studied as early as the 1930’s, the US highway system was the main transportation web throughout the country until the 1950’s.  During the Eisenhower era the Cold War was in full swing.   A mere decade after we watched the majority of Europe get taken over by a madman and the Pacific taken over by the Japanese, a new threat had arisen:  The Soviet Union.  Everyone was worried because “the commies” had “the bomb.”  Kids were taught to “duck and cover” in school (like that’s gonna help in a nuclear blast…) and people installed bomb shelters in their backyards.  One of the more practical defense measures to come out of that era was a new transportation system.

                There was a very real threat from the Soviets and Eisenhower, the former general turned president, knew that if the United States should be attacked, a good road system on which to transport men and material was essential.  Thus the Interstate highway system—a series of limited access, high speed roads running from south to north and west to east—was created (more trivia:  on certain interstate deemed to have strategic importance, one requirement was to have a one mile stretch every ten miles that was level and straight enough to be used as an emergency landing field for military aircraft).  The creation of the Interstate Highway System relegated the US highways to secondary road status—and reduced traffic in many communities throughout the country.

The idea is hatched...

On vacations during the past several years, we've driven north from Spring, Texas to visit family in Montana and Washington.  During these little odysseys it seemed like we were always either driving on or crossing US Highway 287.  Being an inquisitive sort, I got a map and figured out exactly where this seemingly ever-present highway began and ended.  Lo and behold, the southern end is at Port Arthur, Texas, one hundred miles east of where we live.  The northern terminus is Choteau, Montana, a mere fifty-two miles northwest of Great Falls, where Mom and Dad live. One of those "when I get a chance" trips for me is to drive the entire length of US 287, photographing towns and interesting sites along the way.  Well, now I have that chance.  Buying a pickup truck from Dad, I'm picking it up and driving it to Spring.