Just a short addendum to yesterday’s e-mail about the Walker Boys road trip. First of all, the motel room we got in Albert Lea had to be the smallest I’ve ever been in that had two beds. And secondly, it had the worst shower head I think I’ve ever seen. It squirted water in all directions, which was bad enough, but it atomized the water so that everything in the bathroom got wet. Matt said he was a pair of underpants short for the time we’ll be on the road (he’ll have to turn one pair inside out), and was almost two pair short after his shower. They may have been slightly humid, but not too wet to wear, or so he says.

If that wasn’t bad enough, I had the handle cranked over to full hot, and it was just a tad cooler than I like it. In order to rinse off after lathering up, you had to find the one spot in the middle that was gushing a gallon of water a second. I would say something like “You should have seen it”, but if I had been in there at the time, you would be calling your therapist and trying your best to erase the image from your brain.

We ran into a bit of snow as we crossed over from Minnesota to South Dakota. It wasn’t exactly a blizzard, but as close as you can get to the real thing. I couldn’t see anything as I passed semi-trucks with all the slush and water they were stirring up. We ran out of it close to noon, so the rest of the day we were just fighting the wind. We went through several areas where the snow was drifted along the sides of the road and was plowed into piles in some of the towns.

We stopped at a restaurant for lunch in a town called Murdo, South Dakota. It wasn’t much of a town, but the restaurant had quite a few locals so we figured it was OK. Matt and I both ordered Buffalo Burgers with fries. One plate came first so I gave it to Matt. The waitress said the other one would be up soon. Matt finished his entire sandwich and all his fries by the time mine came. Getting up and walking out was not an option. When they say “wide open spaces”, they mean just that. If you miss a meal or a gas station, the next one might be a hundred miles down the road, so I ate it. The burger was good…I couldn’t tell the difference between that and very lean ground beef.

With all the complaining, the views are starting to get spectacular. I know they’ll be even better tomorrow as we head into the Rockies, but the Badlands and the Black Hills in South Dakota are something to see. I saw my first small herd (10 to 15) of Pronghorn Antelope. I know that doesn’t mean anything to most of you, but I was excited.

I’m tired so I’m signing off for now. Can’t wait to go trick-or-treating tomorrow at The Sportsman in Alberton, Montana and Big Sky in Missoula.

Just (I Know I Have One Spot On My Body That Doesn’t Hurt But I Can’t Find It) Jack