After traveling nonstop for the past three weeks, Daniel and I were ready for a break. We wanted to regroup and also to assess our setup in the Rialta. Plus, our wedding anniversary was on July 29. It seemed like a good time to pause and reflect.
So we booked a rustic cabin for a few days that was generally located along our route.
The Middle of Nowhere
Cell reception was fairly spotty when we booked the cabin. This means that we didn’t spend as much time researching the location as we typically would.
The cabin was advertised as a hunting lodge near a river bend but it had no exterior photos. We pictured a homey cabin nestled in the woods with rustling pines lulling us to sleep at night.
Imagine our surprise, then, when we arrived at a cabin in the middle of rolling farm lands! The location is a short drive away from the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, which is popular with fishermen. But it is certainly not within walking distance.
Don’t get me wrong – the views are quite lovely. It just wasn’t quite what we expected. The cabin has an awesome wrap-around porch and we spent a lot of time there, watching the sky.
The porch and wrap-around deck
View out of the back yard
Farmland
Decoration inside the cabin
An Unexpected Stay in Crow Country
After arriving at the lodge, I did a little more research and realized that we were right in the middle of the Crow Reservation. I hadn’t realized it when we drove in, as there are no signs denoting the boundary (at least not on the route we took). But of course it was obvious once I bothered to look closely at a map.
I also learned that tribal lands are closed to visitors in the State of Montana right now. According to an article in Kaiser Health News, the closure is due to “protective attitudes toward elders and cultural heritage. [This has] shaped a pandemic response around defending the most vulnerable.”
Daniel and I looked at eachother with surprise upon learning about the closure. Should we even be here right now? We did successfully book lodging here, after all.
I did a little more research but couldn’t find any additional information. It was hard to say for sure.
We decided to keep to the cabin after that, just in case. Daniel and I certainly didn’t want to cause offense or endanger anyone with our presence. We had plenty of food and wifi and air conditioning so we had no reason to leave anyway.
It was a good excuse to lay around and relax. Plus the views from the porch really are amazing.
Next time we’ll do more research about local regulations before showing up somewhere.
Where are we now?
We are in Crow Country, Montana
Dates: July 27-30
Great American Road Trip Status: Days 22-25
Miles Traveled: 245.5
Total Trip Mileage: 2450
For more details on our Great America (Socially Distanced) Road Trip, see my previous posts:
Belated Happy Anniversary!!
Thanks Marilyn!