Ft. Abe Lincoln was home to the 7th Calvary and the last posting for General Custer. It was from here that he set out on his last campaign, the debacle of Little Big Horn.

The Fort was established to support the building of the Northern Pacific Railroad. When that was completed the fort was abandoned. Portions of the it have been restored and period actors are on hand for tours.

The site also hosts a recreated Mandan Indian village named On-A-Slant because of the sloping location. The village was built in 1575 but abandoned in 1781 when smallpox ravaged the inhabitants.

Located on the border with Montana, this park was created in the area first visited by Teddy Roosevelt and includes his ranch and original cabin.

There is an abundance of beautiful areas and supposedly lots of wildlife of which we saw little. Oh, well. That happens.

The park is located in the town of Medora. This is a really neat place that reminded us of a ski town. We would certainly stop there again if we are in the area.

As we were driving west on I-94 through Montana we noticed a place on the map called Pompeys Pillar National Monument.

We had never heard of this, so we decided we would stop and see what it was.

By the name we expected something schlocky with only local significance. Boy, were we surprised.

This sandstone formation bears the only physical evidence of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. William Clark carved his name in the butte in 1806 on their return journey. He named it Pompey after Sacagaweas son whom he called "Pomp". OK, I have no idea why Pomp. However, it was a great find and we thoroughly enjoyed our stop.

We love old ghost towns. These two do not quite qualify, but they were still interesting. Both contain historic buildings from the era, if not original to the towns themselves.

Nevada City tours and shops close at the end of summer, but we walked around a bit and saw what we could.

Virginia City has about 100 full time residence who keep the restaurant and some buildings open. I liken it more to Tombstone than a real ghost town.

We ate at the local saloon, but did not walk around mainly because it got very cold and rainy.

Arco has a couple claims to fame.

First, it is near what is now the Idaho National Laboratory. More then 50 nuclear reactors have been built here, and it has been the site of major testing for nuclear power.

Arco became the first fully nuclear powered town (for about a minute).

It was also where the Navy tested the big guns used on battleships before sending them off to be fitted on ships.

Arco also sits at the gateway to Craters of the Moon National Monument.

Another windy, chilly day but we just could not pass up seeing this park. Well, George saw it about 30 years ago, but for me it was the first time.

The lava formations are just wonderful and go on for as far as you can see. Caves, cinder cones, sparse vegetation in strange shapes - it is a great place

Since we spent the night in Twin Falls , Idaho, we thought we might as well go see Shoshone Falls on the Snake River.

Although we had no real idea of what to expect we were happily surprised on how nice this park area is.

These falls are actually 45 feet higher than Niagara Falls. The park has walking paths and overlooks.

Also, this is where Evel Knievel attempted his rocket-powered cycle jump across the canyon. See, there is culture everywhere.

On our last visit to Zion it rained a lot. Oh lucky us. It hardly ever rains in Zion - or so the park rangers kept tellin us.

Add to that some of the sites we wanted to see were closed for repairs - well we just had to come back.

Our first stop was in Kolob Canyons and the Taylor Creek Trail. No surprise the geology is absolutely beautiful. It reminded us of some hikes in Sedona more than Zion

On our last trip we could not do Angels Landing, partly because of weather and also because it was closed for maintenance.

So, this time the weather was great and there were no closures.

Nothing to stop us from making it to the top, other than blinding fear of falling to you death somewhere along the narrow, slippery route. Other than that, piece of cake.

After we descended we continued on the West Rim Trail for a few miles. From there you get a really good view of Angles Landing and if your camera has enough magnification, even the people on top.