Rochford and Hill City

At last I've had some time to download a few more photos from Bob's camera

Here we can see the blacksmith at Allen Russell's place at the beginning of the trip shoeing
the horses and trimming their feet. The dogs are waiting for the parings. Tasty!

This is Allen's fantastic house on stilts with a fabulous view of the mountains. I love the veranda all the way round.

Here is Jed and Melissa Rider and their little one, who kindly put Bob up at the last minute at his stopover after Williston North Dakota

This is Irene Tillusz and her fiance who Bob met up in the Maah Daah Hey. He spent an enjoyable evening socialising with them in the campsite there.

Another spectacular view of the Maah Daah Hey. I can quite understand why Bob lost his way at times!

Coming into the Maah Daah Hey.

One of the campsites that Bob stayed at in the Maah Daah Hey. Not exactly overpopulated is it?
Two horses and a tent!

I'm hoping that Bob will be able to forward more recent photos soon, as it makes the blog site more interesting.

On 7 September he had a long ride of over 26 miles to Rochford over very hilly terrain. The temperatures are a lot lower as it is so much higher up here, and to make matters worse, it rained all day. When he set off there was a frost in the morning, and he was cold for the duration of the ride. What a change from temperatures a week or so ago.

He arrived at the bar run by Betsy Harn in the early evening and had a wonderful night there. Nobody would let him buy a drink, and they had a couple of live singers who were very good. All in all a good night, and he didn't get to bed until after midnight. Thank you so much, Betsy, for looking after him and all your customers for giving him such a memorable evening.

A milestone has been reached. Bob has now completed a quarter of his trip.

Bob is now on the Michelson Trail, and he said the scenery is magnificant......Massive hills covered in Pine trees, beautiful little streams, and full of wildlife such as Deer, Rabbits and Squirrels. Not to mention the smaller creatures, that he's not sure what they are!

After a good night's sleep at Rochford on 8 September Bob had a ride of approx 18.5 miles to his next base, which is a campsite, where he would be staying in a log cabin at Hill City. He said the ride was very easy, as the trail is gravelled, so the horses don't slip or sink in the ground, and he got to the High Country Ranch at about 4pm. He made this trip on Cody, who loves to be the lead horse, and can't wait to get going in the mornings. Both horses are really brilliant, very responsive, and it seems they are enjoying this adventure as much as Bob.

When I spoke to him last night, he was settling into his cabin for the evening. Bob had climbed to the top of a hill which was about the only place where you can get cell phone reception, about a quarter of a mile away, so that I could speak to him, as contact up till then had been lost for 2 days. The cabin is very luxurious, with its own bathroom, fridge, tv etc. Don't get too used to it,Bob, cos you'll be back to basics soon!!!!!

Next episode soon, as Bob makes his way to Custer.