I almost didn’t see this sculpture, given its distance from the highway and its color that matched the background where it was placed. Having caught it out of the corner of my eye, but traveling too fast to stop, I instead pulled in on my way north.

The sculptor is Bob Scriver, and the sculpture is a version of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association’s official belt buckle. Helena’s Montana Historical Society has a bronze version.

Well, all right, but you go first. And, no, I didn’t try any. It just didn’t look right.

The ride up to and across Logan Pass is just one mountain and one mountain valley after another. Have a look at some flowers instead, with streams running down the valleys and snow on the peaks.

But if you must have a picture of a hill, here’s one.

Yes, the Going to the Sun highway is a gorgeous ride. I’ve done it many times and appreciated it each and every time.

The new

When I pass by this place, I stop. Although this new building doesn’t quite have the class of the old, the food is still pretty darn good. They’ve added a bar, too. With the twinned highway passing by to the north of the former location, the owners had to do something to jazz it up and encourage highway travelers to pull in.

This time, I only had time for the potato soup, but it was excellent. My normal fare is eggs over easy, and that’s pretty hard to screw up, although this place in Steele, North Dakata managed that, and more, early on in my ride.

The old

Crops look good this year

This never gets tiresome

Early in the morning I was riding by the Dixie Lake road, so I just had to pull in and take a break from the monotony of forest and field and stream. This time, there were two young loons, complete with remaining pinfeathers, paddling on the surface and diving.

A few minutes later, I heard the plaintive call of a loon and an adult flew by and landed farther down the lake. It had been years — I have absolutely no idea how long — since I had heard the sound of a loon calling.

Never-ending lakes