Looking Back — Our First Workamper Job

Going through old photos, remembering our earlier workamper jobs, I decided to use some of my best pictures and catch up to where I actually began blogging, in 2008, about our adventures. We moved into our 5th wheel in January of 2005 and left for our first workamping job in June of that year. With great excitement and anticipation, and entering into the unknown, we set off for South Dakota. Crossing Montana was an awesome experience. We fell in love! The early pioneers must have traveled in a wagon much like this one. We found this gorgeous scene near the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument near Hardin MT.

Here we are in our modern covered wagon, much more comfortable, just leaving the 7th Ranch RV Park in Garry Owen MT.

We've arrived safely in Rapid City in the gorgeous Black Hills of South Dakota! I'm talking to my best friends to say, "We're here!" Our employer, Bear Country USA, furnished us with a nice spot at the Lazy J RV Park. What we liked best about this park was that it overlooked the east part of the city and on a clear day we could see almost to the Badlands, an hour away. The sky was always gorgeous with frequent rainbows and awe-inspiring cloud formations.

Our boss, Vanessa, was truly the best boss we could have had for our first job. We will never forget her wonderful and kind treatment of us as we began our workamper job at Bear Country USA, a drive-through wildlife park. It has its walk-through area, too, and the new crop of black bear cubs each summer is probably the largest draw to the park. True to the name, the park has around 250 bears, but there are also many other kinds of animals, mostly North American varieties. In future posts I'll include many other critters.

That's a bear sculpture swatting at the plaster salmon in the waterfall above the otter enclosure, and those are real workampers in our "mule" where we spent our days going from restrooms to gift shop to flower beds, to garbage runs, and, most important, to tourists with questions and needs. The best part was that as we drove around we got to watch the animals all day long. We did spend quite a bit of time watching those adorable bear cubs, too. We loved this job so much that we returned for 2 more summers, 2006 and 2008. The park changed management and no longer has workampers, or we'd be there yet.

We shared cleaning duties with one other workamper couple, Ron and Connie, who trained us and then alternated days with us. It was their second summer at Bear Country. Next to them is Vanessa, and seated is Richard, whose job was to pick up handicapped tourists in his golf cart and drive them around to see the sights. We came to love these fellow workers as well as all the other employees at this wonderful and exciting place.

Mr. Keith looking "cool" in the Mule. 

I have hundreds of photos of the bear cubs. This is one of my favorites. We could, and did, watch them for hours, along with hundreds and thousands of tourists. 
Each spring there are approximately 10 to 15 cubs born. They are taken from the dens at about 2 months old to protect them from the male bears and to accustom them to humans. When they are old enough they are returned to the larger bear population in the drive-through area. Bear cubs are like human toddlers. They play endlessly, entertaining everyone. They are even cute while they are sleeping! Their enclosure had a swimming pool, lots of grass, trees for climbing and logs for scampering over. What fun!

The most amazing animals at Bear Country were the two Grizzly bears, Tank, the male, and Cherokee, his mate. They had a beautiful enclosure with a deep moat for protection, but they seemed almost tame. Tank would wave and do funny things to entertain the onlookers and to get treats. We frequently were asked to throw strawberries, or hotdogs, or muffins to the begging bears, for the enjoyment of the tourists. These grizzlies were located right outside the main restrooms so we got to see them several times a day as we cleaned and checked the facilities. I also have hundreds of photos of Tank and Cherokee and I will share more of them in future posts.

Madison Buffalo Jump

Our goal today was to explore the area between the I-90 freeway, and to the south, the Norris Highway, west of Bozeman. There is a large valley through which the Madison River flows, coming north up from Yellowstone. We ate lunch in Three Forks, then found the Madison Road heading down toward the Buffalo Jump. The valley is broad, and not quite as hilly and green as it is a little further south. We came upon this historic little cabin identified as that of George and Edna Wilcox, 1907-1940.

 The valley included several large ranches, populated by horses, cows, and crops. The backdrop here shows the cliffs rising up from the Madison River.

 We turned off onto the Greycliff Road hoping to get a look at the river. Free ranging cows looked at us reproachfully, seeming to claim the road as their own.

 The Madison River, wide and beautiful. I stuck my feet in and discovered it was almost warm, a surprise in this part of the country.

 After traveling for miles on a dusty, gravel road we finally came to the Jump.

 

From the State Parks website:

"Situated on the edge of a broad valley carved by the Madison River, this high limestone cliff was used by Native Americans for 2,000 years--ending as recently as 200 years ago. Native people stampeded vast herds of bison off this massive semicircular cliff, using them for food, clothing, shelter and provisions." I read at the Interpretive Center that Salish, Pend d'Oreille, Bannock, Crow and Blackfeet Indians all used this site.

 "Runners, highly skilled young men trained for speed and endurance, wore buffalo, antelope or wolf skins to lure bison to the "pishkun" or cliff. The buffalo jump was often the key to existence for native peoples. Although the introduction of horses led to the abandonment of this jump sometime after 1700, the rugged outcropping now serves as an inspiring monument to the region's early inhabitants." I was most impressed to read that the Indian women were the ones who skinned the bison, cut up the meat, dried it and also preserved the hide and many other parts of the bison, using almost the entire animal.

 Looking away from the "Jump" we gazed out onto the valley with a Montana mountain range in the distance completing the picture. The awesome landscapes all around us continue to amaze us. There is always something new to see in "Big Sky" country!

A Lesson from a Daffodil

Here at Lost Lake RV Resort we have an old, moss covered shelter that used to be a community picnic area, and is now used to house the workampers' golf carts. One day, being snoopy, I looked into a Chiquita banana box stored there. I saw that it was filled with bulbs — dry, sunless, waterless, abandoned, and I wondered why someone had not planted them last fall. Recently, looking into the box once more, I noticed that many of the bulbs had put out sprouts. I felt really badly. It bothered me. What could have been a whole garden of glorious spring flowers were sitting there wasted. So, I took one out and brought it home, curious to see what would happen if I planted it in a little dirt, watered it and gave it some light. I didn't expect much. The bulb was a tad soft, its one sprout was pale and thin, and the poor little thing had no roots whatsoever. I had no idea whether it might be a tulip, a daffodil, or some other spring flower. To my great surprise, almost immediately after I planted it, the sprout multiplied, put out a stem with a swelling that I knew was the flower, and literally within 7 days it put forth this little miniature daffodil, just a bit deformed but outdoing itself with that strong, wonderful daffodil fragrance! Amazing!

As the days have passed with no sign yet that the flower is fading, I kept thinking that there is a lesson here. In this world there are many, many people who have gotten a bad start in life, or have perhaps had a devastating experience in their adult lives. They've been abandoned, left without nourishment, perhaps abused, uprooted, neglected, and most of all, bereft of love, the sunshine of the soul. God looks into the box where they may be imprisoned, and knows what it will take to bring them out so they can fulfill their potential and be all that they were created to be. He puts them into the soil of His Word where their roots can grow down deep, finding nourishment and comfort. He waters them with His healing Spirit and brings them out into the brilliant sunlight of His indescribable love. He holds them and watches tenderly to see that they have all they need. As a result of His care these "people flowers" grow and have the beauty and the lovely fragrance they were destined to have, bringing joy to God Himself and to those around them.  

I was so encouraged by my tiny daffodil's new life that I took the whole banana box, dumped out the other bulbs under a fir tree beside the shelter, set them all upright and shoveled a fair amount of dirt around them, making sure the sprouts were above ground. I trusted the frequent rain to do the watering, and now I'm watching to see what will happen. My prayer is that I may be used by God to respond to need, especially among the "people flowers" I may encounter in my work or in my travels, expecting to see wondrous blossoms, always the work of God!

Lost Lake Residents

 As workampers we've mostly worked at regular campgrounds that cater to overnighters or short-term campers. Here at Lost Lake RV Resort the lots are for sale. The owners usually stay here in the summer and go elsewhere in the winter, though we've found that winter time is gorgeous, too, if you don't mind the rain!. This building is the Clubhouse, fully furnished for dinners, potlucks, etc. It sits right on the edge of the lake. You can see how big many of the Douglas Firs and Cedars are.

 Here is an example of an RV lot. The big 5th wheel is sheltered from the weather and the addition to the left is completely open on one side, allowing the campers to barbecue and to live in comfort, perhaps feeling like they are really "camping".

 A simpler version.

 Some owners have used paving stones to cover the ground around their dwellings and they've added landscaping other than the natural forest plants and trees to their lot. These folks have a regular log cabin with an RV "garage" next to it.

 This unoccupied lot either denotes that the owner is gone for the winter, or else it is prepared for sale. My guess is that it is already owned, since there is a little storage shed in the back. There are many lots in the park that have a much rougher look to them. They are waiting to be developed.

 What a gorgeous tree these two residents have between them! It looks like it is on fire!

 Some of the shelters just barely seem to fit in between the forest trees.

 This one is almost a forest mansion! Most of the lots do not have a view out between the trees, but there are a few on the edge of the park that might, if they're lucky, catch a glimpse of Mt. Rainier on a clear day. Others can see a part of the lake below them. Of course, these lots are the most expensive!

 This cabin is right near the workamper area. It looks like the owner is gone for the season.

 I can remember the last time we were here five years ago I raked and raked many of these lots, which were full of branches fallen from the trees. Let there be a wind, and we are going to be doing it again, at least in the still unsold lots! Needless to say, there is a large burn pile on the outer edge of the park where the prevalent vegetation is the Scotch Broom.

 

This is an example of a very simple lot. All, or most, of the owners have landscaped their properties, some elaborately and some very basically. They are all beautiful. We feel very much at home here!

I Meant To Do It!

 Yes, I meant to write a blog post every day of our trip from Cheyenne to Wenatchee, but I didn't quite make it. I did post about Casper WY and about Custer's Last Stand, but I hardly even took any photos after that. We spent 6 days out and traveled just over 1200 miles. After Hardin MT our next stop was in Bozeman MT. We were particularly excited about this stay because we have a job here at the KOA for next summer. We met the managers and paid special attention to the facilities and the beauty of this park. We will love it here! The downtown is beautiful and picturesque and the surrounding mountains are awesome!

 One of our favorite parks is the KOA at Missoula MT. We worked here for 2 summers in 2009-2010. The park itself is big and beautiful, but an added perk to being here is that we still know and stay in touch with some of the folks who work here. It was a joy to see them and to go out to dinner at Applebee's with some of them.

Our 5th night out was spent at the Spokane KOA. I failed to take a photo of our rig in this very nice park. We met an interesting couple here when they brought their little boy over to see our kitties outside in their kitty tent. It turns out the man is a writer and a pastor, and they are living simply in their RV while he writes another book. We bought his latest published book and are enjoying it very much. It is "Keys to Your Future" by Dan Hayne.

 Sometimes when we come across Washington we stay a night in Ephrata so we can visit my sister and bro-in-law. This time we left our rig in the church parking lot next door to their apartment building and spent a couple of hours with them, including lunch. My sister is a health food aficionado. She put together this gorgeous salad with flowers and other more unusual greens from her garden. Yum! We really did enjoy this meal!

 Home at last! After we set up we grabbed a granddaughter and took her out to our park for a few hours. Here is Natalie by the Wenatchee River. We had not seen the kids and grandkids for 14 months, so they were sights for sore eyes.

 Love!

We've stayed in many, many RV parks in our 8 years as workampers, but we can truthfully say the Wenatchee River County Park is the most beautiful. Of course, it always helps that we seem to be here in September or October when we get to see the gorgeous poplars, locusts and other trees in full autumn glory, with the Wenatchee River flowing serenely by. The layout of this park is unique, too. The RV spaces are in a circle going out like spokes in a wheel. It makes each space seem farther away from the next one while still getting maximum use of the available ground. We love it here!

Well, we have a few more days to visit and share our love with our family and friends. We're also getting some much needed RV repairs, then when that's completed we're off again. We'll be crossing the Cascade Mountains over Snoqualmie Pass and journeying on to Lost Lake RV Resort near Olympia WA for our winter work. I'll post again soon!

I Petted a Buffalo!

There is a big bison ranch just off I-25 near the Wyoming/Colorado border called The Terry Bison Ranch. The whole ranch looks ancient, and some of the buildings are actually from the 1880s. The Ranch boasts an RV park, a restaurant, gift store, and other touristy attractions. We were told the ranch had the second largest herd of bison for meat in the U.S.  The largest herd is owned by Ted Turner, a name everyone knows. (By the way, the terms bison and buffalo are synonymous for these North American animals.) We'd stopped here before, just to look it over, but this time we decided to take the train ride out into the fields "where the buffalo roam". This is the cute little train we boarded.

We had an excellent driver and tour guide. I was tickled to see this unique "chicken house", an old bus. The photo doesn't show too well the myriads of chickens resting in the shade underneath. This type of chicken house can be moved from place to place, always giving the chickens a secure home and at the same time fresh ground. I think it's a great idea!

 As our train made a loop around the field we were suddenly surprised to see this sign.

 A moment later, around the loop, we were back in Wyoming!

Finally, we came upon the bison we'd been seeking. This is the biggest guy, the head honcho of the herd.

And this lady was the sweetest and the most adept at begging. We'd all purchased bags of special green (alfalfa?) pellets, just for feeding the bison. All these critters knew to approach the train, and fully expected their treats. Out would come their big, gray tongues and the pellet would disappear, leaving behind a very slimed hand. We all fed them till our bags were empty. What fun!

Just to prove my title, here I am petting a buffalo! The fur on this one's neck was curly, and very soft and deep and cushy. Guess that's how they can withstand the harsh, snowy winters on the prairie.

We had to try this! Ride 'em, Cowboy, Mr. Keith!

My turn! I'm "out on the lone prai-rie"!

And last, a jackalope! We had a great time here, seeing the bison, some camels, llamas, horses, cows, chickens, a mascot turkey, goats, alpacas, and maybe some other critters I'm forgetting to name. We plan to go back with our friends and fellow workampers next week to eat at the Senator's Restaurant, which boasts the best bison burgers in Wyoming. Gee whiz, I feel a little guilty wanting to eat a bison burger after petting a bison!