Six Flags Enthuseast

^Yes, the woodies are a big part of Silverwood. I guess I just didn't get too many photos of them. And yes, I agree, Pat Benatar does rock.

^I was short enough to use the 'chinrest' on the one @ SFMM. Silverwood; Day 2 Part...4? Yeah, 4. Goodbye Silverwood! Thank's for reading! "Silverwood was fun!" We didn't get a chance to go to this place, but next time.... Silverwood keeps Corkscrew(ed)s field very clean and grassy! Smoother brakes than Wild Thing... But they're still not that smooth! Wish there was an extra loop there.... Only because 70% of Idaho's population is above the age of 65! Hmm..... This is what it feels like to be sitting in the 2nd row of any Arrow car on any Arrow train. Our very red but not so comfortable Arrow chariot awaits us! A 'later in the day' shot of the Corkscrew(ed) sign. All I get is this creepy dolphin that will give me nightmares? Rachael and I played this midway game... These things are very shakey, so I wouldn't recommend riding them if you have serious back problem/arthritis. Next is Roaring Creek, the parks popular Arrow log flume ride. The one that I just splahed people with.

Part 2. See 'ya next year, Puyallup Fair! Or wait, will we? Maybe I'll be seeing Mirabilandia about this time..... Thank's for reading! Gotta give a thanks to these 3 girls who rode Exteme Scream with me this last time, you kept me entertained in line and made riding that much better! ...and headed back over to Extreme Scream for one more ride. We said goodbye to the rest of our group.... ...but then they pulled out leaf blowers with rolls of TP at the end of them! Totally the most insane clown show ending yet! This 'partner clowns from California' show started off as mildly boring.... Actually, it's just a little bigger than the average 'big cookie'. However, what it looses in expectations for size it gains in unexpectations of taste! Even though it's $6, and you'll probably want a $3 milk with it... And since this is my last day of being 13, I'll go hardcore. How big is their biggest cookie, the Bull Chip? Cow Chip cookies are one of my highlightes of the fair. I try to get one every year. Hey Doug! (a nametag over a clydesdale) Can somebody please organize a caption contest for this horse? Fluffy faced rabbit! Here's that new Ford Fiesta. However, upside down moves like this made change fall out of my pocket, and the guy that managed the ring began taking it! So far, my gyro ring experience was good... A gyro ring, of course! So what, you may ask, am I stepping up to do?

^^^Wow, all the way from Virginia? And yes, like many other things in Washington, this fair is very expensive. ^^Actually, this place has 4 gates (Blue gate being the main one) and it does have an admission. ^And you can actually see the photos, since I was using my Kodak Easyshare camera. Proof of admission.... Washington students and teachers get free or $1 admission coupons, so it certainly pays to be educated here!

For years, the Puyallup Fair has been a major part of Washington State history. Everything from awesome food to rides, shopping to animal shows, events to the occasional fire that wiped the whole place out! Disasters aside, the Fair has been a big part of our family, and I finally decided to bring a camera to check it out! Robb and the gang have checked this place out before, so let's see if it's changed at all.... And we're done! More photos soon to come. Thank's for reading! ....and came down with fury! We stopped on top.... At this point, I had absolutely no idea what to expect... In a frantic daze to want to ride something, I decide to get a ticket for Turbo Force. From here I learn (1 that the upcharge stuff is very expensive, as you'd expect, and (2 that Big Sling is broken because of a damaged motor. The lady said that it would be fixed by tomorrow, but I won't be there then... and I'll be 14! (FYI, this was actually the day before my birthday) Wish there could be a flying capsul in this picture... Hmm...... Ugghhh.... Not today, I guess....=( My worst fears were confirmed... Hmm, never ridden one of those Turbo Force things before..... Same for the Sling Shot. That corner of the park is just calling my name..... Mad Mouse, just like the one that's being assembled at the Amusement Park Drive-in. You can see the train rounding the bend in the distance. Thank you for being awesome, Puyallup Fair ride-ops! The final bunny hill section leading up to the brakes. You know I'm in for a whole lot of airtime on these bunny hills! "Stroke...Stroke....Stroke...." A pop of hairtime. "Stroke....Stroke....Stroke...." Can you see where they've replaced some wood? Ladies & Gentlemen, because of that old guy over there, you're gonna get some onride photos! (thank you lenient ride-ops everywhere!) Quite a bit of color in this picture... Totally rode the one @ Silverwood. One of few fairish rides in my cool club. Even a theme park nerd knows that this is a good ride when it has the ACE seal of approval! "Ready for a 1-of-2-ever-built woodie credit?" This wheel, like the one that was on Hypersonic XLC, spins VERY VERY VERY fast! "Have you ever seen somebody with such a love for the state of Utah? No, you haven't! Except for Mormans..." Seat support structure galore! Look at that couple making out right in the middle of the line! Big curly fry! Could this soon be my new avatar? We totally invade Jack-in-the-Box for lunch! Hmm..... Right about here, Extreme Scream had an e-stop, and it descended VERY slowly..... Check out my 3D glasses! Fun Fact: The first Tilt-A-Whirl was built in Minnesota. For all you Minnesotans, this one's for you! This one has its own sign! Chairswing credit. Cha-ching! Ahh, the Enterprise. My first and, so far, only credit on one took place on this one last year. This year, a lightbulb flew off according to my mom! Yay, sort of. And I bet you're wondering how I, the coaster nerd, got to sit with 3 hot chicks. I don't know either! "First ever Inverter credit!" Yes, this fair actually has more roller coasters and rides than Washington's 'biggest' theme park! At the Puyallup Fair, you can pet cows! Rosie, Savannah, and Annie totally pigged out on the foot massagers. Group photo mania! Guess how many times I eventually ended up riding? (not for this ticket, but in total) The not-so-fairish Sling Shot. For some reason, all of the rides in this Midway area are labled Funtastic. Classic S&S-bottom-of-tower-looking-up shot. I'm not on the ride in this one. What 'choo lookin' at? All the S&S labeling? NOTED! Even though it's a steep $10 to ride it, I decided to hit Extreme Scream first. 3 cheers for Team Africa! ...and these are the reasonably sized backseats sitting behind you! This is what it's like sitting behind the reasonably sized steering wheel..... Meh.... I'd rather have it in orange with black stripes. Very needed, as this is a pretty big fair. The newishly renovated Showplex is chock full (as usual) of all kinds of displays for companies and products you've never heard of before. Not Vault ICEE, Robb, but close enough. Swoad of Powah!!! I have one of these at home! One of the highly popular 'typical to what you'd find at a fair' food stalls. Among other cars, the all new Ford Fiesta was here today. The Fiesta is one of the more important ones, as it's an attempt by Ford to introduce a car pretty much right from Europe into the American market. Quite a nice car, too, boasting European quality, great looks, and an estimated 40mpg. I'm pretty sure this'll be popular once it's released. The Puyallup Fair was next in a line of fairs/events showcasing this 'Weird Al present's Al's Brain' thing, an unusual 3D type show with fun facts about the brains that make us function. Hmm..... Fair? Hardly. Normally, the first thing you see coming into Puyallup is the fair's S&S Combo Tower, Extreme Scream. Today, however.... Mmm..... Frito Lay truck! We should be looking out into water, but there's a lot of fog today.... Check out my brand new SPECTACLES! "Nothing like the smell of Teen Spirit in the morning...."

^Ok, thanks.

^^I know the bars were added to keep people from touching the track (if they weren't there, my hands could probably touch it!), but I'm pretty sure I don't remember the orange lap seatbelts. Anyone with a photo of the Deja vu trains, please post it here. ^By what I know of, it's been like that since it opened in 2006. And I was actually able to check out the 'chinrest' on the one @ SFMM. Kinda weird, but I certainly wouldn't put my chin on it during the ride, my poor jaw would never stop hurting.

My dad did a similar ATV tour kind of thing, were the ATV's breaking down and falling apart on you guys?

^It ain't! My dad's in the Navy, and he just called in for orders to Naples this morning. I can't wait to go! Washington's been good to me, but I'm glad to be going somewhere totally new and exiting! Especially since it's Europe, the place where theme parks kick soooooo much ! I also get a 4 day weekend.

I'm moving to Naples, Italy!

^Ok then, I guess I just didn't notice. I remember when Aftershock was Deja vu @ SFGAm that it didn't have them (I find it amazing that I can remember that detail from 2005, but I can't remember it from earlier this year).

^Thanks, I knew it started with a B. And I don't remember if Deja vu @ SFMM had them

Thanks for reminding me, I rode ID, Wildcat, and *technically* Maverick at night too.

Wicked Twister Wild Thing Timberhawk: Ride of Prey Goliath @ SFMM Really the only ones I've ridden at night, but they were pretty good.

Ok, it sounded to me like it would be a 30min ride time. So yeah, way more than 2 people per hour.

^I'd think because of the extremely low capacity. By the description, 2 riders per hour is what it'll be getting at the most.

I wouldn't pay $100 for it, either. In fact, I'd find it hard to pay $13 for Big Shot.

^I knew I'd forget that! Silverwood: Day 2 part 2. "They THINK they're out of the clear, but they aren't..... 25 cents does SO much these days..." Part 3 coming soon. Thank's for reading! Unacceptable amount of dryness, especially in the back. Hungry....Must...eat!....(and no, I didn't actually eat it) Popcorn! Hmm.... The South Park Gang is up here from Colorado to be featured on TPR! Patrick approved drop tower. Want proof? I got about 8 credits on this thing while I was there! This is Fred. Fred is the ARM/Larson catchcar that pulls the main ride vehicle to the top. Fred is the reason that Panic Plunge has airtime. It looks a little like an S&S tower, but with a lot less pneumatic cylindar crap in the middle. Instead of a complicated pneumatic system like on the Turbo Drop, or a very coplicated cable system like on Intamin towers, ARM/Larsen towers use a simpler winch system. It's a mildly fast descent; it takes about 3.3 seconds (I timed it on my trusty watch) Panic Plunge has the 'weird colored' mesh stuff, like Maliboomer except it looks like a target from the top. Yes, it's only 140ft tall. Silverwood's classic Skydiver. This thing is awesome! This is our next destination. This coaster has a LOT of airtime on the front bunny hills. Mmm..... Ice Cream.... I will ask what an Itakadoozie is, as Dan asked what a Cheese Curd was @ Indiana Beach. (notice that I have the CE1 DVD?) It seems they've also added Aftershock to the cups, as well. And the 'classic SFMM Deja vu page two tower' shot, like this. And close ups, like this. You can also get nice shots like this... Far left:"Is that the Hoffman chick?" Middle left:"Interesting situation..." Middle right:"Look at my dirty socks!" Far right:"I'm all denim; denim shirt, denim jeans...." (Unlike the other GIBs, Aftershock's ride plaza is behind the towers, instead of in front of the cobra roll. This allows you to get great shots of the train ascending, like this one. Insert your own captions, if you please!) Aftershock sign. "This is my 2nd GIB this year, both of them being original SF Deja vus'!" Gotta give a shout out to.... oh crap..... what's his name? umm..... ride op carrying all the drinks from RC Pro. Had a nice conversation with him about all the idiots who think this ride's made by Arrow. The exit path really allows you to get some nice shots of the inversions. I'd totally stand here and wait for the train to pass by. Oww.... my head.... Note the big bars just to the side of the restraints that keep your hands from touching the track. Robb Alvey pointing to V2 @ SFGAm in 2001 FAIL! (sorry for the blurriness, mods) And then comes flying through! It does get pulled very quickly out of the station... This ride certainly could use a single rider line, sorta like what Deja @ SFMM had for a while. That catchcar has a LOT of wires and crap on it! Note the orange seatbelt on 6B. Those were added by Silverwood, although I have no idea why. I wonder what that tank does.... powers e-brakes? Nerdy loop shot! "I'll be experiencing about this much force in less than 10 minutes!" (amazingly, Aftershock was pretty much walk on when we rode it both times) One other thing it keeps is the annyingly complex and unreliable cable catchcar lift system, infamous for causing a lot of problems. Thus the Vekoma GIB became very unpopular. As it was placed on a flat surface to begin with, it also has its original supports. It still retains its original coloring, and the trains still look the same (unlike the ones on Deja @ SFMM). For those of you who don't know, Aftershock is the Deja vu from Six Flags Great America. Somehow, in the transfer, it became much smoother. So we finally make it to the Aftershock part of the update!

Silverwood: Day 2. Rachael:"Peace!" Patrick:"I can only expect hell for the next 1:30." More photos soon to come. Thank's for reading! As you can see, they thought it was rough too. You can see mom and dad in the 1st row of the 2nd car. Kinda hard to get feet outside the train, don't you think? Another one, implying that your head will be cut off by Silverwood employees if you stand up. One of the easy to be misinterpreted signs at Silverwood. Both Tremors and Timber Terror have this weird covering thing over their queue. Tremors is a top rated coaster, but it's very tempermental. It's been pretty rough every time I've ridden it. Now for Tremors, the park's signature CCI woodie. Aftershock is visable from almost everywhere in the park. Dad managed to collect a ball while we were playing the boat war game. Mom and Ms. Cathy were really taking this game seriously! Here's the little vehicle we'd be using. We totally got into this war ship shooting little rubber balls and water at people and people being able to shoot balls back game! Arrow out-of-corkscrew shot. Acceptable amount of wettness, but VERY cold today! We're all ready to get wet! Or are we? Mom took some pictures while we were in line for Silverwood's popular rapid's ride. I thought it was just ok. I've never ridden one of these Huss U.F.O. things before. Silverwood has done a decent job at placing the scrambler inside of Corkscrew's final turnaround. "This Corkscrew is only good in the front. Wild Thing is better in the back." They even have the updated Pepsi logo on the Silverwood cups! Arrow train, anybody? There's a LOT of unused space in Corkscrew's lot. Note the growth on the track.... and the unusually long line for Corkscrew(ed). First ever huggging-support shot I've ever had taken. Classic-ish behind corkscrew shot #2. Classic-ish behind corkscrew shot #1. Simultaneous Arrow/Chance operation shot! Typical Chance (Chance, right?) Gambler, except it's called Trabant. "This isn't a Tilt-A-Hurl, as people would say. It's less nauseating than the typical, but more intense!" Ready to ride! (this T-A-W has a lot of intense spinning, you can't miss it when you come to Silverwood) I totally would've gone for that dunk tank yesterday, but it's too cold today. Yes.... My very first ever Tilt-A-Whirl! I remember it like it was yesterday... Winner every time. Really? I don't think so. "Come on everybody.... play the game that allows you to waste money, get a prize, AND test your strength!" Remember these? (If not, check out Coaster Expedition 3 and look at the 'floating' car thing on Silverwood's video) Hmm.... Where do we go? We did the train last year, and I'd certainly reccommend it to anybody who visits Silverwood! Just make sure you have your wallet with you, you'll see why... "Live"....... Dad found this sign laying on the ground in the parking lot. Panic Plunge was operating today. I think I'll ride it 6 more times! (spoiler alert) Silverwood's parking lot has a nice view. There were already people waiting for Aftershock. Better than the first entrance photo?

Cabela's Mini Update. Montana! Thank's for reading. Thank's for an awesome, fun experience, Cabela's! This should totally be 'TPR's official sporting good's store of awesomness'! I had to duck when I hit a target that released water! In fact, soon after I came, the whole place became very crowded! I tried my hand at the Cabela's shooting area. They have this totally awesome camoflauge chair with a foldable cover. What Burney Madoff uses to hide from angry taxpayers. I head right for the food court. These cheese curd things are AWESOME! We decide to go to Cabela's before hitting Silverwood. Nevada! (I quickly got into playing with fragments of Sun Chips I found that just happened to look like states) Interesting... Gravel Pit-Ness Monster. Bunnies! Hmm....

Silverwood: Day 1. Bring it on! My camera ran out of battery, so this is the last photo I took of the day. After this, I rode Aftershock (literally, it was walkon), Corkscrew, Corkscrew, and some other stuff. When we were finished, we had a great dinner at Chili's. Great place, I only wish there was one near us.=( Thank's for reading! Can you believe it's only 140ft tall? These Panic Plunge ride-ops look bored; I'll brighten their day a little. Silverwood's 'Arrow corner'. They still haven't added Aftershock? I think I'll ride Panic Plunge, now that I'm more into drop tower rides. Heading on over to Silverwood to get some rides in before we leave. NOTED! Since this isn't a waterproof camera, I had to leave it in a locker. The waterpark's lazy river, Elkhorn Creek. Some of the speed slides. Then there's the Granite Grill, which is overloaded with napkin and condiments. The first thing you see after walking through Boulder Beach's gift shop (serves as the entrance because it's a free waterpark) is the playset. It's just to your left once you walk in. The Boulder Beach boulder. Corkscrew is only better than Wild Thing because it has slightly smoother brakes. Otherwise, it's more headbangy (even though my head exceeds the OTSRs), rougher, more forceful, and has 1 less inversion. However, for our first day, we'd be headed for Boulder Beach. After all, it was the hottest of the 2 days we'd spend here. Victorian themeing is what's in at Silverwood. As I learned last year, the carousel was originally constructed for knights to learn the speed and feel of horses. I then told the ride-op that gave me this fact that Aftershock came from Illinois before coming to Silverwood. Fact exchange>boring ride-op who doesn't smile. (coughcoughsixflagscouch) Silverwood has a heavily foliaged, but beautifully manicured entrance plaza. Beep! Admission granted. NOTED! We were in a long line to get to the park. NOTED! I've seen this somewhere before... The two (technically, 3) tallest towers at Silverwood. (No, Panic Plunge is only 140ft, it's just closer than Aftershock) Wow, all the way from Florida for Silverwood? I told you this place is pretty good! TT's progressively yellower train and a little bit of Corkscrew. Panic Plunge and Timber Terror. Intense, slightly-smoother-than-other-GIBs loopage. Illinois GIB: the Ride. Here we are! The price for gas was $2.97 for 1 gallon last time we were here. That was when it was over $3.20 in Washington! We pass yet another small waterpark. One of these brands is defunct... (This wettness was caused by the hotel sprinkler spraying on our cars) Ms. Cathy had to get her car to the local Isuzu (or what used to be) dealer because it was making an unusual noise. Plus, the fuel gauge was acting up. Apparently, this place had a 'warning, do not slip' sign from Carl's Jr./Hardees. Woke up early, got breakfast, and was quickly ready to go! I'll grab a chocolate milk and take a quick bathroom break before we arrive at our hotel. Indeed, we will... "We'll be at Silverwood soon enough!" Another small waterpark. ...After. Before.... We wake up to find that we could've had dinner at Pizza Hut/Wingsteet!

^We visited Silverwood after we toured South Dakota. Part 2 of our Mount Rushmore trip. "And we're off into the sunset..." Thank's for reading! Silverwood coming very soon! Funny enough, I found a Sun chip shaped exactly like Idaho, our next destination. More awesome Montana radio! We have a LONG way ahead of us before we reach Silverwood, but we'll be there soon enough... "On to Silverwood!" We arrive back in Montana, only having a few hours of daylight for decent driving. We talked a little with some of the people walking along the trail with us. On this particular day, there were several people trying to climb the Tower. NOTED! Devil's Tower is the partially eroded core of an inactive volcano. It was the first US National Monument, as announced by Teddy Roosevelt. Notice the golden eagles flying around it's top. Our next stop would be Devil's Tower in Wyoming. Shortly before leaving, I got a burger and a Coke. Amazingly, the burger was decent, a rare thing at an animal park. I'm totally a Canadian driving my little cart through the park waving to everybody I pass. Oh crap! Meh, it's just ok. They had lots of stuffed bears in the gift shop. NOTED! All the bear cubs were laying in the shade. TPR would be totally hogging this if they visited! I wonder what happened here.... They're even more lazy than my cat at home! We get plenty of these guys where we live. NOTED! NOTED! This place also had a lot of quote benches. Here's one of them. After the drive-thru part, you have the option to visit a smaller, walk-thru park with baby animals (as well as some awesome cart thingies). That is one fat a$$! Albino buffalo! More of the same. More like Sleepy Hallow USA. This one decided to join the other one in the pond. (Hmm, Arkansas plate...) This bear decided to cool off by jumping into this pond. Pretty kitty! These...umm.....'wild cats' were laying by their house in the shade. We have these in Washington. This one seemed to know that I was taking pictures, and posed very quickly. The bighorn sheep seemed to be quite content relaxing in the shade. The reindeer were pretty shy today. "So far, nobody has gotten their head ripped off by angry elk." Although these elk seemed to be pretty docile, we were told not to roll down our car window when one was near because of it was mating season for them. We'd finally arrived at Bear Country USA. We weren't able to check this place out, but I hear it's a top attraction. Christmas Village is yet another cool attraction you should check out if you ever visit the South Dakota area. "I'd put this helmet on if only it weren't bolted to this platform. Besides, why would I be wearing the helmet of a team that sucks so bad?" We stopped at a Christmas/Halloween store on our way to Bear Country USA. You should definitely check this out if you want to have a little bit of fun. Come when you're hungry, a nice little resturant awaits you at the top. Also, they take a picture of you shortly before arriving at the top, so make sure you can afford a cute souvenir. Finally, watch out for snakes on the track, I ran over one while I was riding. Thankfully, it went right between the wheels of the bobsled, so I didn't end up getting snake guts all over my shirt. There's a helicopter from the Helicopter Tour place I saw earlier. We decided to pass, only expecting a powered coaster at best. The resturaunt we ate at for breakfast had a cool waterfall pool in it. Apparently, kids at the local school only have to go to school 4 days a week! Cute and soft doggie! We could see Crazy Horse from the road we were driving. Artsy shot of Washington's head from behind the mountain. Once again, more Rushmore. 3 white Toyotas in a row, and we own 2 of the 3 shown! (we own a Tundra, but we left it at home) The next morning we wake up and decide to go to breakfast at a place a few miles from where we stayed. Mount Rushmore is a bit smaller than you'd imagine... Lucario Approved US National Monument. We noticed some people walking up the trails in front of the monument. Here's that flag thing I was talking about. PLENTY of Rushmore photos to come.... Hmm..... (Somewhere between here and the next photo, I lot my camera. Since I don't have my dad's camera right now, I can't show any of the photos I took of the Badlands) My dad, being the offroad car type of person, wanted a picture on this thing. Our hotel was conveniently located near the Rushmore chairlift/alpine sled course. A lot of fun, as we'd find out in the next few days.

I'm so sorry I kept everybody waiting, but I've finally got my photos ready! We set out for Mount Rushmore, a trip that would take 2 days, 2 nights, and several bags of Funyons to reach. I'd like to throw a shout out to these people we talked with. I completely forgot your names, but I remember you had the same camera as us. Thank's for reading! Can't beat Coke Machines themed to Mount Rushmore! "I was sold to the Carnahan's in 2006 @ the Japaneese store in Epcot. We all know that's in Florida." Mom was born in Iowa. This is where I was born. Because his dad was born in Tennessee? We got a chance to pose in front of state flags and marble things. This one is because... well... we live in Washington. They also got to introduce themselves as apart of the US Navy. My dad got to lend a hand in lowering and folding the Rushmore flag! What an honor! We finally reached Rushmore, just in time for the lighting ceremony. North Dakota has the coolest license plates ever! 'Discover the Spirit' Hmm.... At this point, we had no idea how far Rushmore was from here. "Oh God, it was a really big bump! I caution drivers that take this route through the very northeastern tip of Wyoming, don't approach South Dakota at speed!" "..for only 15 minutes. Hey, what does that sign say? Bump ahead...." "And we're going into Wyoming..." "Finally, after 2 days, 1 night, several bags of chips, several traffic jams, and 2,000,000 bugs killed, we're leaving Montana!" Montana is also home to gigantic dragonflies! As I said earlier, there are a lot of bugs in Montana that are perfectly happy to hit your car and dirty it up. We knew we were slowly getting closer when we saw this sign. Lot's of cattle and horses here. Our GPS told us that this was a faster way than taking the freeway. We figured out, by this closed KFC, that we were in the Crow Indian Reservation. "We just passed a sign that said 'Welcome to Crow Country'. Are we in Wyoming yet?" The speed limit, the sky, the road work projects, and most everything else is bigger in Montana, except for the trains! This is the 'not-as-exiting-as-the-western-part' part of Montana. More roadwork halts us, and several hundred other cars too. Another Cabela's! Another small waterpark. I'm not sure why, but I swear somebody told me that this was going to be an S&S El Locco. Nope, it's an old Mad Mouse coaster that came from New Mexico. The coaster still wasn't set up... You thought the RCT ferris wheel was small, this is like it's Japaneese cousin! Ok, I wasn't expecting much, but this is just sad. I'm one of the first TPR members to check this place out! You drive by a smelly...sulfur? public sewer? something plant before reaching the Drive-In. This park can literally be defined as 'in the middle of nowhere'. As we headed through Laurel, we tried to get to the Amusment Park Drive-In. But a lot of roadwork made our trip quite a bit longer. If you've ever been to Montana, you'll know that the clouds feel very low. And, in reality, they are. It really does feel we've been driving this long.... Even the natural beauty of the whole place can't make up for the straightness of some of the roads. More amazing mountains, trees, and views would await us today. This part of the road was so hilly our cruise control began acting up. As you would probably expect there were a lot of trucks in Montana. We also woke up to more roadwork, which would end up delaying us almost the whole trip through the state. We wake up finally able to see the beautiful mountains surrounding the town we slept in. We finish our dinner to this. We still have a LONG way to go to get to Butte, our sort of planned stopping place for the night. Notice the many bugs on our winshield. Montana is not the place to live if you want to keep your car clean! Somewhere about 2 hours into Montana, we stop at Cracker Barrel to get something to eat. "In Montana, you're allowed to go 80 mph on the freeways.... THIS is why." Montana radio is awesome! Classic rock rules here, especially Pat Benatar. Literally, I heard 'Hit Me With Your Best Shot' at least 3 or 4 times while I was here! "Welcome to Montana.... AKA the state with absolutely everything but theme parks!" Yet another small waterpark, this one being indoor, possibly apart of a hotel/resort. Scenic driving. "And the second we get into Idaho, we see a sign for Silverwood!" On our last trip here, we stopped at Cabela's. We'll stop later if we have time. We were slowly approaching the Idaho border. This one even has a bowl slide! This is the first of many small water parks we'd pass along the way. Zip's is pretty good, but it isn't in WW. =( Spokane>Seattle Gas is pretty expensive in EW. Then again, this is Shell, one of the more expensive stations. In Eastern Washington, we noticed several of these little dust cyclones that appeared on farm fields. Interesting, eh? ...and hit the road. We loaded up on snacks.... We also notice seels. Waiting for my dad to get off his ship, we notice very unusual seagulls... We find an Arco gas station conveniently located in the middle of the Puget Sound! "Ready for another Silverwood road trip!" (Note my mom's cleaning service number; if you live in Western Washington and you need a house cleaning person, call my mom! She does a wonderful job cleaning!)

^I got it on finally, it was actually on when I tried to download it the first time, but it was just in a submenu that I didn't bother to look at. And I knew Media Go had to do with something! Thanks for telling me that, I was really confused by it.

Happy New Year! Hear's to another great decade and coaster season.