Big Timber, Montana.

The phrase "High Speed Internet" is interpreted somewhat differently here. Although really, there's no way I would've gotten any Internet, especially not for free, a few years ago. My inconvenience is extremely relative.

426 miles today. Feh. I forgot about the time zone! I thought I'd have an hour more sunlight than I did. Also the trailer is, pardon me, a serious drag. On flat land it only knocks about 10 mph off my speed, but I went over about four mountain passes today and I just chugged over each one. The roads are good though. I was very worried about snow and ice but so far there's been only the tiniest patches at the tops of the passes. I suspect things might get trickier as I get further east, although hopefully the Northeast Snowpocalypse will have started to melt by the time I get there.

I bought a jackalope. I couldn't help myself.

Also, wow, it's been a long time since I've driven over a cattle guard. The first time today it kinda surprised me. OH MY GOD THERE ARE HOLES IN THE ROAD. WHERE WILL I PUT MY HOOVES.

I ate elk jerky! It's venison-y. For some reason I always associate road trips with exotic jerky. It's just not a road trip until you eat dried alligator or kangaroo or something.

Montana has weird casino laws. Non-Indian casinos are all over, but they can only have video poker and keno, no table games. I always get weirded out by gambling laws that exclude games with good odds. Way to protect the people, Montana.

Lotsa cows today. Serious cows. I saw this fluff-piece story the other day that said that cows always face magnetic north and no one knows why and it's this big Animal Mystery. I'm now fairly sure that cows face every damn way.

The stars, oh my God, the stars. Even Washington wilderness stars have nothing on Montana stars. I was standing under streetlights and I could still see entire galaxies I never knew existed.

When you close a bottle of liquid at sea level and then open it at Big Timber altitude, fascinating things happen. The "personal items" pocket of my luggage is now thoroughly lubricated. (Also, my tea won't get hot. Stupid physics.)

You'd think that Chinese food cooked by white people in Montana in a town smaller than my high school would be nightmarish. Shockingly, you'd be wrong! It wasn't exactly authentic but it was quite delicious.