Montana December 2010 - Part 3

The trip back to Lincoln was eventful, as I crossed through some areas in northwestern Colorado and Wyoming where the deer and the elk migrate. Signs and fences were everywhere, but you still had to keep your eyes open for herds across the highway. By running with my hand on the light switch on the column I was able to keep all the lights on (the high beam, low beam and fog lights). This let me see far ahead as well as off to the side. I have done this at home for short distances with no problem, but out here driving for endless miles like this the light got so hot it burned out the element and the bulb shattered. I got my first chip in the windshield and stopped to get it repaired. By the time I found a place it had already started to form a crack across the windshield. It seems like all the vehicles out here get chips or cracks in the windshield unless they are only driven around town.

The remainder of my time was spent running dogs. At first there was not enough snow for a sled, so we ran them in front of the ATV. One run took us up the mountain into a foot of snow. It was hard pulling for the dogs and a few times we had to get off and push the four-wheeler. Finally it got stuck and we had to turn the team around. We got back OK and retired the ATV for the season, which had officially begun. We would be on sleds for the rest of the year. I left for home a few days before Christmas and would not be back until the middle of January. I needed to be home to work as much as possible during this time. I had some expenses for the race and I would not be working much in February or March. I HAD to make as much money as I could now and hope we had enough to make it through March and April, when my paychecks would be skinny