In light of all the turmoil going on in this world I thought you might like another story from MontanaBob and his wandering with cousin Randy while we 4-wheel at our cabin near Helena, MT.

We were up there this past Saturday to mow the lawn and cut downed trees, and took some time off to hit the trails in our 4-wheelers. We decided to head up to Granite Peak Lookout as it is an easy ride (according to us, not many others), and take some pictures of the 360 degree view that is over 175 miles.

We get up to the Lookout and lo and behold there are 3 other 4-wheelers there.. We recognized that these are rentals from a place in Marysville, which is about 6000 feet down from here and some 5 miles south of the lookout. We find out these these are middle age couples are from Kansas and are out here on a vacation. Never been in the mountains before (strike one); never been 4-wheeling before,(strike two), and don't have maps or a GPS system on them. (Strike Three).

We talk a bit and they get on their rigs and head down the slope taking the north trail. Big Mistake!!! Most of Western Montana got huge amounts of snow in February and March and the North and East facing slopes up high still have places that have 12-20 feet of snow. THIS WAS ONE OF THEM! What happened next is classic.

Randy: Whoa...I don't think they should have gone that way.

Bob: Ya think??? Maybe we should hang around here in case they need help. We better get the winches ready.

Randy: I bet they get stuck in the Meadow down there and that's gonna be a big problem. I'm gussing that drift there is 15-20 feet at least.

Bob; Could be more than that...but I hope they at least stay far apart so they don't all get bogged down.

Well.............5 minutes later the last guy on the ride comes back up walking.....trying to find cell phone reception and sees us. We offer to help and head down the trail for about 900 feet. Sure enough, there are three 4-wheelers buried in the big drift up the the seats. Very comical situation because we have seen this many times over the years.

Bob: Well, looks like you took on more snow than those things could handle.

Flatlandeer One: Wow..we thought these things could ride right over that snow.

Randy: Those things are called SnowMobiles.

Bob: Ok...Lets get the winches going and get you guys out. It's getting nasty to the West and we're gonna get snow in about a half hour.

Flatlander Gal: Snow....at this time of year?!!? Are you kidding??

Bob: Nope...we get snow 12 months of the year and up this high it can really add up. Some of these drifts you see won't melt for a couple of years.

Randy: Maybe we should winch them downhill from below. That way the rest of the trail should be clear.

So we get down below them and pull all three 4-wheelers out and they get going headed down the trail to warmer and better climates.

By the time Randy and I got back to the cabin it had started to snow up high, while we were sitting around the campfire with our wives enjoying cowboy coffee and homemade sweet rolls.

Bob's wife Donna: Well, did you guys have fun? Anything exciting up there?

Bob: Naw....just some idiots from Kansas trying to go where they should't. We helped them get going the right way.

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always entertaining Bob. Of course you were once a stupid flatlander too so I suppose even at your advanced age you can still remember most of those dumb moves.

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One of my favorite activities.. hopping on a wheeler and leaving for the day. That said.. life here is completely different than life there.. but I still would enjoy it greatly.

ATV'd in Colorado near Glenwood Springs when I got stuck there for a couple days on a road trip to LA. Enjoyed it greatly.. but July in Colorado probably also differs from Montana. But I enjoyed riding the horses even more than the ATV there..

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My next door neighbor took me 4 wheeling in Centrailia, Pa. - the place that has been burning underground since (1961- 1962?)

He's from there. It's all coal. When he was a kid, his mom would send him out with a 5 gallon bucket to pick up anthracite coal to put in the stove. On the ground. It would take 5 minutes to fill that bucket, over 30 years ago. It's still true. The fact that they let a piece of the largest anthracite coal seam just burn is one of the most interesting stories I am aware of.

We go way over 20 miles on those old coal mining roads. It is some of the most fascinating terrain I could imagine, after all, it is all still on fire...