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| Historic downtown Livingston, Montana |
On Friday, August 24th, after a very slow start to the morning on my part, Mom and Dad met us at the RV so we could all drive together to
Livingston. We began, per usual, with the visitor center whose extremely helpful guide loaded us up with brochures and recommendations for things to do, see and eat in both Montana and Wyoming.
We drove through the historic downtown area of
Livingston, which we had not seen the evening before in the dark when looking desperately for a place to have dinner. The downtown was a quaint group of old buildings still resembling the historic Livingston from the late 1880s. As the original entrance to Yellowstone National Park, the town hosted a
Northern Pacific Railroad spur that brought tourists to the country's first park. Nowadays, Livingston is both a thriving arts community and a fly fishing mecca, with several art galleries and the Federation of Fly Fishers. We found it a very charming and warm little town of friendly folks.
On the recommendation of the visitor center guide, we dined at the
Montana Rib and Chop House, a lively place with outstanding service and even better food. Three of us ordered steak salads and one chose the barbecue pork sandwich, everyone was impressed with the quality and prices of the entrees. Our pithy waiter, Reed, with a sly sense of humor, kept us entertained. We vowed to return.
After lunch, we stopped into a thrift store and bought a few things without which we couldn't go on living. While Dad waited patiently in the car, Mom, Ken and I also popped into
Sax & Fryer, a downtown business with the distinction of being the town's oldest continuously operating shop. The
Sax & Fryer, still a book and stationery store, opened in 1883 and, after two other locations on E. Main, moved to its current one on Callender Street in 1914. Despite finding everything from pencil erasers to cigars to girly magazines, we walked out with only the enjoyment of having briefly stepped back in time in this old establishment, one that uses a 1920s cash register, has no computer and doesn't take credit cards. Nice.
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| Depot Museum |
Next, we took in the stunning architecture of the
Northern Pacific Railroad Depot, now the Depot Museum. The Italianate structure, built in 1902, hosts not only the museum but also the Northern Pacific Beanery and several other small businesses. We strolled through the railroad displays
after chatting with the verbose and very friendly staff member who greeted us at the door. The exhibits highlight the Northern Pacific's many engines, train conductors, station managers and workers, as well as the booming of the town around the traffic brought by the railroads.
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| Edd Enders: 'Trains of Livingston' |
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| Northern Pacific Depot exhibit |
We toured the work of a local artist,
Edd Enders, whose bold and colorful exhibit titled 'Trains of Livingston' took up fully a quarter of the museum's space. Upstairs Ken and I found movie posters and memorabilia for all the films ever produced in Montana, many in the Livingston area. '
A River Runs Through It' was cited as a real boon to the state for its spiritual, almost mystical, portrayal of both Montana's natural beauty and the serene sport of fly fishing. '
The Horse Whisperer' was also filmed nearby, as well as a whole host of smaller budget, older and other lesser known movies.
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| Grouse |
As much as we enjoyed the town itself, we were all thoroughly impressed with the genuine hospitality of the folks we spoke with in Livingston. We returned to the RV for happy hour and dinner. Ken and Dad worked tirelessly on getting the coals started to grill the yummy salmon steaks we had left over from the fishing trip on the Kenai River in Soldotna, Alaska. After much work and several re-starts, the salmon was cooked and we ate a fine meal. Meanwhile, Mom and I noticed some silly grouses running around under the coach and through the campsites. We took their picture just before they ran off to safety under another RV. Ha!
After dinner, we watched the sun set beyond the farms to the west of the campground. The deep red of the sun glowed intensely against the black of the low mountains in the distance and cast orange and red lines across the sky. Wow...what a gorgeous sunset. With the sun gone, dinner over and the drinks emptied, Mom and Dad returned to the hotel and we turned in for the evening. What a fun day!
We drove through the historic downtown area of Livingston, which we had not seen the evening before in the dark when looking desperately for a place to have dinner. The downtown was a quaint group of old buildings still resembling the historic Livingston from the late 1880s. As the original entrance to Yellowstone National Park, the town hosted a Northern Pacific Railroad spur that brought tourists to the country's first park. Nowadays, Livingston is both a thriving arts community and a fly fishing mecca, with several art galleries and the Federation of Fly Fishers. We found it a very charming and warm little town of friendly folks.
On the recommendation of the visitor center guide, we dined at the Montana Rib and Chop House, a lively place with outstanding service and even better food. Three of us ordered steak salads and one chose the barbecue pork sandwich, everyone was impressed with the quality and prices of the entrees. Our pithy waiter, Reed, with a sly sense of humor, kept us entertained. We vowed to return.
After lunch, we stopped into a thrift store and bought a few things without which we couldn't go on living. While Dad waited patiently in the car, Mom, Ken and I also popped into Sax & Fryer, a downtown business with the distinction of being the town's oldest continuously operating shop. The Sax & Fryer, still a book and stationery store, opened in 1883 and, after two other locations on E. Main, moved to its current one on Callender Street in 1914. Despite finding everything from pencil erasers to cigars to girly magazines, we walked out with only the enjoyment of having briefly stepped back in time in this old establishment, one that uses a 1920s cash register, has no computer and doesn't take credit cards. Nice.
As much as we enjoyed the town itself, we were all thoroughly impressed with the genuine hospitality of the folks we spoke with in Livingston. We returned to the RV for happy hour and dinner. Ken and Dad worked tirelessly on getting the coals started to grill the yummy salmon steaks we had left over from the fishing trip on the Kenai River in Soldotna, Alaska. After much work and several re-starts, the salmon was cooked and we ate a fine meal. Meanwhile, Mom and I noticed some silly grouses running around under the coach and through the campsites. We took their picture just before they ran off to safety under another RV. Ha!
After dinner, we watched the sun set beyond the farms to the west of the campground. The deep red of the sun glowed intensely against the black of the low mountains in the distance and cast orange and red lines across the sky. Wow...what a gorgeous sunset. With the sun gone, dinner over and the drinks emptied, Mom and Dad returned to the hotel and we turned in for the evening. What a fun day!
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