Day 26 – Wallace, ID

We got up this morning to find that there was a gentle rain falling on our terrain, which kind of restricted the duration of our morning walk.  It was fun, anyway, to explore some ground that was new to me, with new sights and smells, and I took advantage of the situation to roam freely and check out everything that seemed interesting.  That’s a big part of the fun of travelling for me, getting to experience new places on our walks, and finding things that I haven’t encountered before.  I think that’s why Geri and Don like to travel, also.

One thing I didn’t mention yesterday was the arrival of some people next door to us, whose party included what’s called a Goldendoodle.  For those unfamiliar with this term, this is a dog whose parents included a Goldie and a Poodle.  I’ve heard that their most endearing attribute is that they are incapable of shedding their hair.  Well, I have to say that the dog I met yesterday was also friendly, apparently very intelligent, and well-mannered.  Seems to me the combination works out pretty well; I was impressed.

When everyone got their act together, we got into the truck and went into downtown Wallace again.  Our first stop was the old Northern Pacific Railroad station, which had been converted to a museum.  Needless to say, I had to stay in the truck, but I’m used to that.  Geri and Don stayed in the museum for quite a while, and I assumed that it must be pretty interesting.  When they came back to the truck, they told me about how the Government, when Highway I-90 was being constructed, wanted to tear down most of the town of Wallace to put the road through it.  Under the leadership of one guy, the town fought back, and took the Government to court.  It took years, but they won, and the highway was routed on an elevated platform just south of the town.  In fact, the highway structure runs right over the top of City Hall!  Don had an interesting story about how the Northern Pacific corporate symbol was copied from the Korean flag, which had attracted the attention of a Company Vice-President during the St. Louis World’s Fair.  I think they enjoyed the museum.

Northern Pacific Railroad Museum

Next, it was their lunch time (I had mine before we left the rig) and they wound up at a restaurant called the Red Light Garage.  They liked the food, particularly the huckleberry milkshake, but they also really enjoyed the décor of the place, which they could only describe as “totally nuts”.  I think they’ve got a couple of pics of the place.

Geri and a giant Mingo

Customer waiting/bathing area

Don loving up a big chick

Their next visit was to a place called the Oasis Bordello Museum, which they explained to me was an entertainment venue for the men who worked in the local mines.  They took part in a tour of the place, and the tour guide provided them with many details of how the miners were entertained in the establishment, which closed suddenly back in 1988.  Don was particularly interested in the work process scheduling aspects of the operation, probably as a result of an earlier incarnation as a Industrial Engineer, and was fascinated by the quantity of completed work functions performed by each entertainment operator on a daily basis.  Geri liked the décor of the place.  The establishment had been closed down so rapidly that many of the entertainers personal belongings were left in place, and care had been taken so that the premises were just as they had left it.  Geri and Don were both quite impressed, for a variety of reasons.

Don caught in the act

Menu

At that point, they took pity on my incarceration in the truck and let me out to roam a little downtown park.  I was involved in determining the identity of some of the plant life, when I heard some incessant barking coming from a nearby truck.  I looked up and found that the noise was coming from a Border Collie, who was trapped in the back of a pickup parked nearby.  The Collie’s human showed up, appraised the situation, and released the Herding Machine from the truck.  She immediately ran up to check me out, determined that I was a dog and not a sheep, and trotted back to the truck, satisfied that she was not missing out on a job. 

Our next stop was the Museum of Mining in the downtown area, where Geri and Don got the entire story of the development of mining operations in the Wallace area, which produces not only great quantities of silver, but also lead, copper and other minerals.  They said that the museum contained lots of artifacts related to the history of the area, many of which were very interesting.  One was the stoplight that used to hang in the intersection of Highway 90 and one of the main streets of town.  As mentioned before, the fight over the routing of I-90 went on for a long time, and by the time it was over, the last stoplight on the highway was in Wallace.  They had a big ceremony when the bypass was completed and they took down the stoplight, put it in a casket, and had a funeral.

We then took a little ride up the highway to the town of Kellogg, just to see what it looked like.  It was another mining town, but lacking the historical appearance and content of Wallace, though it had some charming décor, see photo below.

Knight vs. Dragon

On the way back to the rig, we stopped at a monument dedicated to the miners who died in a mining catastrophe back in 1971.  We were shocked to learn that seventy-one men died in the accident; the memorial is very moving.  Though no dogs died, I was very sorry for the people and their families.

Monument to lost Miners

Back at the rig, Don cooked up some meatball soup for dinner, Geri did some laundry, and I supervised the operations.  I got some great plates out of the deal, and we all agreed that it was a fine day, though the weather could have been better.  We’re heading down I-90 again tomorrow; I’ll let you know where we wind up!  Buona Notte!