#6 - Cut Bank & Hingham

Monday, Aug. 20: It was finally starting to rain and clear the air of smoke as we rolled out of Whitefish. It was a welcome relief after weeks of hot dry weather. There was very little traffic over Marias Pass and we made good time. After stopping for lunch in East Glacier, we continued on to Cut Bank, which would be our base camp for three nights. We set up camp at a small RV park overlooking Cut Bank Creek. According to local history, Lewis and Clark camped at or very near this spot in 1804. It was very windy but we had a great view of the railroad trestle. We could watch trains and beautiful sunsets at the same time. On the down side, we had no internet access and marginal cell phone service. The computer age was slow to arrive in Cut Bank. However, we did find a Super 8 motel with Wi-Fi and were able to check our email in their parking lot.

Cut Bank Creek formations --- Riverview RV Park

Tuesday, Aug. 21: We took a day trip to the small town of Hingham, about 100 miles east of Cut Bank. Hingham is another significant place in Ron’s family history and he hadn’t been there in decades. The Kindschy family moved to Hingham from South Dakota around 1900, established a farm and raised 12 kids. One of the 6 daughters was Olivia, Ron’s grandmother on his mom’s side. All members of the Kindschy family eventually went their separate ways. The big old barn, pig pens, chicken coops, farm implements, windmill, and animals are all gone now and the driveway is knee high in dry prairie grass. But the old farmhouse still stands. It’s boarded up and probably beyond repair, but it’s still there and not yet eroded away by time and the elements. Ron was lucky to have experienced this house in the 1950s when it was full of activity, family life and good times. Now, it’s sad to see it standing alone and silent against the wind and amid the amber waves of Montana grain.

The old farm house --- Grain elevator along the Hi-line