Queen City of the Rockies

We arrived at the Lincoln Road RV Park in Helena late this morning after a quick stop at Tim's Diesel Repair in Three Forks.  Luckily, our front wheel seal turned out not to be a problem and after a minor repair we were on our way to Helena.  We stopped at the Wheat Montana Bakery and bought cinnamon buns to celebrate! They had a sign in the front of the store that said, "We grow it, we sow it, and we dough it."  We looked across the street and saw the wheat growing in the field, they weren't kidding!


Helena, Montana is known as the "Queen City of the Rockies" and we have been treated like royalty here today.  As soon as we arrived we were invited to lunch by Jim's cousin Al and his wife Fran. We hadn't seen them in oh-so-long, and what a great time we had catching up.  We ate a delicious lunch while looking into their backyard garden. They have planted so many beautiful trees and flowers that it looked like a watercolor painting.

Fran had a list of things that she thought we might like to see and do while we are here in Helena and surprisingly, Kathe had made a similar list herself.  I  hope we get to do everything on that list in three days, but if we don't I guess we will just have to come back again.

The first thing on the list was the "Last Chance Tour Train" which we managed to accomplish this afternoon.  Helena was once named, Last Chance Gulch, because some tired old prospectors stumbled into a gulch and found gold in 1864, just before they were about to give up and return to home to Georgia.  It name was changed to Helena, but the Main Street where the gold was found is still called the "gulch."

The Last Chance Tour Train took us on an hour long trip through Helena's present and past.  We passed the Capitol Building, the Cathedral of St. Helena, and the Historical Society Museum, all places we hope to visit while we are here.  Our "Conductor" told us about the many millionaires who lived here in the early days and showed us the many beautiful Victorian mansions that still exist today.  We have a really good understanding of the history of Helena, I know we will have a great time here.