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Saturday September 24
Great Falls, Montana to Edmonton, 810 km

The Hilton in Great Falls is a very nice hotel. There is a restaurant of sorts in the lobby; it is an unusual set up in that it is not a full restaurant but it is more than available at most hotels that offer ``free continental breakfast``, which is typically a choice of serve-yourself cold cereals, fruit and yogurt, and bread and a toaster. There is all of that but there is a counter behind which is a kitchen and there is actually somebody back there taking orders and cooking stuff. It would be a little more elaborate than an omelette chef at a breakfast buffet but not quite a full service restaurant. Our waitress, 22 years old, is the step-daughter of the owner. We call her over because we want to ask her if the cook came to work straight from the party, as that is how he appears. She tells us that her step mom is not too keen on that cook but that good help is hard to find.

She asks us if we need anything else and I tell her I need a bottle of champagne to take home. She explains that Dom Perignon is her favourite and her father has been putting one bottle away for her every year on her birthday since she was born. She also tells us that nothing could get her to work in the hospitality industry as a career, she is taking Physical Therapy at university, she is going open her own clinic, hire physical therapists to work there and spend eight months a year travelling.

I ask her to call her dad to find out where I can get champagne. She doesn`t seem that interested and claims he only buys wine when he is travelling. I figure it is going to be cheaper at a place that sells wine (like a drugstore) than at the duty free so the other waitress gives us complicated directions to get all over Great Falls to the place that might have champagne. I am thankful but it is impractical for us to be hauling the bike trailer all over the place on the off chance that a store would have what I am looking for. I end up buying it at duty free; initially, I see the price and think it is cheaper than at Superstore, which generally has the best pricing in the city. After I think about it, I figure it is probably about the same price. ``Duty free`` doesn`t mean cheaper, necessarily. Hard liquor is cheaper though, but we don`t really drink it.

At the border, it is quiet. We have to exit through a U.S. security check, and there is about five of them there and a black lab. They ask us the usual questions about where we have been, what we have been doing and do we have more than $10,000 in cash on us. We are chatting about the trip and Tom asks if they want to see inside the trailer; they are indifferent but I think they say ``o.k.`just to give them something to do. One guard is looking inside the cabinets in the trailer and she says, ``I got nuthin` ``. I tell her, `try not to sound so disappointed`.  I ask for a dog fix. The handler says no.

At the Canadian entry, we get asked the same questions; where have we been, what have we been doing, do we have more than $10,000 in cash and how much are we bringing back. I am not sure the border guard was awake at the time; he may have been talking in his sleep.

We stop at Timmy Ho`s for a coffee. There are more people working there (ten) than there are in the restaurant but it takes fifteen minutes to get a coffee, muffin and bagel.

We decide (sort of) to go through Vulcan and get our Star Trek fix. It is hokey, but quaint. The display is actually looking a little tired and could use some paint as the Enterprise is rusting a little and the display of characters is getting a little on the dilapidated side.

We stop in Nisku and wash the truck and trailer and then go straight to Les`s place to drop off his bike. Tom and I are surprised because Les looks pretty good. We had expected to see him in a sling, maybe little bandaid crosses on him somewhere but no, he is pretty mobile, no sling and has prepared a little snack for us. He talks about riding together again sometime and I suggest Thanksgiving weekend.

At home, it is 10 o`clock and NoNo has waited for me to have dinner. She has beef tenderloins and we drink the duty free champagne. Then fall asleep on the couch. We wake up at 2:30 and go to bed. In my absence, the dogs have grown accustomed to my place on the bed and it is crowded however, I am thankful to be under the covers.

I think this is supposed to be the Enterprise, but it should probably be called the ``Boobyprise``

You have to give Vulcan credit for creating their own cottage industry out of their name.

Recognize Captain Kirk here

Les, a true survivor, still smiling.

Here are a few more pictures of the trip. I tried not to duplicate others that I may have posted but no promises.

https://picasaweb.google.com/gator.legg27/MoreUtahOnMotorcycles?authkey=Gv1sRgCNTI6bDa0pbMqwE#

Thanks fror reading.

Howi