The longest swath of the Fourth of July trip that we’ll feature in one set of photos: about 800 miles covered in this burst. Continuing on US-212 across eastern Montana, to get to South Dakota, and then driving through the Black Hills at the time of day when they are the blackest. We then continue into Nebraska, and drive US-20 east all the way to Iowa.


Endless fields of yellow flowers are the most prominent feature of the eastern Montana landscape. All the way across the state on US-212, from I-90 eastward, featured miles upon miles of bright colors.


The Milky Way. A 90 second exposure.


Very early dawn in Nebraska. Above this house: a noctilucent cloud – one of the rarest kinds to see!


Slightly later dawn.


Nothing to see here, just a train carrying airplane fuselages.


A state-named I-90 sign which I managed to miss during my previous trip through here, in December, 2007. It’s in Laurel, about two blocks off the main drag.


Not particularly old signs, but definitely an old gantry. At one point, this mentioned US-10 for sure.


I do not know why this Montana 3 sign has an extra thick border. Also, why it does not point to 3 in any reasonably direct manner. It instead points to US-87. Since US-87 and MT-3 both connect Billings to Great Falls, it may very well be the cast that what is currently 87 was once 3.


Typical eastern Montana grasslands scene.


Close-up of the typical eastern Montana grasslands scene.


A different style of flower.


A strangely compelling era of Montana history comes to an end. I remember seeing, in 2005, an older-style US-47 shield here, and then was quite shocked when, in December 2007, I noted that they had replaced it with a shiny new … US-47 marker.

now, finally, state route 47 is correctly marked heading out of Hardin. a small part of us has died.


Infinite regression of purple flowers.


absurdly large dandelion. Seriously, it was about 4 inches in diameter.


This is the only example we found of a signed Indian Route. It uses the same route marker as the Montana state secondary highways – but a completely different range of numbers. The secondaries start around 270 or so.


US-212 in eastern Montana is the Warrior Trail.


This sign is neither embossed steel, nor cast iron. It is wood – and the parts not protected by black paint have weathered away over the last, oh let’s say 40 years.

in any case, the state of Montana wants you to know that if you want some heaps of dirt, you’ll just have to get your own.


We are now in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. And no – despite being 16×16 inches – these are not direct replacements for 16″ cutout US route markers. They’re just … oddly lame.


An original 1958-specification Business Loop 90 marker. It may very well be the only one in South Dakota.


An abysmally bad photo of the sunset. I took this one while discovering that a particular set of ramps on I-90 didn’t have anything to the north but the on- and off-ramps – so I was hastily beating a U-turn (probably quite illegally) before the cavalry came.


Lots of old signs to be found in the Black Hills. I need to return here sometime during the day. Perhaps in early October, to take photos of the leaves changing, and various other general-interest topics.


An oddly shaped 385.


A classic one, unfortunately hidden behind a pair of street blades. I’ll bet that, if I told you that it was in the town of Lead, that you could find exactly where.


Whoops, that’s supposed to be state route 87.


Nebraska. We drove through the night and we’re in about the middle of the state by dawn.


Foggy morning.


Another sunrise photo, through the fog and the trees.


Alas, not the original white town boundary sign.


An older Junction assembly. One can tell its age by the smaller numbers in the route markers – and, oh yeah, the general decrepitude.


What strange installations lurk in the fog?


Agricultural vehicle is agricultural.


An older faded sign.


There isn’t much button copy left in Nebraska. Most of it is here on the 129 freeway.


US-75 was moved from Iowa into Nebraska in the mid-1990s. Therefore, some signs needed to get patched.


One last set of flowers. This is in Iowa – where we will leave off for now. Next up: Missouri River flooding in Iowa, lightning storms in Kansas!