Oh No! A posting by Debbie Downer AKA Alice

Have had a bad 17 hours. Yesterday within 20 miles of the edge of Glacier Nation Park my car was hit by a minor rock slide. Fortunately it hit the already damaged passenger side of the car. I wouldn't want the beautiful lines of my car ruined on both sides! It beat up the front hub cap & destroyed my back left tire. My cell phone had no signal. However, a park ranger came along in 20 minutes. He radioed in the slide & said it would be about 2 hours before AAA could come & get me.

It was 8 p.m. when I arrived in Kalispell where I wanted to spend 2 nights. There were NO motel or hotel rooms available. I went to 8 of them in hopes of a cancellation. It was the Montana 200 race & the nearby towns were full too.

I started to drive to Missoula but after 21 miles turned back. The highway with my eyesight was just too dark. Jake & I slept in the car. He's never done this before but he decided to sleep on my head & I could hear his stomach digesting his dinner! After 5 hours I gave up trying to sleep & decided to head for Missoula.

When I turned my car on none of the gages worked (they did this a couple of weeks ago. I pounded the dashboard & I called Click & Clack on Car Talk but they didn't pick me & the gages started to work a couple of days later.)

I now have no spare tire but the ranger & AAA person said they thought Firestone will replace it due to natural road hazard. There's no Firestone on my route for several states & I don't want to double back.

My gages aren't working but the GPS that Sharon & Rod gave me gives a general indication of speed. I'm keeping track of my milage from city to city & filling up with gas every 300 miles.

Then as I entered Idaho this afternoon, I was trapped in a dust storm!

I'll catch up on my Montana blog tomorrow.