Bozeman, Butte and Deer Lodge

Heading home today. First we went to the National Guard headquarters so GR could see the monument of a Gulf Wars soldier that I was commissioned to do 8 years ago. It's too back-lit in the morning for a good picture, but you can see his face in the main pic. We then took off for Butte to go thru the Mining Museum at Montana Tech and went down to Level 65 of the Orphan Girl Mine....that's 65 feet. At 100 feet, the toxic water of the mine is present with all manner of stuff that has floated up from 1,000 feet below. The natural geology of Butte makes it impossible to even drill a water well. All Butte water comes from surface streams and always has because of all the ores and metals present in the once very rich ground. A well drilled in 1880 would be as toxic as one drilled today. The pH of the water in the mines and in the pit is 2.8....just the same as that of a can of Coca Cola. Extra pix are the head-frame of the mine and GR taking notes down below.
Next is the old prison at Deer Lodge. GR has a pic on her blip, too. The old stone buildings are foreboding, but the theater offered a gentler glimpse into prison life.