Wild West Tour Wrap-up

Smart Fortwo 2005 diesel

Total distance covered: 8918 km (5541 miles).

Fuel economy: 4.06 litres per 100 km ; 57.88 miles per US gallon; 69.51 miles per Imperial gallon.

Diesel was significantly cheaper in the United States where we paid an average of $4.679 USD per US gallon (range was $4.459 to $4.899 USD); the equivalent of $1.23 CDN per litre.
In Canada we paid an average of $1.43 CDN per litre (range was $1.359 to $1.499 CDN per litre); the equivalent of $5.37 USD per US gallon.

Accommodation: Best Value for Money
1. All Seasons Inn and Suites, White Sulphur Springs, Montana - per night $67.41
2. Select Inn, Bismarck, North Dakota - per night $60.89
3. Ramada, Albert Lea, Minnesota - per night $ 64.90
(Rates are in US dollars for two including taxes.)

Eats: Best Breakfast
Pollard Hotel, Red Lodge, Montana - excellent steak & eggs; hollandaise on Eggs Florentine; the place to go for upscale breakfast at reasonable prices if you're staying in Red Lodge

Best Lunch
Stone's Throw Cafe, Blairmore, Alberta - fresh, healthy ingredients; highly eco-friendly

Best Dinner
Zelo Restaurant, Minneapolis, Minnesota - exquisite downtown ambiance; fabulous fresh pasta and sauces

Best Coffee Stops
Crossroads Coffee House, Cross Plains, Wisconsin - free WiFi
Reggie's Cinema Barista, Historic State Theatre, Jackson, Minnesota
Seney's Drugstore and Soda Fountain, Buffalo, Wyoming - coffee 57¢ a cup
Snowy Mountain Coffee Company, Harlowton, Montana
Overflowing Cup, Kalispell, Montana

Best Event:
Fourth of July Parade, Cody, Wyoming
Medicine Hat Vintage Vehicles Car Club Show n Shine, Medicine Hat, Alberta

Best Attractions: Road Side
Jolly Green Giant, Blue Earth, Wisconsin
"Sandy" the Sandhill Crane, Steele, North Dakota
"Salem Sue" the Holstein, New Salem, North Dakota

Free Attractions
The Corn Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota
Saskatchewan Legislative Building, Regina, Saskatchewan
Mabel Tainter Memorial Theater, Menomonie, Wisconsin (buy guidebook for $1)
Harley-Davidson Factory Tour, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin

Paid Attractions
The Crowsnest Museum, Coleman, Alberta
Badlands National Park, Interior, South Dakota
Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Medora, North Dakota
Automotive Hall of Fame, Dearborn, Michigan

Neuschwanstein Moments © *
Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Keystone, South Dakota
Crazy Horse Memorial, Crazy Horse, South Dakota
The Tunnels, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan
Harley-Davidson Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

* Neuschwanstein Moments © = occur when you back out of paying admission for an attraction/event because you don't perceive it as good value for money and/or it's so crowded you know you won't enjoy it; we coined the phrase when we balked at the huge line-ups and high admission price at the Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany.