Exit 1: Beach

That's right, I'm in Beach. And no, there is no sunbathing on sandy shores here. Apparently this little town of about a thousand people in southwestern North Dakota is named for Captain Warren C. Beach of the U.S. Army's 11th Infantry, who lead an expedition of railroad surveyors through the area in 1880. The town of Beach is easy to find. It's at exit number 1 along I-94. It's very close to Montana, in other words.

Last Friday I headed west to this little town for my summer parish assignment at St. John the Baptist Church. Along the way, I pulled off at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park's Painted Canyon Scenic Overlook and rest area.

To my surprise, bison were grazing on the lawn of the visitor center/rest area. Some were even wandering around the parking lot.

This is the view from the scenic overlook.

Today I went out and walked around town. Here's a snapshot of the water tower.

This is St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, where I am living and working this summer.

One of the windows in the church.

A photo of the county's veterans memorial seems appropriate on this Memorial Day. The list of veterans seems long for such a small population.

Just east of Beach is the town of Sentinel Butte, pictured here beneath the towering butte from which it gets its name. I really wanted to get up to the top of the butte, but some traffic was blocking my way:

I'm not sure where these guys were going in their covered wagons, but they weren't moving very fast and they blocked the road. So I decided to try to get to the butte again some other time.

The towns around here and their church congregations have been extremely welcoming, and I think it's going to be a good summer out here.

-Jason