The Jalopy in the Red Lodge Woods

Jalopy: noun, meaning an old car in dilapidated condition.

While hiking above Red Lodge, I discovered an automobile in the middle of the woods.

Well, the remnants of one.

What struck me was the time period of the car.  This was from the 1920s or 30s, nearly a hundred years old.

The chassis is mostly there and some of the body.  The engine, seats and softer accessories are gone.  The muffler is still there.

There is another chassis next to the jalopy and at first I thought it was a trailer for a boat.  But why park car and trailer side to side?

There's not one car; there are two.

The first clue to the second car is the nearly intact gas tank.  No trailer has a gas tank.  The second clue is the engine mounts.

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So, what happened?

Did two bootleggers from the Prohibition era get stuck out here and had to walk out?  Did they take their booze with them, or is it hidden somewhere out there?  Maybe a couple families came for a picnic and couldn't drive out?  Your speculation is as good as mine.

To see these Jalopies in person:

There's some exercise involved, yet it is a wild historic encounter.

Drive through Red Lodge on the Beartooth Highway for only a few miles, past the campground with Bear in the name to the next campground on the right for the Greenough Lake trailhead.

At the Parkside Trail #103, hike past Greenough Lake at a quarter mile in and stay on the forested trail.

You will find a clearing in the trees with the trail cutting across it.  Just stay on the trail to reenter the forest.  The cars are about another half mile in.  And enjoy the close-by scenery while you are there.

I started this with vocabulary and will end with more.

Dilapidated: adjective, meaning in a state of disrepair or ruin as a result of age or neglect.