Glacier National Park July 7-9, 2010

We left Many Glacier campground early.  We took Rt 464 from Babb to Browning.  It was a much better choice.  The road was fairly straight with rolling hills, open and green to infinity.  We saw several deer along the way.

We traveled along the south boundary of the park via Rt 2 out of Browning.  Our destination was Apgar campground at West Glacier.  There was a long line at the entrance.  We wondered if we would be able to find a site at the campground.  It is summer season now.

Upon entering the campground we noticed the first site was unoccupied.  I turned right in.  The motorhome ahead of me passed it up.  A few minutes later he was back around wishing he had taken it.  He did manage to wedge his into a small site across the road from us.  When it is busy it is not a good time to be greedy with your site selection.  Vacant is good.  Take it.

The weather was much better this side of the park.  The air was warm, sun shining.  We took the bikes off the back of the MH for the first time in a while.  This is a good place for bike riding.  There are many bike trails.  Many parks have few and it is not worth the effort to take them off.  To our surprise, Darlie had two flat tires.  A neighbor came to the rescue with a battery operated pump.   It did the job quickly.  I will buy one of those as soon as we get to an auto parts store.

We cooked out on the grill then started a fire for the evening.  We sat outside until nearly 10:00 PM.  It was still daylight when we came in.  It isn’t dark until about 10:30 PM here.  It reminds us of Alaska in that respect.

The national park system is implementing a shuttle system throughout the park system.  Several of the parks we have visited have them.  It reduces traffic to the scenic points reducing congestion.  The system has just been implemented here in Glacier.  Here the shuttles are free and run on a regular schedule.  On our previous visit we rode the Red Bus Tour up over Going to the Sun highway.  (www.glacierparkinc.com)  Today we used the free shuttle.  They don’t stop at all the scenic overlooks so the Red Bus Tour is nice for a first time visitor.  They have convertible tops providing an unobstructed view of the mountains.

We got off at Logan Pass visitor center to play in the snow for a while.  There was still drifts over ten feet high.  Kids were snowboarding.  Others were having snowball fights.  Still others were hiking up the snow covered mountain to some distance attraction.

We saw a pair of big horn sheep, marmots and ground squirrels.  We sat and ate our lunch on top of some rocks in the midst of the snow field.  You could hear water running very swiftly under the snow.  Care must be taken where you step.  You might find yourself in the drink.  A freezing drink, that is.

We boarded another shuttle to travel down the other side of the pass towards St. Mary.  As usual, it was a spectacular view.  We saw deer, elk and some mountain goats on this segment.

My Florida friends would like some of this delivered right about now.

It was a fun day.  We met people from all over the country.  It was fun comparing RV notes with some and just learning about the lives of others and why they had come to Glacier.

Once back to our campground it was time to cook some chicken over the grill.  Darlie made some corn on the cob and zucchini squash.  We stuffed ourselves.  Why do things always taste so much better out in the woods.  Maybe that is why grizzle bears eat in the woods rather than McDonald’s.  We could learn a lot from bears.

As the sun set, we mounted our bicycles for a ride in to Apgar Village.  It is a busy tourist place with hotels, restaurants and of course, gift shops.  The bike trail circles through the woods as it winds along towards the village.  We had seen deer along the trail times past but tonight none showed themselves.  That didn’t mean they weren’t there.  

We rode along the lake front.  Lake McDonald was as smooth as glass.  There was a carpet of cotton from the cottonwood trees floating on top.  Fishing boats glided over the surface.  Kids laughed and played along the shoreline.  What a beautiful place.

Today, July 9th is laundry day again.  It has been two weeks.  We have a nice pile.  We have learned it takes no longer to do four loads than it does two loads at the laundromat.  We got the oil changed in the MH as it has been 8,000 miles since we left home.  We found a location with a laundry, oil change and RV wash all together.  There was the added benefit of a wifi connection too.

We just loaded everything back into the MH.  We will head back to Apgar for the night.  We may stay another night or move on.  We haven’t decided.  Our next adventure will be Yellowstone.  Glacier is very busy so we know Yellowstone will be a nightmare.  It may end up being just a drive through.  We have seen so much of this wonderful country that missing Old Faithful will not ruin the day.  There is much more than just the tourist sights.  Most of which is secluded, wild and peaceful.   I will take that over crowds and steam any day.

Glacier National Park July 5-6, 2010

We toyed with the idea of returning to Glacier for some time.  We had visited there in 2003 with our youngest son, Tony.  We flew to Missoula and rented an RV and spent a week touring the park.  We were fascinated with the park then.  It is an awesome place.  However, we have found few places in the past that we enjoyed as much the second time around.  We thought Glacier would fall into that category.

As we drove up Rt 287 and Rt 89, the Flathead Range was off to the west all the way.  It makes up what is Glacier NP.  Their snow capped peaks were wrapped in shrouds of clouds and mist.  It is very cold up here this year.   Unusually cold, according to locals.  The last time we were here we came at the same time of year.  We wore shorts and tee shirts.  We are bundled up today.   

We stopped in the little town of Choteau (Cho to) to look at a museum they had there.  It is a small frontier village dating back to the mid 1800s.  They had old covered wagons without the covers, buckboards, and even a horse drawn snowplow.  We spent an hour or so browsing around the exhibits.

To our east lie big sky country.  Vast open rolling hills of green that stretch into infinity.  

My mind wandered to thoughts of those first pioneers who crossed this land.  The sight of those mountains in the distance had to produce groans as well as doubts.  They appear to be an impassible barrier.

They also had to face one of the fiercest Indian tribes in the west, the mighty Blackfeet.

Known for their fierce defense of their territory, they were feared by neighboring tribes as well.  Today the Blackfeet, like so many other tribes. rely on income from a casino to help fund their lifestyle.  The casino was new since our last visit to the area.  From appearances, it seems to have helped the local economy.  There were subdivisions of new homes and other thriving businesses.

Early RV

Old covered wagon/new covered wagon.

Rt 89 out of Browning is not the best route to Babb, MT.  It twists and winds as it climbs into the mountains.  It is a long arduous drive in a motorhome.  Some of the area we passed through had suffered a very large forest fire since our last visit.  Some of the mountain vistas we had photographed on the last trip were less appealing this time.

We arrived at Many Glacier campground by mid-afternoon.   The place was packed with tent campers.   The campsites at Many are small.  Few will handle a rig as large as ours.  We were successful in wedging our way into a sight across from a creek which had a clear view of Mt. Gould.  We took it for two nights.

It was very cool and spitting rain.  We felt sorry for the tent campers.  They sat out around tables chatting completely ignoring the showers.  They are made of better metal than I.  I would have packed up and headed for a motel.

The front of the bread truck faced the mountain.  Our large windshield offered an excellent place to sit in comfort and scan the mountain for mountain goats.  As evening approached, several goats appeared on the slopes and ledges of the mountain.  Watching them leap from rock to rock on the shear cliff face is amazing.  They have no fear standing at the very edge of a drop off of hundreds of feet.  The slopes are greener than normal due to heavy spring rains.  The peaks still carry a very heavy snowpack, much more than on our previous visit.

Three young guys are camped in a tent next to us.  We visited with them for a few minutes as they were setting up their tent.  They slopped around barefoot.  One was in his sopping wet socks.  They have been hiking the park for several days.  They came here from Louisiana to escape the heat.  They have managed that okay.  I don’t know what they eat.  It is too wet to start a fire.  If we had some hot soup I would take it over to them.  Maybe we can fix them a hot breakfast.

Morning was cold and damp.  We watched the boys next door trying to cook some pancakes on a propane bottle fired contraption.  We decided to take them some hot food.  They devoured the food in no time.  

Darlie and I hiked the Swiftcurrent Trail.  We only went the first 1.5 miles of its 15 mile length.  There is a beautiful red rock falls at that point making it a nice spot for lunch and a turn around.  The trail was lined with wild flowers of all kinds.  We were a bit disappointed to have missed the bear grass bloom.  The blossom resembles a large vanilla ice cream cone.  Darlie took hundreds of flower photos.  We hit the peak for many of the wildflowers. 

At red rock falls we met a couple of guys who had been fishing below the falls where it drains into a large lake.  They had four nice brook trout in their creel.  They said it took only about eight cast to catch them.  That is my kind of fishing.

Red Rock Falls

Traffic on the trail was very heavy this morning.  Hikers of all ages were trotting along coming and going.  Many of them have cameras with lenses that are over a foot long.  I am not exaggerating.   I can’t imagine why anyone needs a lens that big unless they intend to photograph microbes.  I found it all a bit humorous.  

Beargrass Flowers

Both of us were worn out after our hike.  We were over four hours on the trail.  We crashed for the rest of the day when we got back in mid afternoon.

  

July 4th Walmart

Before we left Philipsburg, we had to visit the Sweet Shop.  It is an establishment that has been in business since the early 30’s.  The man who started it learned to make handmade chocolates as a boy working in a shop in Missoula.  He later went into business for himself.  He taught his children the candy making business and his grandchildren still run the store today.

This place is the capitol of the candy world.  There are so many hand made chocolates on display I couldn’t begin to describe them all to you.  They have a taffy pulling machine going and another that cuts and wraps it into little bit size pieces.  

They also make homemade fudge.  There were at least 35 flavors on display.  Try to make a selection from such a large selection.  It can be overwhelming.   We purchased some fudge, a box of hand made chocolates, jellybeans and taffy.  

We have been up in the air about where to go next.  We headed off down the road towards Helena.  We have been to Glacier NP before and thought going there again might not be as interesting.  

On our drive we passed whole hillsides with dead and dying conifers.  The mountains are brown.  People here are extremely worried about fire.  The whole state would go up like a tinderbox.  It would be impossible to control.  It is very sad to think this state, which is one of the most beautiful in the nation, will one day be nude of these majestic trees.  Brush and deciduous trees will take their place.  Some conifers may survive developing a natural resistance to the beetles.  I suppose in several generations the forests could return.  For my children and grandchildren it will be a different place.

Whole hillsides are dying from pine bark beetles.

It seems this nation, that was so blessed over two centuries, now faces more catastrophes in a decade than it faced in a century in the past.  Could it be that as a people we have turned our back on the God who founded and blessed this nation?  We scoff and mock Him and those who still serve Him.  We kicked Him out of our schools, communities and even many of our churches to pursue our own ways.  Could it be that God still desires to bless us but we want nothing to do with Him or His blessings.  That leaves us with what we see today.  

Montana highway art.  Notice dead trees in background.

We stopped at Walmart in Helena to pick up some things we needed.  The back of the parking lot is filled with motorhomes, campers and 5th wheels.  They have their slides out, jacks down and some are even having a picnic under a tree in one of the curbed areas.  I always have said I would never camp at Walmart.  But this presented an interesting situation.  I have the opportunity to observe the Walmart camper and see who he is.  I have joined the ranks for a night to spy on the rest.

There are some pretty pricey rigs in here.  One wonders if they are just too cheap to pay for a campsite or if they got shutout of their favorite campground over the holiday weekend.  We have not had a problem finding campsites, ever.  So I have to rule that out.

There are young families parked here.  I can understand a family trying to stretch their money by spending a night here while en route to Yellowstone.  We have a family from Alberta, Canada next to us.  They are an oriental couple with two kids.  They are very neat and orderly.  Since arriving they have been sweeping and cleaning their trailer.  They are very well dressed.  All their shoes are lined up outside by the door.  They don’t speak English.  

One guy is parked nearby who has a very old camper.  He painted the wheels white to make them look better but he never bothered to tape the tires off.  It is a real classy looking job.  When he opened his door, you could see he has painted the floor bright green and the walls are orange.  He looks like some of the typical Walmart shoppers you see in those emails on the internet.  He has on loafer like slippers, baggy sweat pants that hang down exposing his undershorts in the rear.  His shirt is too short to cover his big belly in front.  He has a shopping buggy sitting outside his door that he is using for a garbage pail.  It is half full of his crap.

Four people just rode in on Harleys.  They belong to two of the high priced rigs.  They have their motorcycles parked between them taking up a very large part of the parking area.  They are dressed in all the motorcycle gear you would need to ride in this cold climate.  None of it is cheap.  So I would have to classify them as “cheap”.

There is an assortment of other campers that are set up and parked for the night.  I have not seen any activity around them.  Either they are shopping, sleeping or out riding their motorcycles too. 

Someone just popped out of another of the pricey rigs.  The person has very long gray hair,  dressed in a sweat shirt, sweat pants of a different color, bare feet and flip flops.  It is impossible to tell if it is a male or female from here.  They have that unisex look.

A young couple with grandpa and kids with them just pulled in with a Dolphin Class A.  They have a car on a trailer in tow.  This place is getting so crowded they will have to unhook the car to be able to work their way into an open spot.  Nope, I am wrong.  They parked right across the traffic lane and popped out their slide out.  They are camped right there!  Unbelievable.   

My neighbors just came out of their trailer.  They are all dressed up.  They must be heading off to a restaurant for dinner.  They are a very nice looking family.  They will take their Toyota pickup to town.

Seagulls started whizzing around and squawking nearby.  The people in the Dolphin are feeding them out of the window.  I had some old bread, so what the heck.  We tossed some bread out and soon we had several gulls around our window.   There was an old cigarette package lying there near us.  Several birds pecked at it thinking it might be some bread.  Finally one flew off with it.  A few minutes later he returned with the package and deposited it right about where he found it.

Our neighbors returned.  I am disappointed to say they did their shopping at Safeway.  If you are going to stay at Walmart, shop at Walmart.  I know most Safeway stores have signs forbidding overnight stays.

The guy in the old RV has a wife.  She just made her appearance.  They are going out for a walk in the cool of the evening.  He took his nearly full cart of trash and pushed it up into one of the little curb areas and walked away.  The lazy bum couldn’t even take it to the trash can and unload it.  

This will definitely be my last overnight stay in a Walmart.  We get nice Forest Service campgrounds for $5.00.  Why stay here?  I had to see for myself.  My curiosity has been satisfied.  We did think of several things we forgot to get earlier.  That is normal for us.  At least tonight we can just pop into the store and pick up those extra things.  

Some weather is moving in this evening.  It is supposed to rain and get much colder tomorrow.  So far the weather here has been way below normal for this time of year.

It is too cold for my liking but Darlie is loving it.

Expenses for Week 8

Gas:  $346.74  Gallons:  114.2
Campgrounds:  $98.80
Groceries:  $110.91
Restaurants:  $124.15
Misc.:  $50.00
Total Expenses:  $730.60
Total Miles Traveled:  985

It is ten o'clock here and it is still daylight.  We are ready for bed so we have to cover our windows to keep out the light.

July 3, 2010 Sapphire Mines and Pine Bark Beetles.

Over night we had several small rain showers pass over us.  It was so cold out we thought we might awake to snow.  We are at 6,000 feet, so it was a possibility.

Yesterday I had meant to take Rt 43 at the top of Lost Trail Pass.  I whizzed right past it before I saw it.  There are few second chances out here with a large motorhome.  The road was right at the summit of the mountain.  We had already started our descent by the time I realized what I had done.

I was talking to a man at our last campground who has traveled the west all his life in a camper.  He said there isn't a paved road he hasn't been on.  He has also traveled a large number of the unpaved roads.  I asked him if he had gone over the Escalante air road on Rt 12 in Utah.  He lit right up.  He said it was the most frightening piece of highway he had ever been on.  Sitting high up in a MH gives you a vantage point you don't get from an automobile.

We shared our experiences on that little piece of highway.  He assured me I would not ever find anything anywhere out west to compare with the fright that stretch will give you.  I felt like the member of an exclusive club.  Both of us agreed, had we known what was there before we went up we would not have gone up to begin with.

I tapped his knowledge of the area.  He told me about Rt 43 in Montana.  Take it over the pass to Wisdom. Then continue on until you come to Rt 569.  It is a little narrow country road.  He said that route would be one of the most scenic anywhere out west.

This morning I decided to retrace my path back to the top of Lost Trail Pass.  It was only 15 miles back.
I would take Rt 43 as my friend had suggested.  As we climbed the pass, clouds hung low over the peaks.  Fresh fallen snow frosted the highest peaks.  It was very cold for July 3rd.

We made our turn at the summit and began the climb up to Chief Joseph Pass.  We crossed the summit at 7264 feet.  We began a slow descent along a small crystal clear brook.  It meandered through mountain meadows and marshy bogs.  This looked like the moose country my friend told us about.  As we drove along slowly, we scanned both sides of the road for a moose.  We saw two turkeys and two sandhill cranes but no moose.

As we came down off the mountain to the little village of Wisdom,  a valley stretched out for many miles in all directions.  Snow covered peaks bordered this expanse of green.  The sight was breathtaking.
It was like driving in the midst of a picture postcard.  We crept along, letting cars pass, not wanting this moment to pass too quickly.  We may never see this again.  We drank in the sights, sounds and smells like an intoxicating liquor.

A van zoomed past very fast waking both of us from this scenic slumber we were in.  The tag was from Vermont.  That is the very first east coaster we have seen out here anywhere.   They were in an awful hurry.  I guess they weren't captivated as we were with this beautiful place.

A river followed along our route as we left Wisdom.  We were told it was the Wise River.  I thought that sounded like a proverb.  A wise river runs out of wisdom.

Soon we reached Rt 569.  I turned on to it and stopped.  It was very narrow and rough.  Do we really want to go this way?  I reflected on my conversation with my friend.  I was certain it would be ok.  After all, he said there was no road like Escalante.  I conquered Escalante.   This will be a piece of cake.

Traffic was light.  We poked along drinking in the view.  Words fail me to describe what we saw.  It must be experienced.  We came to a scenic pull off in front of Mt Haggin.   It is in excess of 10,000 feet. Its snow capped peak revealed a fresh dusting of snow.

Soon someone else pulled in.  They were natives from LoLo up near Missoula.  He said this little road is one of the best kept secrets in the whole state of Montana.  Our conversation turned to the many red color trees on all the hillsides.  He said, with a very downcast look, "pine bark beetles".

Note all the dying trees.  Some areas are completely brown.

He said they are going to change the entire west.  They are killing every conifer they invade.  Some sections of northern Montana don't have a green tree left.  Fire is a real worry.  He said the beetles are marching across the west of Canada and the U.S..  My heart sank thinking of the majestic douglas firs, ponderosa pines, red cedars, redwoods and the sequoias we had seen.

He said the west will be changed for generations to come.  The whole look will change.  There is nothing that can stop it.  When it first broke out, many wanted to log off the areas that were infected thereby stopping the spread from tree to tree.  Environmentalist stopped the effort in its tracks.  The people here hold the Sierra Club personally responsible for the demise of the conifer in western North America.

I talked to several people in this area about the problem.  They all explained it the same way.  The trees are going to die.  Only one thing can stop them now.  According to foresters, it would take three weeks of sub -30 temperatures to kill off the beetle larvae.  To anyone's recollection that has never happened.

Free range cattle.  You hit it, you own it.

We heard there are sapphire mines around Philipsburg, MT.  Philipsburg has a very old mining history.  Gold, silver, magnesium, copper, and sapphires brought miners here in search of riches.  Only small amounts of precious metals were found.  Sapphires were in abundance.  Only one other area in the states has such an abundance of sapphires, North Carolina.

The old downtown if Philipsburg has been transformed into a series of gift shops, sapphire gem dealers and restaurants.   You can buy a bag of gem dirt that comes from the mines.  You wash it in screens like you would pan for gold.  Then you dump the stones onto a table and pick through each little stone to find a sapphire.  Unfortunately, all the big gems were removed before the sacks were filled.  What searchers find are little chips that look like chips of glass.  None of them would have any value.

We visited with a family who was sifting through sacks of dirt.  Dad is disabled and not able to do too many things.  Searching for sapphires with the family on the weekend is one of his favorite pastimes.
They showed us how they wash the dirt.  They then flip the screen over onto the table.  They said the sapphires are heavier than the stones so they settle to the bottom.  Flipping the screen leaves most of the sapphires on top.

We milled around town.  Ate dinner in a local restaurant.  I had buffalo meat.  Don't ask me why.  Darlie thought I was nuts.  She was right.  I will prepare for a belly bomb later.   We are camped at a very small RV park right next to main st.  It is cool.  Darlie has fallen asleep.  My stomach is gurgling.

July 2, 2010 Idaho to Montana

We lounged around for a long time this morning.  It was 9:30 AM before I got out of my PJs.  Darlie was out next to the river watching a mule deer doe browsing on young willow shoots along the shoreline. 

The deer seemed not to notice us only a few yards away on the opposite bank.   She was very thin.  Her ribs and hips were showing.  It must be the result of the long winter with little food.  She seemed to be famished.

Darlie shot dozens of photos of her.  Unfortunately she had to use my Nikon to take her photos.  Her camera had a dead battery.  She missed many photo opportunities today because hers  was on the charger all day.  My camera is slow to start up.  We have passed by an interesting shot before the lens opens.  The narrow mountain roads do not allow us to pull over anywhere we choose.

We finally got around to leave by 11:00 AM.  We had to make a stop at the dump station on our way out of the campground.  The parking lot next to the boat launch was busy.  The salmon fishing season opens tomorrow.  The length of the river will be jammed with fishermen.  It is a good time for us to get out of the area.

We passed by several very old log cabins with sod roofs.  Some of them were partially fallen in.  Others were in full bloom.  Years ago sod made a good roof material out here.  We could use something like that in Florida.  It would self heal after a hurricane.  But then again, we would probably have to mow it.

Northeastern Idaho remained semi desert all the way to the base of the Bitterroot Range.  We climbed Lost Trail Pass, so called as it was nearly the end of the trail for the Lewis and Clark expedition.  They had gone as far as their canoes could take them.  Had it not been for Sacajawea, the indian guide, who negotiated with the local tribes for horses and trail information, success of the venture would have been in grave jeopardy.

My 454 GM stump puller, as I like to call it, carried us up the mountain as fast as I cared to go.  People have told me that gas engines don’t have the power on long steep hills.  My stump puller will take me faster than I am capable of driving it.  It is the very sharp curves and switchbacks that hold you back.  Many of the curves have suggested maximum speeds of 20 mph.  In a MH make that more like 15 mph.  The high center of gravity causes you to heel over pretty good.  Pickups with campers will fly right by you.  They don’t have that center of gravity problem.   I bored you enough with this topic.....

As we topped the mountain at over 7000 feet, the highest pass since somewhere in Utah, both of us commented on how tired we felt.  We had only been driving for three hours.  In a short distance we came to a small USDA campground along the Bitterroot River.  We decided to stop early and rest.  

Bitterroot Range

Later it came to us why we were so tired.  The elevation.  It has been sometime since we were up this high.  We are short of breath again doing the simplest things.  After a day or so we get used to it.  We both decided to take a nap.  

Later we walked around the little park.  There are only a couple of other campers here with us.  The Bitterroot is crystal clear.  At our location very near its source, it is only a few feet across.  It has bull trout, brook trout  and cutthroat trout in it.  Several fishermen stopped by during the day to fish from the platform built along the river for fishing.  The little stream looks to small to me to have many fish in it.  But what do I know about mountain steams?  

It was sunny and warm when we arrived here.  Many mosquitoes were here to greet us, waiting patiently for their evening meal.  As the sun dropped lower in the sky, dark clouds moved in over the mountains.  The temperature dropped very quickly.  It felt like snow.  

We are comfortably snuggled down in our MH for the evening.  Darlie has the windows in the bedroom open so it is like an icebox in there.  That is how she likes it.  We won’t be able to come home until Florida cools off.  We could be a long time.  She is loving this cool weather.  I am afraid she will want to escape the Florida summers every year now.   What did I get myself into? 

July 1, 2010 Salmon River

Late yesterday we realized we had passed from the Pacific Time Zone to the Mountain Time Zone.  This is yet more evidence that our great adventure has passed the half way mark.  

This morning steam rose from the hot spring across the road.  Several cars are parked over there but I don’t think they are indulging in the hot spring.  It appears they spent the night there.  One thing I love about the west is that you can pull off the road at a wide spot and go to sleep if you want too.  No one chases you off.  Back east every pull off has numerous no parking signs.  Out here, if we don’t find a campsite, we can just pull off the road and go to sleep.  

Another major difference I see in the west is the domination of conifer trees.  There are very few to no deciduous trees on the mountainsides.  The mountains stay green all winter as opposed to the bleak look back east when all the leaves fall off.  One transplant bemoaned the fact that they don’t have any fall color out here like back east.  True.  But I don’t think winter would be so depressing if you look out and see green mountains instead of barren lifeless hillsides.

I love the northwest.  Had I grown up here, even though it is cold, I don’t think I would have left.  The sun shines most of the time once you get away from the coast.  I don’t think winter would be so depressing.  That is what I really hated about living in the northeast.  Winter was dark and cloudy for months at a time.  Everything was lifeless and dead.  Too many people strung along too few resources is another reason the east is unappealing to me.  The Great Smokey Mountains are beautiful in the summer but they are nearly as packed as Disney World over Christmas vacation.  Out here, it is easy to find s quiet secluded spot to call all your own for the day.  It can be done on the east coast but you will probably find a no parking or posted property sign when you get there.  Here much of the land is National Forest.  It is open to all to use and enjoy, not just a lucky few.

If it were possible, I would like to come out here to spend my summers.  We have found a few special places we would really like to return to.  They are not places you will find readily on a map.  They don’t have a horde of visitors each year.  Some of the most beautiful places in our country don’t have a National Park border spread around them.  I think many visitors out here streak past the best places to get to the tourist traps.  I am actually dreading Yellowstone.  I know what it will be before we get there,  Manhattan madness with bubbling mud and steam.  Call me cynical, if you like, that is how I see it. 

My lovely bride has just risen.  I will have to suspend my tale for a time.  

Some guys just pulled in and unloaded several tents.  They were eyeing our spot as they set tents up on neighboring sites.  I went out to get some drinks from the basement.  The older man came over to ask if we were staying there over the weekend.  He was delighted to hear we would be moving on this morning.  He has his whole family, which includes 20 grandkids, coming up for the weekend.  He was out putting tents on enough campsites for all of them.  That is something that is not normally allowed unless you occupy them continuously.  However, this campground only had two of us in it last night.  The host says it rarely has anyone in it so saving sites would be welcome in this case.

Two ravens were outside calling while I was taking my morning birdbath.  I told Darlie the one doing all the squawking sounded like it was a female hollering Frank.  Frank, you left your wet underwear on the bathroom floor again.  Frank, take out the garbage.  Frank, your feet smell.  I filled in the blanks for you.   Darlie said both of them were squawking but I didn’t witness it so I doubt her report.  It sure sounded like a female to me.

As we resumed our travel along the South Fork of the Payette River.  We passed several hot springs.  The canyon below narrowed creating very large rapids.  Darlie took at least three hundred rapid photos.  Rapids are rapids, for crying out loud.

Black volcanic rock jutted skyward from hills covered in green velvet.  The highway wound around the river, the canyon wall dropping away sharply.  The scenery is so beautiful you want to bring it all home with you.  Darlie is attempting to do that.  We had to reload fresh batteries in two cameras today.  Usually only one needs to be recharged.

The weather has been nothing less than spectacular.  Cool evenings with sunny warm days with a gentle breeze.  All along our route people have told us that we got there just at the right time.  “A week ago it was cold and rainy.”, they say.  We believe our steps are ordered of the Lord so why wouldn’t He lead us as the weather improves?

As we descended from the mountains, a broad green valley opened before us.  We found a nice place to pull over next to a meadow lined with lodge pole pines.  This would be our lunch camp.  

We walked down into the meadow.  The ground was soft and moist.  Splotches of yellow, lavender and white flowers accented the numerous shades of green.  There was an old woven wooden fence running around the meadow.  We stopped for a photo.  A couple of prairie dogs scampered around in the grass disappearing into their holes.

Our pleasant stroll changed to a made dash for the MH.  Tiny mosquitoes with huge hypodermic beaks attacked us like a hungry teen would his lunch.  It is amazing how something so small can put to flight something so large.  We ate our lunch from the safety of the MH while the pests buzzed around the screens.

While sitting in our lunch camp we noticed equal numbers of campers going in each direction on the highway.  All the campers we have seen have been from Idaho or Utah.  It reminds me of when we lived on the lake when we would get up in the morning and run our boat across the lake to fish on the other shore.  At the same time those on the other side were headed for my side to fish.  The grass always looks greener somewhere else.  The grass is greener here than at home but unless you have found contentment in your own heart you will never be satisfied anywhere.

As we resumed our travel along the green valley floor, snow covered peaks rose before us.  A sure sign we soon would be going up again.  We came to the small town of Stanley located on the banks of the Salmon River.  It is a tourist hub for rafters, hikers and campers of all stripe.  There was a small market there.  We were longing for some fresh fruit.  The prices were comparable to gold rush boom town prices.  We selected two bananas and an apple which will be eaten very slowly to get every dollars worth from them.

Sawtooth Mountains

This part of the Salmon river was traveled by Lewis and Clark.  Having been to Ft. Clatsop a short time ago, the expedition was fresh in our minds.  As I looked down the river I could imagine dugout canoes rounding the bend loaded with men and equipment.  Only a blip in eternity separates me from them.  They were courageous men.

A historical marker caught our attention so we pulled into the parking area to explore.  It was the Sunbeam Bathhouse built by the CCC during the depression.  The bathhouse collected water from a very hot spring.  The 180 degree water was cycled through a pipe laid in the river to cool it enough for a bath.  Some built homes near the spring.  They collected the water in barrels under the floor to heat their houses.

The spring still runs hot and strong today.  It boils out of the ground steaming hot.  Darlie said, “Stick your finger in it and see how hot it is.”  I just gave her the “do I look that stupid” look.  She walked downstream a short way and stuck her hand in.  She pulled it right back out and said,  “That’s hot!”  No kidding.  Who would have thought.

We met a young couple there.  They were from Washington state.  I was visiting with them about their travels when I noticed Darlie up high on the hill on the other side of the road trying to take a picture of something.  She slipped on the steep slope and fell on her butt.  I told the young couple I needed to go rescue my wife and took off up the hill.

After I had escorted her back to the highway we noticed the young couple had climbed into the back of their station wagon.  They soon emerged with swimming suits.  They descended to the river where there was a small pool at the point where the hot water enters the river.  They got in for a minute and got back out fairly quickly.  I don’t think the river water had mixed enough with the hot spring water.

We traveled on.  As we neared Challis the land became more arid.  Mountains were brown sparsely sagebrush covered lumps.  Some mountains were little more than giant piles of rocks.  The sides so steep rocks have cascaded down to form large rock piles at their bases.  Now I know where those expensive rocks come from that we buy by the pound in Florida.  Enterprising businessmen pile the nature cut rocks on large pallets, wrap them with plastic and ship them off for suckers that feel the need to own a rock.

As the day wore on, I began to wonder about our perfect campsite.  Each day the Lord has led us to a very special place.  Looking out the window that seemed impossible in this inhospitable environment.  I noticed the river down below us was lined with cottonwood trees, willows and other vegetation making it an oasis in the desert.

I told Darlie I wished we could find a nice camping spot along the river in the cottonwoods.  We rounded a curve and there before us was a Forest Service sign pointing the way down to the river to the Cottonwood Campground.  Tell me there isn’t a God in heaven.

Cooling her feet in the Salmon River in front of our MH.

The park is right on the banks of the river.  It is heavily shaded with lush vegetation and cottonwood, of course.  Our campsite sits right on the river bank.  The water is rushing by only feet in front of us.  Little puffs of cotton float down from the trees who are named for this springtime event.  Many species of birds fill the trees and bushes around us.  A deer came down to drink right across the river from us.  Yes, the Lord has once again led us to that very special place.