Travel Adventure #13

Anther camping trip with Gail happened July 23-25.  This time we headed out the West Fork Rd, past Conner, MT, to Watchtower Creek campground.

Gail was sure there were great huckleberries across the creek and up the hill.  However, the bridge was out 3/4 mile up the trail.  She scooted across a log that had fallen over the creek, but it seemed a bit too dangerous for me.  

I instead tried going across some of the dryer looking rocks on the creek bed.  But alas, one slip and water flows freely into my new hiking boots. Ugh!  All my socks are soaked as well as my pant legs up to the knee.  

Fortunately I brought along extra clothes and shoes.  I found some paracord and put up a clothesline to get everything dried out by the next morning.

Some small birds were very interested in the fire pit, when there was no fire burning.  They pecked on stuff left in the ashes.  Even when there was a fire, they would come sit on the rocks around it for a short while.

Because there was no easy way to get up to the huckleberries on the trail by Watchtower Creek, we headed up to Nez Perce Pass. The huckleberries were bigger there than what I had found in the Bitterroot Valley in previous years.  We spent a great deal of time picking the berries.  I love this activity as it's quiet and encourages reflection on deeper things.  I can ponder the deeper things in life while I look for the largest berries on the bush with sunshine on my shoulders and peace in my soul!!

I don't want to forget to share the beauty of the sunrise and sunsets while we camped on the pass.

The Nez Perce Pass was such a great place for picking.  So I headed back up there on July 30th and picked all day. I had almost a gallon of huckleberries to clean when I got home. I think I'll try making some huckleberry jam this year.  

Travel Adventure #12

I headed to Bigfork, MT the following week to visit a good friend.  

The bridge across the Swan River had been replaced since my last trip there so we took a walk downtown, first admiring the upgrades to the old Bigfork Inn where I had worked for this same friend and her husband back in the early 70's.  We stopped at a few gifts shops along Main Street, admired the gorgeous flowers along the way, then headed down to check out the new bridge and take some photos.  

Rumor has it that the company who made the new bridge had sent the wrong one.  They offered a super deal to Bigfork if they would keep this one and Bigfork accepted the offer.  The previous bridge was all silver so many folks in town were very disappointed as this bridge evidently cannot be painted due to a special coating on the steel.

A great steak, corn and potato dish with friends was a special treat and I helped finish up the Flathead Lake puzzle that had been on my friend's dining table for a few months.

Travel Adventure #11

My summer adventures are happening a bit more often than I've been able to sit down to record them.  I'll try to catch up today.

On July 8th I camped with Gail at Meadow Creek out the East Fork Road, near Sula, MT.  

After cooking up a great breakfast we drove up to the Swift Creek trailhead where Gail had ridden with a horse group years ago. We hiked a few miles until it was getting a bit too steep for me, at which time we turned back.  There's certainly no shortage of timber in Montana!

We then headed to the Martin Creek Campground. We were the only ones in the campground when we arrived on Wednesday afternoon but by the time we left Friday the campground was full.

We had thunderstorms with heavy rain each afternoon and evening so some competitive Scrabble games kept us occupied in the camper.  This one was very frustrating as we somehow lost all access to the upper left section of the board.  

Travel Adventure #10

On June 25th, I met up with a friend trying out her new camper trailer.  We stayed one night in the parking lot at the trailhead of the Nez Perce / Nee-Me-Poo Trail, which is also part of the Lewis & Clark trail.   The trail got a bit too steep for me after a couple miles so I voted to turn back around.  I think we ended up hiking about 4.5 miles round trip, getting up high enough to see a great distance up the Bitterroot Valley.

We got out the camp stove, made dinner, and had a great time checking out all the features of her new camper trailer.  

My van is all set up as a self-contained camper and I've used it now for a few summers.  I keep fine-tuning things to work more efficiently but overall I'm very pleased with the setup.  Gail's camper was all new to her so she was eager to learn all the various features.  It was the trailer's maiden voyage and went well!

Bug spray, sunscreen and Scrabble are the necessities for a camping trip like this.  We had them all.  The Scrabble competition began.  She is a much better Scrabble player than I!

Camping always reminds me of the true joys of living.  It refreshes me greatly.  It's also a great joy to find someone else who loves the outdoors as much as I do!

Deeper Thoughts #5

On July 5^th, I was driving on Montana Highway 200 on my way to Thompson Falls for the Harlow Ranch Family Festival.   

I noticed a ton of traffic heading the other direction and very little traffic going in the direction I was. 

So is it a good or a bad sign when you encounter situations like this?

You could look at it either way.   You get the best driving experience with fewer people heading the same direction you are.  It’s certainly my preference.  You can slow down if there's something amazing to look at or make a sudden turn if you see a bright Estate Sale sign without upsetting drivers that are close behind you. 

But there could be some terrible disaster farther up the road that most others are trying to escape, and you are one of the few who hasn’t been listening to the news.  You are completely unaware of the trouble that awaits you.

Life is rather like this.   We cruise along and find a comfortable pace going in the direction we think is best.  But, like the person who has been working to climb the ladder of success only to realize at the end of life, that the ladder has been propped up against the wrong building, it wouldn’t hurt us to stop and analyze where we are going and why we are going there. 

Proverbs is a great book in the Bible, written by King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived.  Here’s a couple things he wrote: 

There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.  Proverbs 14:12

A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart.  Proverbs 21:2

How are we to know which is the right way to be going?  Ask God and He will answer.   I’ve found God always true to His promises!

This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”   Jeremiah 6:16