Sunday - August 30
The alarm rang at 7 a.m., and we jumped out of bed to get ready for our upcoming trip. Jumped? Us? Don't think so! It's true the alarm rang at 7 a.m., but then it rang again a few minutes later after we hit the snooze button once . . . well, maybe twice. LOL Bruce rolled out first followed a couple of minutes later by Geri. Neither one of us had been able to sleep the night before. Excitement over our trip, you ask? Mmmmm . . . maybe, but it was just one of those nights. We all have them . . . when there are problems in the family . . . or the mind simply won't shut down . . . or we can't get comfortable . . . or who knows or cares? A sleepless night nonetheless. By the time Bruce finished loading the car, yes the car, we were both awake and ready for our adventure.
Now, you all know us. What do you think we did for breakfast that morning? It is a trip day after all! We've been counting points for a week and both lost about ten pounds. Yea for us! Whattayathink? Did we have something healthy for breakfast as we had been? Or did we give into our inner cravings and stop at Top Foods for a MAPLE BAR?! Of course! Sweets for breakfast and trips are synonymous in our lives! Top Foods near our home makes the best, bar none, maple bars we have ever tasted. Lots of frosting and fresh, fresh, fresh. So, a maple bar to go for Bruce and a tiger tail for Geri. In case you don't know what is a tiger tail, it's a maple bar with chocolate frosting drizzled over it. Ooooooo, YUM!
Breakfast in our hands and soon in our mouths, we departed our area about 9 a.m. Right on schedule! Our destination was a timeshare condo at Meadow Lake Golf and Ski Resort in Columbia Falls, Montana. Bruce thought it would take about seven hours. Geri thought closer to eight. As it turned out, it was closer to nine. That's okay. The car rocked and rolled across I-90 with 70s music playing on Sirius and two Oldtymrs singing along, dancing in our seats and having a wonderful time. Geri took the first shift at driving. Our car handles like a dream on smooth surface roads. The ride sucks if on anything less. It's an '04 Chrysler 300M Special that handles more like a sports car than a sedan and it's fun to drive.
We stopped at a couple of rest areas for the obvious reason but were totally surprised when we stopped at the one at Sprague lake. As Geri was walking back to the car after taking care of business, she heard someone calling her name. Me?, she thought. Naw, they had to be looking for another person with the same name. Again, she heard "Geri!" Ha! As Geri turned to see where the sound was coming from, she found Connie from Palm Creek calling to her. With outstretched arms, Connie came across the parking lot from their motorhome and hugs were exchanged. Connie's hubby, Jay, joined in the hug fest and laughter, and soon came their daughter, Carrie, to get her share. How fun! We spent several minutes chatting with them. Jay said he had thought the person walking to the restroom looked like Geri but wasn't sure until he saw the bald head coming out of the men's restroom. Then he was sure! Ha ha! They were headed for home, which is Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, from the Washington coast where they went to cool off. What do you suppose are the chances it would happen that we would meet them in the middle of nowhere? We talked about when we were leaving for Palm Creek and when we all expected to arrive. It's that time of the year, ya know. Snowbirds start thinking about migrating south for the winter to be with another flock of their favorite people. Hugs again as we said our "see yas" to these really nice people and all headed east toward our destinations. Such a fun encounter!
Our driver swap stop was west of Spokane, and Bruce took over the wheel. He always feels so much better when he's driving. He's funny. When we left home, it was foggy. On more than one occasion through the fog, he asked Geri if she had the headlights on. "Yes, dear" was the reply. Then there was "they mean it on the speed limit on these curves." and later "we have 182 miles of fuel left, and we can make it to that station where we always stop to pick up snacks." "Thanks, Honey" came the reply. Oh, and there was "the speed limit is back up to 70 just as an FYI." "Thanks, Babe," she calmly said. Other than those few comments, he quietly reached for the grab bar a couple of times or put his foot firmly down on the floor thinking Geri didn't notice. "Silly boy," she thought to herself. Girls can do anything!
We cruised into the condos about 7:15 or so and were happy to be there and looking forward to the next week. The staff was more than friendly and accommodating, and the hotel is beautiful. Can't wait to see the condo! We weren't disappointed. It was a townhome and one of the nicest we've stayed in. The resort is set amongst the towering Ponderosa pines of the Flathead valley. The golf course ambles throughout the property, and we were on the tenth tee. Blue sky and a lowering sun greeted us. Bruce was in hog heaven! This valley has to be one of our favorite places on this earth. Absolutely stunning! Sure wish we'd bought property here so many years ago when we first ventured to the area. That was on our motorcycle, so it has to be 1985? Think would it would be worth now! Well, not now but when the economy wasn't such a piece of work! Oh well, all things happen for a reason and we love where we live.
There's a nice little restaurant at the resort, and we checked out their cooking skills. Geri asked for a half-order of a seafood selection in a white wine something-or-the-other sauce over linguine noodles that was superb. Half was still left when she finished because the half-order request was declined. Whatta waste! However, it doesn't taste the same when re-warmed and no doggy bag was requested. Bruce had a Caesar salad and a cold beer that he really enjoyed. We dined overlooking a beautiful hole on the golf course with three ponds, a towering fountain in one of the ponds, colorful fragrant flowers, cart paths wandering through, a cute little bridge over one of the ponds, and the sounds of everyone having a great time as the sun set. A perfect ending to a great day.
After dinner, we booked a tee time for Tuesday morning and went back to the condo for a shower and sleep. And sleep we did!
Monday - August 31
First stop today was the grocery store. There's a nice one only a mile or so away. Convenient! We stocked up on what we'll need for grits over the next couple of days and returned to the condo for breakfast.
After breakfast, we drove up to a course called Glacier View at West Glacier. Bruce remembered the course from talking with Geri's dad long ago. Dad had enjoyed the course and explained that it wasn't a long course but was a fun little course. A tee time was made for Thursday about noon, and we headed back for the condo. In no rush, we took the road up to the Hungry Horse dam/reservoir.
The air was almost still at the dam. The 50+ mile lake behind the 534 foot walls was quiet with the sun gently dancing on the water and towering cliffs lining the lake on either side.
(Oops, gotta get the lens cleaned. Darn!) The dam/reservoir is located in the Jewel valley that is supposed to have 35 miles of hiking trails and 25 lakes. It is stunning! Steep canyon walls treed with Ponderosas and broad-leaf trees guide you along a winding, well-maintained road to the dam and beyond. We didn't go beyond. The dam was our reason for taking the road, and that's where we ended our drive. What struck us was how clear the water coming out of the dam and running down the river was. There was a beautiful greenish tinge to it, and you could see to the bottom of the water from the top of the dam.
Absolutely beautiful area. There aren't enough words to describe this part of Montana. It's incredible!
Back at Meadow Lake, our first stop was to the recreation center for their free WiFi. That isn't available in the condos. Bummer! The pool area is awesome for kids of all ages, and there's another pool inside the center. Look at all the fountains for the kids to run through. The three on the upper left can be turned and pointed in different directions. Somebody did some thinking here! And there's a kiddy pool (lower right) that's only 3-1/2 feet deep.
Golfers were doing their thing as we sat on our lanai and had lunch. Afterward, Bruce took his putter and did some practice on the green right outside the door. Then it was time to go to the driving range and get in more practice while Geri sat and worked on this trip report in the peace and quiet of the living room with the slider open and the ceiling fan gently blowing the cool afternoon air around. It's nice to have time to simply listen to your head rattle and do something you enjoy in the calm. Been a long time since we did trip reports. We'll see how our readers like this one and reload ones from our past excursions as time permits.
Tuesday - September 1
Bruce enjoyed his round on the golf course today. Well, he at least enjoyed the back half, which is when he finally was warm enough for sore muscles to limber up so he could do a decent job. We were teamed up with two young men from West Glacier, and those guys could flat hit the golf ball. Man! Talk about good golfers. They're seasonal workers who go wherever their hearts lead them. The highlight of Geri's day was seeing a Whitetail doe in very nice shape happily browsing away at one hole and a baby turtle crossing the cart path at another. Other than that, Meadow Lake golf course kicked her butt until the sixth hole when she put her club in the bag for the last time of the day. That course was way, way, way over her head! Thank goodness we only paid for her to play nine! Actually, the reason for golfing to Geri is to be out in the fresh air in a beautiful setting on a nice day with her best friend. The setting on the course was no disappointment. It's a long and gorgeous course. Mission accomplished.
As we were relaxing that afternoon, Bruce received a phone call from one of our desert buddies. Come to find out and totally coincidentally, Larry and Ann were taking off in the morning for the Flathead area to get away for a few days. Bruce told Larry that, even as we speak, we are a condo in Columbia Falls. How 'bout that?! Larry will give us a call when they're in the area to see if we can connect with them for dinner. Small world, huh? Connie and Jay, now Larry and Ann. What a coincidence.
Wednesday - September 2
Today was a day of pleasant surprises and fun. When we checked into the condo, Geri went through the material we received and found out about a a ride up the mountain in a gondola at Big Mountain. She brought that to Bruce's attention and he thought it sounded like fun. So, we headed this morning for Big Mountain to see what had changed since we were there last in May of 1993. Think anything's changed in 16 years? Boy oh boy, have things changed - in more ways than one!
Rather than eat breakfast at the condo, we thought we would get a real breakfast for Bruce along the way. Ya right! We didn't find a thing until we reached Big Mountain. The reason could be because we were lost, but hey! We took Hwy 2 and Hwy 40, pulled a Uey, got lost, found the right road again, drove past the turn to Big Mountain, pulled a Uey, and went back to the correct road to climb the hill. Ha! That car is a U-turning machine! Once at Big Mountain, we drove from one end to the other, pulled a Uey and went back. Not much open this time of the year, but Aunt B's was so that had to do. Geri had a BLT wrap. Ever had a BLT with a Mexican tortilla wrapped around it? Interesting taste. Bruce shared a little of Geri's wrap and had an Irish Creme breve. His favorite espresso drink. Those down, Geri went back to the car for her camera while Bruce walked over to the ride's ticket office to buy gondola tickets. This is so exciting! We climbed aboard and up we went.
Bruce was in total awe of the sights, and Geri was most excited to have him sitting in the car with her. The view on the way up was fantastic. If the valley weren't so obscured by smoke, or smog or whatever you want to call it, we could have seen Flathead lake. As it was, Whitefish lake was in full view and was stunning. The trees, flowers, fresh air of the forest, people laughing and having a great time on the ride up or down, hikers, mountain bikers, berry pickers, dogs happily escorting their owners up the hill, and the whole trip was a delight!
The height at the summit was 6,817 feet, and we wandered around for almost an hour taking in the sights, smells, sounds and treasures in the Visitors' Center. The only downer in the VC was a wolf cape. Montana started a legal, tagged wolf hunt on Monday. That makes us sad. Why do humans bring the wolves back and then decide there are too many and decide to shoot these beautiful animals? It's beyond us. If truth be known, wolves don't do as much damage as the ranchers want us to believe. Just generally pisses Geri off! Anyway . . .
We thought about our son and how much he would enjoy skiing this area. Another lift takes skiers farther back where there are still more slopes. The mountains you see in the far background on a hazy day are at Glacier.
There were views of Glacier National Park and surrounding mountains, the city of Kalispell, the lakes and all of Mother Nature was putting on a show. A bucket of water sat outside the VC for dogs to drink. Not sure I would want my dog drinking out of the same bucket as all the other dogs. That might be a little unhealthy, but that's just my opinion.
We took an open chair down. Fun! The air seemed fresher, White Bark pines grew along the way, Huckleberry pickers were happily harvesting the delicious berries and lots of people were enjoying the mountain in their own way. Awesome!
We could see Whitefish lake and Tally lake on the right. A few boats were out on Whitefish having fun in the sun!
This picture was taken on our way down. "Today?," Bruce asked jokingly as Geri laughed while lining him up in the camera lens and playing with focus, etc. to record this history making event.
Upon reaching the bottom of the ride, we took a free lift down to another lodge and learned about a ride that looks like an absolute blast! It's called an Alpine slide. One sits in a little sled-type thing that has a brake and slides down the track, through a small tunnel and to the bottom. Then, they hitch a ride back up on the free lift. We watched as a couple took one of their children each and enjoyed the ride. Whatta hoot! Gotta do that one of these days.
There's also a zip line through the trees. We'll do that in a tropical setting when we find it. Right now, we had Huckleberry ice cream on our minds. We finished our cones and got back in a really hot, hot car for our way back down the mountain. A black car in hot sun leaves a lot to be desired. Never a black car again. Way fun afternoon! And it didn't end there.
We decided to take a shortcut back to the condo. According to the free map we picked up, there was a road that went straight to the condo. Ha! Straight?! Not even a little bit. The road curved and turned many times, and we questioned whether we were on the correct road more than once. We finally wound up on Tamarack road, which is the one Meadow Lake is on. Cool! But oops! This doesn't look right. We're making turns again that aren't on our little map. "Think we're on the right road?," Bruce asked. "Don't know," said Geri. "Let's go back to the last turn and then back to the sign I saw that said Half Moon road. There was another sign there," Geri instructed. U turn again and back we went. "Okay, we need to go back from where we came," Geri said, as Bruce got slightly upset saying, "We're lost again!" Ha! Slightly?! Geri laughed and said, "Relax and enjoy the scenery. We have a full tank, and we won't be lost all day anyway!" Bruce said, "We've seen this road three times!" Geri laughed, and off we went back on Tamarack. Come to find out, we were within a few yards of the condo when we turned back. Ha! Funny! Don't trust those free tourist maps. LOL Bruce felt a whole lot better when he saw the golf course. His whole demeanor changed!
The temp when we left the mountain was 73. It was 90+ when we arrived back at the condo. The good news is, it was much cooler in the condo and still 88 at 7 p.m. outside. As if things weren't already great, the moon . . .
and the sun put the icing on the cake for us.
Fantastic day full of fun!
Thursday - September 3
First order of business was a call to our son, and we sang happy birthday to him. That's a family tradition that started with Geri's parents. It's wonderful to hear the voice of someone you love singing to you on your birthday and letting you know you're important in their lives. Ron turned 45. Can't believe how time as flown by. When the laughter subsided, we gathered our faculties and proceeded with our day.
We were early for our tee time at Glacier View. Today's round was better for both of us than Tuesday's. GV has a slope of 99, is much shorter and less intimidating than Meadow Lake. Yea! Geri played the front nine holes this time and had a good time. Bruce had a nice game, as well, and has another game to add to report for his handicap. The setting is pretty at this little course. It's in pretty good condition, too. It took us about three hours to play, and we'll play it again if we're ever up this way.
The winds of change were blowing as we left the golf course. Leaves have started turning and falling, and there's a feeling of fall in the air. Even though it was still nice and warm (81 degrees at 5 p.m.), there's just that something that tells us fall is right around the corner. The sky went from blue to overcast to clouds forming, and what started out as a breeze about 2:30 turned into a full-blown wind within a very short period of time. Dust was blowing across the road on our way into Kalispell to find dinner and again on our way out. Where has the summer gone? Fall is a wonderful time of the year, and we're hoping for a pretty September and early October in our area this year. After that the weather in the Pacific Northwest goes downhill and we leave town.
On the way to and from the course, we noticed several places for kids of all ages to have fun. There's Big Sky Water Park with slides and other activities, and The Amazing Adventure Park with a maze, bumper boats, miniature golf and other fun things to do. Bear World is also in the same area where "your car is your cage" is the way it's advertised. Helicopters await paying customer for tours of Glacier and the surrounding area, and the whitewater rafters are eager to entertain tourists. These locations are north of Columbia Falls near Coram for anyone interested, and I know there's at least one person we know planning a trip next year. If you're into fishing and/or boating, there is an abundance of lakes and rivers. And, obviously since that's why we're here, there are several premier golf courses as well as fun little courses. Oh ya, and there's that park up the road called Glacier where hiking, biking and camping are enjoyed by many. No wonder we love to spend time here.
Friday and Saturday - September 4 and 5
Friday was a lazy day to give Bruce's back a break. He needs those every now and again, and we'd been pretty active since we arrived.
On Saturday, we spent the evening and dinner with friends from the desert, Ann and Larry. There was a restaurant we were looking forward to sharing with them in Lakeside. It's now called Fazooli's but was something else last time we were there. The new restaurant, Fazooli's, opened in May. The food is still very good, but it's Italian served family style. What that means is, their salads and entree's fed two to three or four to five people depending on your order. Even the pre-dinner salads are designed to feed at least two people and maybe three depending on appetites. Ann and Larry ordered a Caesar salad and Veal Parmigiana and took half of the veal home with them. Geri ordered the New York steak medallions with glaze and mushrooms and a side order of steamed veggies. Because we were leaving in the morning, Ann and Larry scored half of Geri's steak! Bruce ordered a chicken Caesar and polished it off himself, but he paid for his indulgence the next day. :-) The reason for explaining what we ordered is that family style in an Italian restaurant seems very strange. Great food but a different concept.
We said our "see yas" to our friends and went our separate ways for now. We'll see them again in November in the desert. All of us are looking forward to our annual migration and reunion with our buddies. More fun times coming up soon!
Sunday - September 6
Checkout time at the condo was 10 a.m., so we were up at 7:00, loaded and left about 9:00. Our exit took us through Glacier-Waterton National park. The weather had definitely turned fall like with heavy clouds and drizzle when we reached Glacier. Our favorite view of Lake McDonald was obscured.
As we drove through the park, the Weeping wall was and the Garden wall was lush as usual. We remembered a trip through the park on our motorcycle many years ago and talked about how the truck couldn't make it. We were glad we had the car. Clouds were lifting from the valleys as if they were magical, mystical apparitions. Pretty in their own way. The sun was trying desperately to make it through the clouds, and it succeeded for a few brief seconds before being once again covered. People were everywhere as we wound up the hill to the VC and down the other side. Though St. Mary lake was dulled by the clouds, we still enjoyed the views.
The line-up behind the entrance station at St. Mary had about ten vehicles in each line by the time we left that side of the park. Glad we got there early! There was one poor soul waiting in line with a motorhome without a toad. Hope he takes disappointment well. No vehicles longer than 21' or wider than 8' including mirrors is allowed.
Having not been to Many Glacier we paid that location a visit next. The road is in really bad shape, patched and gravel in several places. The wind was howling by the time we reached the hotel, so we decided not to spend much time there. We'll come back in a couple of years and wander around. Through our binocs, we did find one Mountain goat way up high on the hill near the hotel. We didn't bother taking the scope out because of the wind and cold. That's probably a beautiful place on a sunny day. The lake had the beautiful green of a glacier-fed lake. That color was dulled by the clouds overhead and only appeared every now again when the sun managed to peek through.
We called it a day south of Calgary at a Super 8. Very nice room with a king-size bed, two chairs with hassocks, mini-refer, microwave, desk and free WiFi. Pricey, yes ($141.45/night! at a Super 8?!). What really surprised us is, they wouldn't take American cash. Say what? We've not run into that before. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the trip goes. We brought cash to avoid the exchange charges our bank adds on to a transaction, which totally pisses Geri off! The clerk at the counter said they don't accept American cash because the exchange rate changes constantly, and most Canadian businesses don't. That's scary when our neighboring country won't accept our money! We'll see what happens from here. Side note: We ran into that problem nowhere else, and even with the charges by our bank, it saved us money to use our credit card.
Well, guess what? The restaurant right next door to the motel took our American money when we paid for dinner. And we remembered stopping along the way today where our money was accepted. The thing that hacks Geri off is they're giving us par for our money when the exchange rate is $1.0895 or something. That's almost ten cents on the dollar that we're losing. Argh! Shoulda gotten Canadian money before we came up here.
Monday - September 7
After a night in a motel, Geri asked Bruce if she had ever told him that she really prefers our trailer. He commented with a smile that he'd heard it a time or two. Our trailer is our first preference, timeshare is the second and motels/hotels are at the bottom. People are so inconsiderate! Because they're awake, they think it's okay to run up and down the halls and carry on like idiots! Ugh!
Had a nice, although windy, drive to Canmore this morning and checked into the motel about 12:30 p.m. We were totally amazed at the steady stream of RVs going from west to east between Canmore and Calgary. Wonder what was going on? It truly was a steady stream of mostly trailers with a motorhome or two thrown in. Cool! Bet they had a ball wherever they were. We have to start giving ours the shakedown when we get home in preparation for heading south. Yea!
Jose' and Jose' won't be here until sometime later, not sure when, so we took time to catch up on email and other pages of interest. There is absolutely no place like this on earth! The majestic granite mountains, green forests, blue sky and mountain air. Can't wait to go exploring tomorrow. As he stood looking out the window, Bruce called Geri over and said, "What do you see?" "Mountains, trees, Safeway, blue sky, what am I looking for?, she asked. He pointed to the tracks. Ha! We did it again! We're literally next to a freakin' railroad track! We have this knack. Good grief. Gotta start asking before booking - again. A train went by a little later. At least there's not a whistle or horn! Thank goodness. We can do this for two nights.
Our buddies called about 5:30 to let us know they were here, and we went to their room for hugs and a bit of cheer. It was so good to see them! We'll be hanging out with them tomorrow looking for bears and enjoying the Banff area. Yea! Out to dinner at the Grizzly Paw Brewery & Pub. Excellent cod and chips with their own micro breweries. Love it there! We would prefer to sit outside. It's quieter. It is flat loud inside and the clientele are much younger than we.
Tuesday - September 8
Up and at 'em about 7 a.m. to a red sunrise and a light dusting of snow on the mountain tops. Spectacular way to start the day.
We met J&J for breakfast at 8 a.m., and we were on the road by 9:00. Jos was our driver. That's a nice change. Usually Bruce is driving and doesn't get to see much of the countryside except the road in front of him. He was a passenger and enjoyed the sights. We spent the day in and around the town of Banff starting with a walk out to the Hoo Doos. Jose' loves the hoo doos and rightfully so. It is a special place, that's for sure. The glacial green of the water was outstanding, as were the rock formations.
Doesn't this look like something out of Harry Potter or one of those movies? "Deep in the forest lives the ogre who must be destroyed. But first we must cross the river and travel through the thick, dark forest. Climbing the peak will give us a better view of our target's location. Let's go boys!" That's actually the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel that we'll explore a little later.
The four adventurers at the hoo doos. We so thoroughly enjoy Jos and Jose'. What a pleasure and honor to spend a whole day with them.
The village of Banff is in such a magnificent setting! One is constantly in awe of the scenery and quaintness of the village. This picture was taken from the Bow river bridge, and that is Stoney Squaw? mountain with an elevation of 6,189 feet. Now keep in mind that Banff, itself, has an elevation of 4,540 feet. No problem for us flatlanders. Ha!
We left the town of Banff and drove out to Bow falls. Another lovely area.
Then we went up to the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Goodness! That place is massive! And elegant! And did I say huge?! We literally got lost trying to find the Castle Pantry for a cup of coffee. How do people find their rooms?! The views from the hotel were spectacular, as they all are in this valley.
This section of the compound is actually the convention center. What a convention center! Love the architecture and colors. Seems like something out of Austria.
This is a portion of the foyer of the hotel. Elegant beyond words. Jose' and Geri peaked into one of the guest rooms as it was being cleaned. It's bigger than our whole house!
Jos and Bruce were looking at a statue of and information about the creator of the Fairmont dynasty with a small section of the hotel as a backdrop. Stunning hotel!
The four of us next climbed into the Banff gondola for our trip to the top of Sulphur mountain for one outstanding view of the valley! The hotel is bottom center in this picture. Notice the golf course? Bruce did! LOL
This is looking down on the hotel from the gondola. Imagine how massive the site of this hotel must be.
We took in the view while we had lunch at the top of the gondola. Fabulous!
From there, we drove to Vermillion lakes where Jose' pointed out a Whitetail doe to us at the first lake. She has eagle eyes! That doe was well hidden in the trees. Later she was heard to bemoan the fact that there wasn't even a duck to be found on the other lakes. No bears or moose. Darn! Mt. Rundle, outside of Banff, is a fascination for us. Think of the forces of nature it took to create those huge mountains, so flat on one sight jagged, on top and yet sloping on the opposite sight.
We left those lake and drove to Johnston, Two Jack and Minnewonka lakes looking for those elusive critters. That's Jose's favorite place to look for bears around Banff. It was windy and colder than expected as we all climbed out of a nice warm car to get something to drink at the refreshment stand. Those coin flippers got it wrong again. At least it wasn't raining. We took heart in that.
We took Hwy 1A toward Lake Louise and turned around after stopping to enjoy the view at Castle mountain and Eisenhower peak shown on the right of the mountain. The attention getting factors in the Banff area are the sheer and jagged mountains so centralized in this part of the country.
We had dinner in Banff and were leaving town toward the hotel when Jose' spotted something. We all saw a few cars, but she with her eagle eyes spotted a bull elk causing a traffic jam on the road to Vermillion lakes. Jos pulled a u-turn and back we went to see. He wasn't a very happy camper, seemed stressed and getting ready for the rut. Still, people were out of their cars and way too close to an irritated bull. Finally, he expressed his displeasure by sticking his tongue out at us.
It was getting late in the day, and we were all wilting. Time for dinner at Banff and back to the hotel where our tour guides of the day enthusiastically showed us where they and their daughter and son-in-law live in the Netherlands. Along with this beautifully illustrated map of the Netherlands, they gave us a book of the Nederlands, a couple of beautiful placemats, some napkins with the true Delft blue designs on them, chocolate spritzes, and some Peijnenburg bread and butter that we're eager to get into. It smells heavenly! They're far too generous. Our only hope is that they visit us at our home someday so we can repay their many kindnesses.
About 7:15, two Oldtymrs were back in their room winding down from a very fun day and reflecting on how special Jos and Jose' are. We'll miss them and can't wait to see them again. We loaded our suitcases and readied to hit the road for home in the morning. Those two sure have a lot more energy than we do! Their schedule is amazing. Two days here, one day there, two days somewhere else, three days . . . and so it goes. No way could we keep up that pace for a month as they will.
Wednesday - September 9
It was 45 degrees and spitting rain as we left Canmore. Thank goodness we had better weather yesterday. All the rivers in the region were that glacier green that we love. Stunning against the backdrop of the mountains, trees and sky. We saw another Whitetail doe on our way and a sign that made us go hmmmm. It said, "Caution! Wolf on roadway. No stopping." Okay, so there's a wolf up ahead waving at people as they go by or happily trotting along begging for food? We don't think so! Sure enough, no wolf. Isn't that the way? Whenever one sees a sign that says deer or elk crossing, the animals didn't read the sign and they're nowhere in sight? Farther down the road, we saw a Caribou crossing sign. Wouldn't that be fun to see?!
It's been an excellent trip! We'll be getting the truck and trailer ready when we get home to go south for the winter in October. We can feel the desert calling us.
Thursday - September 10
In the mode of collecting stamps from the national parks and monuments, our route home took us over the North Cascades highway where we stopped at the Visitors' Center and collected a stamp from that park. Though we've been over that spectacular highway before, we hadn't stopped at the VC. This time we did!
Arriving safely at home, Geri thought about what a rut we're in as she drove down the hill to get burgers, fries and shakes from Frugal's. Good grief! Donuts on the way out of town and burgers when returning! Happens every time. Don't feel like cooking when we get back home, so down the hill to Frugal's. Good stuff and for $10.60, it's almost as cheap as cooking! That's our story, and we're sticking to it. LOL
After four nights in a motel, our own little home feels great! The sun was shining, the lake quiet and our own bed calling. We'll sleep like rocks tonight, and tomorrow morning we're digging into the bread and butter that Jos and Jose' gave us. We'll think about them with every bite. G'night all! Sleep tight!
The End
