Aug 17, 2009 - A slight detour.....

//// Monday – August 17, 2009 A break down, a detour, and a very long day. We woke to a nice, clear day and prepared to leave camp. The first issue I faced was with the hydraulic system. I was not able to retract the supports or any of the slides. The pump would run but nothing else happened. This was the first time I've needed to extend the front supports to their limit. I was concerned that this may have caused a problem being that the ATF in the reservoir tank seemed to be lower than usual. I added a quart of ATF to the tank and, after...

Aug 13, 2009 - Leaving Kalispell,Mt

Yesterday we visited Hungry Horse Dam (looks like Hoover Dam)is the largest dam in MT and the 11th in US, Hungry Horse got it name as their was two miners that were lost and all they found were the two hungry horses and that is how they name that canyon! We visited Columbia Falls not much there. We had dinner at the kallispell Elks lodge which had a swiming pool, racketball courts and quite the dinner menu an a lunch menu every day! They had RV parking but we signed up here for the week which worked out good. It has been raining off and on...

Aug 11, 2009 - Day 11: Kalispell, Montana

The soundtrack of our day... Zane: Two pacibies? Gideon: No two pacibies. Zane: Appa juice? Gideon: No apple juice. Zane: Choo-choo? Gideon: No, Zane - no choo-choo. That's tractor. Zane: Two pacibies? Gideon: No two pacibies. Gideon (asking Jeremy): Apple juice? Zane: No appa juice. Two appa juice? Gideon: No, no two apple juice. Rinse and repeat.

Aug 10, 2009 - Whitefish, Mt

Whitefish is about 15 miles north of Kalispell. What a cute town. Small and lots of history with the railroad. Still has a active train station for amtrak. If we would have continued on the road we would have been in Canada (we forgot our passports!)You feel the influence of Canada here. Weather here has been nice.

Aug 10, 2009 - Day 10: Glacier National Park

It wasn't the easiest thing we've ever done or the most relaxing, but it was fun and it was worth it: we hiked the four mile round-trip to Avalanche Lake and back today, with a two-year old in tow - a two-year old who only allowed himself to be carried in the backpack carrier about two-thirds of the hike. The view of Avalanche Lake and the waterfalls cascading down the mountain backdrop was breathtaking and refreshing after the physical and mental strain of the hike up and the battle of wills that is a constant with a two-year-old on a...

Aug 10, 2009 - Glacier National Park

We left North Fork, Id at 8:30 am in a rush because all night it rained and thunder/lightning. We had about 4 hrs sleep. It is like sleeping a tin can. Traveled up 93 thru Missoula (hwy tru town so lots of backups!!!) and along Flathead lake, what a huge lake!!! Clouds were there but no more of heavy downpours! Somewhere prior to Flathead lake we got a flat on the new trailer!....Anyways made it to Kalispell, Mt and again main 93 is right thru the main city center and 7 stop ligthts and major back ups. We thought we would never get there....

Aug 9, 2009 - Day 9: Kalispell, Montana

Note to self: You are not trying to raise a perfectly behaved child. Despite the fact that Gideon is generally a sweet, gentle, fairly compliant kid, he is still a two-year old boy - he will spit, throw things when he shouldn't, and refuse to eat occasionally. It's OK when he has bad days. It's OK when you have bad days. You're not perfect either. All you can do is teach your son to survive in the world, to get along, to be mostly happy, and to cope on the (hopefully rare occasions) when he can't be happy. We enjoyed hanging around outside...

Aug 8, 2009 - Day 8: Butte, Montana to Kalispell, Montana

We made it Kalispell in time for lunch with Rachel, Luke and Zane. The drive up 141 and 83 was gorgeous and serene. Gideon has taken to looking after Zane quite quickly: he makes sure Zane is offered water when he is, he keeps Zane from playing with my camera or riding his tricycle too far down the driveway, and he announces happily to the rest of us that "Zane's awake" from his nap. It's been interesting to see what draws Gideon's attention and creates excitement for him during this trip. While Jeremy and I are looking for the new, the...

Jul 26, 2009 - Kalispell MT

On the way to Kalispell to spend a few days with the Caraway cousins, I stopped at Clyde Park, Glynn’s Grocery to visit with Brad. Now pay attention, Brad is Cathy’s sister, from Minnesota, who is a friend of Melissa and Charlotte. They have been encouraging me to stop in to visit with Brad. In addition to being a grocery store owner in a small, note the word small, town, he is a fisherman and house flipper, houses with land attached. On top of all that, he has a trout pond at his house and a drift boat, which equates to fly fishing the...

Jul 16, 2009 - Glacier National Park

First off... many apologies for the long delay between posts. We actually had one all ready 3 or 4 days ago, however just before we were ready to post, our Internet connection dropped!!! Remember.... save, save, save. Anyway, our week in the Glacier National Park area has been fantastic. Our campsite view is unbelievable. We are on the end of the row with an unobstructed view of the Flathead River with a row of mountains in the background. Each morning we get up and enjoy our coffee (and 50 degree weather) outside gazing at the river....

Jun 27, 2009 - On Way To Bellingham

Saturday morning June 27, We are ready to leave Kalispell,Mt. Driving to Bellingham, WA to be with friends Bob & Karen. These are friends of ours that did live in Tennesse, they retired and moved to Bellingham. Bellingham is a beautiful town on the water, close to the Canadian Border. The drive takes us back down Hwy 93 by Flathead Lake. Flathead Lake is the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi in the lower 48 states. The lake has 185 miles of shoreline. The lake is a beautiful lake with lots of sailboats on the water. We take...

Jun 22, 2009 - GOING TO CANADA

Today we will be driving to Canada. We will be staying 5 days & 4 nights. We will drive to Golden,BC and spend the night. Tuesday we will drive to Jasper,AB. Then down to Lake Louise & Banff. Thursday we will be driving to Cardston,AB. This will be our last night in Canada. Friday we will drive back to Kalispell and pick up the mortorhome. After talking with every one, we have decided this will be easier. We have heard so many stories about crossing into Canada with a motorhome. I will be off line until Friday, unless where we spend the...