For the 2nd year, our friends Carole & Phil have loaned us their family cabin on Flathead Lake. Last year, it was at the end of May, this time at the end of June and my 73rd birthday.
It was wonderful at the lake, though we didn’t have the superb weather I had last year and a month earlier. It was great, though. The first three days were t-shirt warm in the shade. Then we had four days of everything from sunbathing weather to wind and rain, then chilly overcast, a few hours of calm and clear—sunny or moonlit. Repeat. Part of the beauty of the place.
We were in bird heaven. The cabin is on stilts about 50’ above the shoreline on a steep. craggy hillside. With a huge deck. So the view of the lake is through fir trees, but from a higher than normal vantage. Linny recorded our full list, which I don’t have handy, but it was roughly: robins, sparrows, types of ducks we didn't know, many unknown types of gulls, two types of woodpeckers, ospreys fishing, eagles soaring, We had an excellent view with our binocs through the trees to the osprey nest with at least one chick being fed. The male caught a fish by the little boat dock, almost in front of my nose.
I got some editing and rewriting done. Linny drew and painted. We had a couple of short hikes, and when it got rainy we went to the Hockaday Museum in Kalispell, which is a happening place. The museum is small but well thought-out. Serious volunteers, it was clear. Strong, interesting exhibits on the permanent side and interesting specials.
Then we did my birthday dinner at a decent steak house after buying some supplies at the supermarket where we were walking behind a guy in the t-shirt of a rightwing militia. But back to the restaurant: it was calm enough to hold a conversation and the range of customers was fascinating. Sort of a Ringside for cowboys, but not cheap. The beef was as tasty as I’ve had in a long time? By staying overnight in Spokane coming and going, we had time to walk around and eat around.
We found an excellent, small Korean restaurant near Gonzaga. The next morning, a friend and former grad student introduced us to a breakfast and lunch counter that had a waiting room bigger than the serving area, and it was full. Plus the chicken fried steak was honestly exceptional. On the trip home to Portland, we ate at Queen of Sheba, an Ethiopian restaurant that kicked butt on the ones in Portland. It, too, wasn’t far from Gonzaga’s beautiful campus on the river, which we walked through (no—not the river; we walked through the campus). There were nutria along the river walk begging for food.
It’s a long drive, even split in two. It was smooth going up, but got hellish coming back. First weekend after most schools are out and the highways were jammed with giant RVs, which was bad enough when there were no problems, but were maddening to deal with when we hit the Columbia River Gorge at Umatilla and the winds were blowing raggedly east at 30-50 mph. The truckers were having trouble with it and the novices driving giant rigs were blundering dangerously along either going way too fast or way too slow. Things only loosened in downtown Portland. A drive that’s five hours with lunch and 2-piss stops was over eight.
It’s a long drive, even split in two. It was smooth going up, but got hellish coming back. First weekend after most schools are out and the highways were jammed with giant RVs, which was bad enough when there were no problems, but were maddening to deal with when we hit the Columbia River Gorge at Umatilla and the winds were blowing raggedly east at 30-50 mph. The truckers were having trouble with it and the novices driving giant rigs were blundering dangerously along either going way too fast or way too slow. Things only loosened in downtown Portland. A drive that’s five hours with lunch and 2-piss stops was over eight.
Here are a few photos from this trip; there are some of 2018 in Random Places, too. While the weather held soft and warm, we got an amazing early moonrise just before solstice. Then there's the tour boat out of Lakeside turning around in the small bay where we were. I included the garish house, which is even more so when I mention that this is literally one wing of a mansion that from directly above looks like a raptor in flight. Those shaped windows are feathers. The main entry between the wings in the bird's head.
Moonrise.
Tour boat
Passing by.
Across the bay.
Glacial.
Mostly east.
Mostly west.
The main cabin.
Linny at art.
Ditto.
A frequent visitor.
The Swan Range.
Mostly north from Angel Point.
She's heard us.
Day of big clouds.
