August 2002

Aug. 30, 2002: Provo, Utah. We traveled to Provo today, where we will spend the Labor Day Weekend with Chris' sister and her family, via the Grand Tetons. The weather was partly cloudy, but we had a nice view of the Tetons before the storms came in later in the afternoon. A long, but very pleasant drive via "the red roads" took us "the back way" to Provo. The mountains were spectacular today with here and there signs that Fall is coming. The heater was on this morning (about 40 degrees), but this afternoon we have the air conditioning on.

Aug. 28, 2002:Yellowstone National Park. Three days here of varied scenery and weather...storms, sun, geysers, animals, hot pools, etc. Photos tell it all...except for the bear whose video was taken, but no still photo.

Aug. 19, 2002: Glacier National Park, Montana. Leaving Mount St. Helens Aug. 5 we had no idea of which way to go for the first time in our travels...did we want to head to the OR or WA coast? North to Canada? East to the mountains? South? After sitting in a parking lot for a few moments, we made the decision to head to the OR coast, where we added another lighthouse to our list of those we've seen ( Cape Meares), visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory (great ice cream, too!) and added Cannon Beach to our list of favorite coastal towns. However, we soon felt it was time to head to the mountains and lakes, so after consulting the Weather Channel, we headed to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho where we spent a lovely couple of days sightseeing in that area. We found a wonderful gem of a campground north of Coeur d'Alene and east of Sandpoint where we were lucky to find a spot for a few more days on Lake Pend O'reille. What a great R & R it was! Chris played golf on an excellent course, I caught up on some projects and reading, and both of us enjoyed the artsy town of Sandpoint and a lake tour by boat. The night before we were due to leave to head to Glacier, our plans changed unexpectedly when a forest fire began about 5 pm only 1/2 mile away from us. It closed the road going one way from where we were, but there was an alternate route we found out about. So, with heavy smoke in the air we decided to break camp early and head out that night for Glacier rather than wait and see if we had to be evacuated later. We drove and drove, not finding anyplace to stop until we were in Polson, MT at the foot of Flathead Lake. Ah, a Walmart appeared...the friend to all RVers (they frequently allow you to overnight in their lots.) In the morning we were surprised to find we were overlooking Flathead Lake itself. It was a quick drive from there to Glacier, where we arrived in time to take the "Red Bus Tour" on the Going to the Sun Highway on a brilliantly clear day. The next day we hiked up the 3 mile trail (roundtrip) to Hidden Lake from the summit at Logan Pass. Lots of Mountain Goats! It's an unbelievably beautiful place to be...so much so that we are planning to stay here a bit longer instead of traveling on to Yellowstone...that can wait for another time.

Photos: Chris at Logan Pass in Glacier, Mountain Goats in Glacier, looking towards the Going to the Sun Highway (chiseled into the mountain in the distance just above the green trees), Chris filming at the Hidden Lake Overlook, Jan at Lake MacDonald in Glacier, Logan Pass Meadow.

Photo above is the panoramic view from Many Glacier Lodge on the east side of Glacier NP.

Aug. 5, 2002: Kelso, WA. A few moments to catch our breath after a whirlwind two weeks.

We spent July 24-30 at the Country Coach Rally in Eugene, OR which was a fun time...seminars from transmissions to quilting, wonderful entertainment that CC provided (winery dinner, musical, games, etc.), golf tourney (C's group came in third), and of course meeting old friends and making new ones.

The "New Coach Display" at the rally

After that we headed to Olympia, WA to visit with friends who showed us all over Olympia and Seattle...from The Museum of Flight where we caught the Blue Angels practicing, to the Miller Brewing Company (where we learned to properly pour beer...no, not down the side, but into the middle of the glass!).

(Photos: Blue Angels with the 1st Air Force One in the foreground, the Seattle Museum of Flight, and Chris at a flower display in Pikes Place Market.)

Mount St. Helens was near enough that we decided to try to see it yesterday, so we found an excellent RV park, unhooked, and took the Jeep up the 50-mile long road to the mountain. It was raining off and on, but once we were at the end of the road, the sky cleared for a few moments...long enough to see the Dome inside the crater and most of Mount St. Helens itself. The whole experience was awesome. Nothing can give you the same sense of what happened as being there. The timber companies have replanted 47 million trees, so the approach is beautiful. Once within the federal boundaries, though, they've allowed Nature to take its course, so the landscape is still bleak with all the scars of that horrific day. If you ever go, allow a full day for the experience. There are several Visitor's Centers, each with a different viewpoint, so it's important to see them all.

(Photos: the Dome in the crater of Mount St. Helens, the trees that were blown flat are now slowly being covered by encroaching vegetation, view of the mountain and crater.)