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Venice Beach, Meltdown & Vegas Baby

June 4, 2016 //
7

My life changed forever the minute my son, Carl, disappeared and my then six year old daughter (Ava) told me she thought she was at fault for his disappearance and began talking of suicide. Fifteen years after his disappearance, my son came to me in a dream which lead me to find him. He had been murdered at the time of his disappearance by a Dispatcher for the Sheriff’s Department who investigated the murder! Ava’s suicidal tendencies became more frequent…especially after we found out what had happened to Carl.

Ava was successful in her final attempt, as promised, after her estranged husband told her he had a girlfriend and, even after her pleas for him to help her through the transition and warnings that she was suicidal, he chose to ignore the warnings from me and others.

The night Ava died, I was with my mother in the emergency room with my mom…she was dying…too. I was always the closest one to her (and her to me) so I was the only one to take care of both of them. Ava was 2500 miles away. Mom was 100 miles away. I was awakened at 6:00 A.M. to my new horrible truth. Ava was dead. Mom was sick. I was alone in it all.

When I spoke with my therapist about how I felt, I was subsequently diagnosed with PTSD. Some of the symptoms were: I felt like I’d had a stroke and couldn’t remember words; I disassociated; I felt as if  my skin had been removed from my body; I couldn’t leave the house for any reason; and when I did, all I wanted to do was scream out, “DON’T YOU PEOPLE KNOW SHE’S DEAD?”

Montana became my lifeline. Literally. She and I are inseparable. She has traveled with me about 90,000 miles over her eight plus years and has been welcomed in hundreds of facilities since her Service Dog status. I’ve only had slight hick-ups but once told of her status, never refused.

I’m on this trip four years after Ava’s death in the hope that I can move another baby step forward with reconnecting with loved ones who live in the West and to see the places Ava and I had visited together as well as find new ones to hold dear with her in my heart. Plus, driving back roads has always been a healing exercise.

Why do I tell you all this? The groundwork for yesterday’s crescendo.

We went to Venice Beach. I hadn’t been there for at least eight years and I wouldn’t have gone had I known how nasty it had gotten. I wouldn’t have put myself, Montana nor my sweet daughter-by-another mother through it.

So many filthy, doped-up homeless people; crowds; confusion; more filth; a thousand bicycles & skateboards aggressively darting to and fro around us tormenting us all but especially Montana; coupled with great re-b0nding, understanding and love.

To end my visit in LA we decided to visit a middle eastern restaurant…Lebanese to be specific. We all walk in…my daugher-by-another mother, her husband, Montana and me. We were told at the door that they would not serve us because of Montana. I quickly corrected their mistake and a learned waiter seated us. The greeter called the owner (I knew that’s what she was doing) and approached us again as she spoke with the owner telling us  we were not welcome in their establishment even though they understood the ramifications of their actions.

When she told us to leave, I refused and said I wanted to speak directly with the owner at which point she handed me the phone. The woman on the other end of the line immediately started shouting in broken English that she did not have to abide by the laws of this country and other things I couldn’t understand. She rattled on incessantly not allowing me to speak and continued to speak.

The owner came to the restaurant and continued in this manner. I finally really lost it when she said, “This is California and I don’t have to let you stay here. I don’t have to abide by this law!”

I replied over her continued rant, “I don’t know what country you’re from but you’re living in the United States and California was made a state in 1850. This is a FEDERAL law you’re violating. I’ll be lodging a complaint which could result in a $10,000 fine against you.”

The owner’s parting words to me were, “You don’t have a disability! Get out!”

I was so shaken that I couldn’t eat. I was nauseous and horribly upset. All I wanted to do is be in my own home…3000 miles away. I knew this could happen because having PTSD is triggered by several very personal things. Could be loud noises, confusion, arguing, and many other triggers. Thank goodness I’d been proactive regarding the possibility of being confronted by this kind of stupidity and booked myself  to stay in a lovely and friendly AirBnB apartment by the PCH or else I wouldn’t have made it back before collapsing in tears for the whole remainder of the night.

It’s only now, over 24 hours after the fact that I can even write about it. I’m not proofing…just writing…puking, actually…the story because, for some reason, I’ve been chosen to TEACH people that just because you don’t SEE the mental imbalance, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist! DO YOU ALWAYS SEE CANCER? NO!

NONE OF AVA’S FRIENDS KNEW SHE WAS SUICIDAL SO DID THAT MAKE IT UNTRUE? IS SHE REALLY ALIVE SOMEWHERE? OR IS SHE DEAD?

If you want to help support our website avascorner.org  [Ava’s Corner, Inc., a non-profit public charity & 501(c)3] which I stared after Ava’s death to provide one-stop-shopping for education on mental imbalances and creative coping skills, please share this post so others will benefit from this horrific exercise I experienced. I never chose this path. Quite the reverse…I was chosen. But, if it were my choice…I’d chose to have my daughter back.

Email me if you want the name of the restaurant.

TODAY? I shared some of my story with my new friend…the lady who owned the AirBnB apartment where I stayed. Thanks for listening. You and my closest and dearest helped me get okay so I could drive to Vegas Baby today…swollen eyes, headache, broken heart and all.

These pictures are AFTER the LA cluster expressway nightmares and finally got on I-15 North. Temps from 87 all the way up to 113 degrees!

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The good news? I’m staying with another wonderful daughter-by-another mother! I’m safe with her. She made sure of it before I left by telling me she had my room all ready for me and Montana.

Now I can look forward to seeing more of Ava’s friends and my other Chirrens.

HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, life adventures, Mental Health, travel, United States

Los Angeles, California

June 1, 2016 //
0

I couldn’t get out of Fresno fast enough on Monday. The temperature there promised to hit triple digits and I just didn’t like the feel of the place at all. I’m funny that way with energy of people, places and things.

The first pictures are of my journey on back roads from Fresno to LA. I believe I saved myself hours of bumper-to-bumper traffic on the expressways and gained the experience of seeing the part of that journey I’d not seen before.

Strange how dry it is in California.

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The house on the hilltop must be the owner of this ranch. There were no neighbors…none. This is a little too isolated even for my taste!

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The mountains I’d just come over and the rear-view perspective from the rest stop at the bottom.

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YES! The Pacific Ocean…finally! Yippee!

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Now get a gander of this one!

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These last two days have been so FULL that I thought I’d lost a day. My computer is still on Eastern time so it registered all my photos taken as being dubbed “yesterday” which sent my poor ole brain spinning outta control thinking I’d lost a day! We’ve been doing so much in such a short amount of time I had a hard time sorting it all out. I immediately booked an extra night here in a frantic response to my confusion but that’s not a bad thang…it’s a good thang because I get more time with someone very precious to me.

Today, we went to one of my all-time favorite places to go to here in LA…the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine on PCH in Pacific Palisades. So amazingly peaceful, fulfilling and wonderful. It’s a must.

Where’s Montana? She’s meditating with the Begonias!

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I didn’t realize until today that banana trees have flowers very similar to the Bird of Paradise plant!

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Lake, pools and waterfalls add to the peaceful ambiance of this magnificent shrine.

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And the turtles are trained to come up to the dock when people walk out…obviously someone has been feeding the wildlife.

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I have always paraphrased this verse to be, “Be quiet and listen!” It’s still true…be still…

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Do you see the flower that appears to be growing out of the hole in the dead stump?

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The roses! My goodness…the magnificent roses!

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Doesn’t the base of this plant look like a snake? This split leaf philodendron must date back to the shrine’s inception…1920.

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My second favorite place AFTER the Shrine is to have lunch at The Moonshadow. It’s the only place I’ve ever seen that serves “tender barbequed octopus!” There ain’t nothing tender about octopus!

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The view from our table…

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Okay…so not her view but she was happy!

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Good night and HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, life adventures, travel, United States

Back Roads – Auburn to Fresno, CA

May 29, 2016 //
0

Today was our day to say adieu to good friends of many animal variety types but not goodbye! It was time to hit the back roads again headed south. I chose to take Hwy. 49 by Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks thinking I could go into one of them without spending my whole day.

However, the thoughts of crowds, bumper-to-bumper driving, noise, confusion and getting to Fresno after dark pushed me and my TomTom right past them. I’ll do them another time when I’m not in a hurry…not that I’m in a hurry on the back roads…I’m more in the mode to drive without all those things I mentioned above!

Hwy. 49 was a lovely scenery, curvy, mountainous road taking us in and out of these quaint little towns one could miss with the blink of an eye.

From prairie-lands

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to  prairie-lands with mountains

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To lush pastures full of livestock

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To no pastures at all

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To caves of trees covering the road!

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And flowering bushes close enough to touch!

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Then this!

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And back again!

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And into Angel Camp with clothes hanging across the road. What’s up with that?

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OH! It must be in celebration of the upcoming fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee!

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I’ve seen way too many lakes with horribly low water levels. Look for the old water marks on the banks of this one. Way too many in Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming, Montana and now California tell the story. The other thing I’ve noticed this time on these back roads are a great deal of strip mining. Way too much of it is going on…way more than you think!

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Tom and I had a disagreement about my taking this road…J59 (I think) but I’m sure glad I took it! This looked like silk blowing in the wind…for about 120 miles…in 97 degree heat!

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And this just before I got on the 99.

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Turns out that Fresno isn’t a safe place to be and that I got lucky when I picked the hotel where I’m staying tonight. The person at the front desk said that most of the hotels in Fresno don’t ask for ID or get your car tag number. Seems like every motel/hotel I’ve stayed in required that info. Glad I’m only here for one night!

I’m headed to LA for another respite and reunion! The good news is that I’ll be staying on the beach and I’m hoping don’t have to deal with the pollution too much. UGH!

HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, travel, United States

Animal Whisperer

May 28, 2016 //
2

We’ve had the distinct pleasure and challenge (we being me and Montana) to stay in the home of a dear friend and true animal whisperer. This New York City born and raised woman never had any pets or room for them. However, as an adult, she’s made up for lost time!

Montana and I have shared this unique environment of cats, dogs, horses, ducks and rabbits for about a week now and they all get along amazingly well. It’s the guests who are challenged! Montana loves kitties and is in a constant cat-atonic state! Her nose twitches just like a bunny’s nose trying to figure out all the smells bombarding all her senses.

As my BFF neighbor will affirm, Montana truly loves her bunny play time. The ones here are quite a bit bigger than the wild ones in my front yard but that doesn’t keep Montana from lusting after them.

This is the best I could do with getting a bunny picture! I’m surprised they let me even get this close because Montana was at my side! I have to keep Montana on a leash all the time because of the openness of the environment. As I carried my salad to my seat with one hand and Montana’s leash in the other, she bolted through the doggie door toward not only the rabbits but a cat! She’d obviously been paying attention to the dogs running in and out of the doggie door after the bunnies have been put to bed and saw her moment. UGH!

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A couple of years ago, my friend rescued a duckling. Of course she made it a pet and of course she got it a friend (as she did with all her foundlings). The male duck was supposed to be female but, as is true with many small animals, it’s not until they get older do you actually know exactly what you’ve gotten your hands on. So now there’s three!

The ducks are named Schnoooldz (mom), Dooodlz (dad) and Nooodlz (baby). Montana hasn’t really paid any attention to the ducks until today when Dooodlz flew off the handrail and did a nose dive into the mud. I had a close tether on her not knowing what she was going to do…or him either for that matter. Because he goes around hissing and flapping his wings all the time making sure everyone knows he’s the BOSS, my friend  aptly nicknamed him “rattlesnake!”

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Nooodlz is about two weeks old.

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My friend  has several names for each of her babies. She calls Schnooodlz  her “eagle” because she actually can fly. My friend has taught her to give “kisses” and to perch on her shoulder like an eagle! Who knew?

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Dooodlz…the rattlesnake.

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For dogs, she has them in three sizes: LARGE, Medium Large and small. Reno, a Bernese Mountain Dog, is “my” dog and weighs in at about 120 and is who I call Big Baby….because he is. He reminds me of my Newfie/Lab (Doobie) who passed in 2010.

The little scruffy dude next to him is Reign a/k/a The Enforcer.

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This is Brody a/k/a Three Legs. He always looks confused! LOL No other name needed as I can remember numbers!

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Then there’s the goat killer from the Caribbean she rescued while in medical school, Bella. Bella is the only dog to ever attacked the unsuspecting Montana so we were overly cautious when I first got here. Bella found a way out and charged Montana within seconds. Bella wanted to establish her pecking order to this new female!

Needless to say, I asserted MY pecking order and have continued my pack leader role by carrying around an empty water bottle that makes a very loud crackling sound when squeezed. If Bella even looks funny or if Montana even thinks about a cat or bunny I pull my water bottle from my holster and crackle away!

Bella’s a/k/a is Dingo Dog.

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This is the only cat I could catch a photo of. I’m so confused about all the official and unofficial names of her menagerie that I’ve come up with my own. This one reminds me of Ava’s black cat Vinnie. She’s very curious about us and opens the bathroom door in the middle of the night when you think you’re alone.

My friend also rescued a large white fat cat from the Caribbean whose a/k/a is Cab Cat, one I call “Patches” and one I only catch a glimpse of so I have no feel for it’s other name.

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The horses are Jessie (red on the right) and Moose. Moose is “my” horse because when I met him years ago, I told her she needed to get him because he was so sad. He’s not any more! He’s no longer confined to a tiny area without any contact. He’s a retired professional barrel racing horse and I found that out a few years back when I goosed him to go faster not knowing he’d run full bore toward the gate! WHOA!

Montana hasn’t been too interested in the horses until Moose got a little too close to me and she stood up and touched his nose establishing his boundary with me.

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This is Montana laughing at how easy it was for her to get that big dawg to back off! LOL

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My friend is not only a great animal whisperer but an awesome friend. She’s been there for me and Ava many times over the years and I’ve loved having this time with her in her new digs.

Tonight we’re going to eat steak. A big ole juicy one at Ruth’s Chris’s Steak House! I’ll let you know how that works out for me being able to get an early start in the morning!

HAPPY TAILS!

 

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Categories Baby Boomer, travel, United States

Historic Auburn, California

May 28, 2016 //
0

When I was in Auburn the other day (when I was not taking pictures), I noticed a Thai restaurant and decided then and there that I was going back to see if their coconut milk  soup was as good as the one at my favorite Thai restaurant in Las Vegas or Dunwoody (a northeastern burb of Atlanta). It’s called Royal Thai in downtown Auburn (as opposed to the historic area).

I ordered off the lunch combo menu and was not disappointed! The coconut soup (a separate item) and the Massaman Curry dish with chicken…both items my all time favorites…were better than both my other favorite places! I highly recommend going to check them out the next time you’re in this area.

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Then it was time to walk off some of that wonderful food so I drove to the historic area. It’s interesting when you realize that California didn’t become a state until after gold was discovered and that Congress “fast-tracked” it to becoming a state (learned that yesterday).

In perspective of the history of our country, I think of the 1600’s as old…not a pre-Civil War period! My ancestors came over about a hundred years before that which, from a European perspective, is still considered current history! However, it doesn’t take away the cuteness of this area’s western flair and mixture of people from every where.

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This is a HUGE concrete sculpture of the person who discovered gold in this area. When driving up/down St. Hwy 49 and you see him, turn toward him and you’ll be in the historic district.

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This has to be one of the oldest buildings in town called the Joss House. But, if you read the  Auburn plaque, you’ll see the number of times this town burned to the ground! That any buildings survived is pretty remarkable.

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The good news is that it wasn’t as busy as Grass Valley was so finding a parking place wasn’t too difficult.

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The weather here is surprisingly dry considering all the abundance of green vegetation and trees. It looks and feels a bit like where I live in the North Georgia mountains but without the humidity…and I’m not sure I’d like living in a green desert for very long! Use lots of lotion and drink plenty of water.

Tomorrow, I’m off to the back roads again headed south and then southwest.

HAPPY TAILS!

 

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Categories Baby Boomer, travel, United States

Auburn and Grass Valley, California

May 26, 2016 //
4

When I decided to come to Auburn, California, little did I know that this is the area where gold was first discovered in California and started the whole gold rush thing in the 1800’s!

When I went to the Auburn Visitor’s Center yesterday, I was given a wonderful history lesson on this very subject by an Auburn historical enthusiast who works at the Center. I highly recommend going there for some great detailed information!

Although I didn’t take any photos of the historic downtown Auburn, it was authentic and well preserved…more so than most…and they have a lovely walking tour of this area. I just wanted to get a feel of the area without the interruption of a camera lens.

However, today when I traveled to Grass Valley, California (a neighboring city) to visit the Empire Mine State Historic Park and the historic district of Grass Valley, I did take the Canon with me!

Empire Mine State Historic Park is beautifully maintained and rich in gold fever and mining history from its earliest California days. It’s also has luxurious gardens of roses, huge indigenous trees such as Douglas Fir, and Ponderosa Pine. The  well-preserved buildings make it seem like the workers have just gone home for the day and the owners are ready to sit down for dinner.

The docent was a retired structural engineer (of Cornish descent) with a pure love of the history of the mining operation and all related to it started by William Bourn. It was hard rock Cornish miners who came in the mid-1850s who provided the major muscle behind this operation. Hence the passion of the docent.

There were nineteen major buildings in this Park and some outstanding gardens and this man was well versed in all aspects of each and every process of this mining operation (closed in 1956). Below are but a few images of the many at this magnificent park.

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One of the many mine shafts.

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Looks like everyone just went home, doesn’t it?

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A taste Historic Grass Valley, California. I couldn’t believe how many gingerbread Victorian houses still remain in this area!

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Not sure if traffic is always complicated in this area but it certainly was today!

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Also to explore in this area is Summit Canyon at Donner Pass…one of the richest historical areas in this state. Surely you’ve heard of the story of the first wagon train (1844-46) to cross over Donner Pass, right? “They approached the Sierra after a grueling journey across the Nevada desert and along the Truckee River. As they climbed the pass, it was snowing as they came to a rock wall. They disassembled some of their wagons and hoisted the pieces up.”(seq. Donner Summit Historical Society brochure). If I remember correctly, there was a movie made about this infamous crossing.

Not sure what tomorrow will bring at this point, but I highly recommend eating at the Lumberjack Restaurant on the way to Grass Valley!

HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, travel, United States

Winnemucca, NV to Auburn, CA

May 23, 2016 //
4

Pretty much most Nevadans agree that if it weren’t for mining and gambling, Nevada would be an empty state…well that and legal prostitution! Yesterday, I stopped in the middle of nowhere Nevada to get gas and catch the I-80 and was promptly met by a local to tell me that there were two houses of ill repute behind the station. It was a truck stop (duh) and had only one hotel….hmmm. I was tired but decided that one hotel wasn’t for me! LOL I pushed my way on toward Winnemucca.

Who knew that Winnemucca had a great little place for breakfast? It’s called “The Griddle.” It’s a cute 1950’s diner feel with great food. Other than that, there’s just gambling! To be honest, they say there’s some mining done there too but I never could find out what they mined there!

Over the last seven years when I was traveling, I’d traveled most of Nevada but somehow  missed the northwest corner…until today. I’m so glad I had a chance to experience the wonderment of it from prairie lands, to salt flats, to sand flats, to painted rock, and, finally, to an oasis. Enjoy it with me!

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You, literally, can drive a hundred miles without seeing more than a handful of vehicles or an exit. However, I found two exits within my first hundred miles this morning that only had a single dilapidated building at the end of that ramp! One such exit was Jesup, NV.

How did I happen to notice these? I took off from Winnemucca without filling up with gas and there wasn’t so much of an “authorized vehicle” median turn out to go back or anything until I saw a glimmer in the distance which looked like it might be a truck stop of some sort. As I got off the I-80, there was a faded fifty year old wooden sign notifying the weary traveler, “Welcome to Puckerbrush!” As I was solely focused on getting gas and getting on up the road, I didn’t go back for that money shot! I’ll have to get a photo of it next time I’m up there!

This is that exit for Jesup. Look at the cloud patterns in the sky! Looks like airplane patterns but there were no airplanes…or trucks or cars, for that matter!

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Then there were sand flats on the left side of the highway…

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Followed by salt flats on the left side…

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Then both…

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And, all the while, prairie lands on the right side of the road.

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As the left side of the highway evolves into prairie, salt, sand and water!

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Ultimately becoming an oasis!

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And painted rocks on the right side…

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With prairie lands on the left!

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Until, it’s only prairie on both sides of the highway with mountains in the distance.

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And an oasis with running water on the left.

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The contrasts between states has never been more stark in comparison as it was between Nevada and  California when crossing the state line from Reno! BAM! Now it’s all GREEN! And SNOW!

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I didn’t see this much snow at 7000 feet in Glacier National Park! Heck, I didn’t see any snow at Glacier much more than a light dusting on the trees for about 50 feet!

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Although I prefer the back roads for my travel joy, I gotta say I-80 wasn’t bad at all. I’d so traverse this route again but West to East next time!

I’ll be in the same place for the next few days so I won’t have much to post but keep tuned in as I’ll be headed to LA next!

HAPPY TAILS!

 

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Categories Baby Boomer, life adventures, travel, United States

Idaho Falls, ID to Winnemucca, NV

May 22, 2016 //
2

I’m not sure if this blog is about the differences or the commonalities of Idaho and Nevada. Maybe it’s really both.

Southern Idaho is mostly agricultural, flat, lush green, has plenty of water, is easy on the eye with its rolling terrain, brilliant blue skies, lots of free range livestock ranging from cows, horses, sheep and goats. None of which northern Nevada can claim.

However, Southern Idaho interstates stretch for a hundred miles without even one pitstop, gas station or respite. Which, northern Nevada can be proud of out doing Idaho!

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Northern Nevada, on the other hand, is anything but agricultural and all the other things I’ve mentioned about southern Idaho above. It has amazing diversity in topographic anomalies; big skies (but not like Montana’s); interesting reflections of clouds on mountains (first photo…dark patches are shadows from the clouds on the sides of the mountain); isolated rain showers in the midst of bright, clear blue skies and happy puffy clouds; rapid, radical topographic changes; arid climate; outwardly rocky terrain;

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Rain on a sunny day! Check out the two photo sequence below in contrast with the photo above taken only a few miles and minutes before.

 

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Nevada’s rapid, radical topographic changes from above to the one below is downright psycho. It’s like the weather…wait five minutes and it’ll change!

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Tomorrow, I head across Nevada toward Reno and Auburn, California where Montana and I will take a much needed respite at a friend’s (sistah by another mother). I can only hope it’ll be a respite because she has a myriad of pets which all cause Montana hyperventilation! It’ll either help desensitize her to bunnies, birds, cats, horses, elephants, lions and tigers or not! I’ve got plenty of Xanax for her anxiety and Omeprazol for her stomach! Heck. Now that I think about it, I hope I have enough for me too! LOL

HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, life adventures, travel

Kalispell, MT to Idaho Falls, ID

May 21, 2016 //
2

As a postscript to the Tail of the Dragon Road from my first post, it turns out that experience prepared me for yesterday’s harrowing drive on Hwy. 49 trying to get to East Glacier! I was still scared out of my wits driving that horrible, poorly maintained road with drops in the pavement, broken pavement and some of the scariest curves combined with rain, snow, fog and fear…but I did it! Probably got more gray hair but I did it!

As for today, I didn’t know the focus was going to be clouds and light. I thought it was going to be back roads of Idaho toward Twin Falls from Missoula, MT. However, when I plugged in the back road route I wanted to take, TomTom said it would take me TWELVE hours to get there! Map in hand, I searched for an alternative to see what results I got that way. It turned out that the only viable route to get close to my original destination was to head back South on I-15 through Montana…the way I’d traveled a few days ago to get to Kalispell.

This experience of traversing the same road in the opposite direction was magnified today as I kept checking to make sure I was on the right road because it looked so different. It may have been my fascination with all the cloud formations.

As soon as I headed South on Hwy. 93 out of Kalispell, the first inkling of today’s focus came to light…so to speak. My sister and I were just discussing the critical relevance of light and how its affect on our perceptions of color. Think on that while you look below.

It was a 350 mile stretch of I-15 which started about 10:00AM and I stopped taking photos as I crossed the Idaho State line around 4:00 PM.

It’s probably hard for you to see but the “white” on top of the mountain range isn’t snow…it’s a cloud sitting firmly on top of the mountain!

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Then the dark clouds seem to magically break up and hug the mountains.

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Are the white areas behind the mountain clouds or snow?

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Left shows the clouds better sitting firmly on the mountains.

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The farther South we travel, the more interesting the sun light and the clouds get.

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Here the clouds are sitting firmly on top of this range as well.

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Now add snow to this range & rain clouds.

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And BRIGHT light coming through the clouds to the left.

 

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So many cloud changes in a 350 mile stretch of I-15 South in a relatively short period of time.

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Again brilliant light!

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This photo inspired me to paint again! The mixture of browns, greens, charcoal grays countered with bright whites of just the mountains would look great on a shirt!

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And the best part? This one!

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Tomorrow? I’m headed toward Auburn, CA via Utah and Nevada…two of my favorite states to drive through. I’m excited to see what the focus will be for tomorrow’s drive!

HAPPY TAILS!

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Categories Baby Boomer, Montana, travel

Kalispell to East Glacier

May 20, 2016 //
2

Today’s adventure ended up being about 250 miles round trip and only 180 pictures to cull! I’m surprised that I took that many because it was a dreary, rainy, low cloud, foggy day. But, as I’ve said, coming back gives a different perspective from going and the second trip from Kalispell toward West Glacier was just as exciting as yesterday’s!

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Logan Pass makes going from the West to East side of the Park extremely interesting and tricky as the roads are 1920 narrow with only short rock walls to keep you from going over the 6600+ foot precipice at the top of the Pass. There are other higher peaks but not ones you can drive. They have to be hiked.

At this time, the Pass is still closed and, frankly, after taking Hwy. 49 as a shortcut to Saint Mary East Glacier entrance, I’m glad. I was struggling with the fog, rain, hairpin curves, disappearing road, heights, drops and my vertigo to the point that I’m stiff as a board from the stress of that dang road but I DID IT! BTW, there are no pictures from this part of the trip! LOL

I called my BFF and told her what I’d experienced getting to the Visitor’s Center and how I was hoping the Going-To-The-Sun Road from the East entrance was as uncomplicated as the West was. And, other than the snow, rain, fog, curves, disappearing road, hairpin curves, heights and drops it wasn’t as challenging as Hwy. 49…but I was only twelve miles in. Believe me, the rest of that road will make a believer outta ya!

View near the East Glacier entrance (headed West).

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Saint Mary Lake

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Love me some rocks!

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And really BIG rocks that look like mountains with snow on the top but it’s really big rocks with glaciers on top overlooking Saint Mary Lake.

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Now this moment of wild flower love is dedicated to my mom. It was wild that I drove through snow and 34 degree temps with all the wild flower blooming going on.

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Now I’m headed back toward the East entrance (going East).

 

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And, as it happens in nature, there was a HUGE fire that took out a lot of trees but nature abhors a void and the new growth is coming back with a vengeance. Did you know there are a number of plants which rely on fire to release their seeds like the jack pine? (Thanks for teaching me that, Mom!)

This picture shows a magnificent waterfall (the white on the right) and the remnants of the glacier on the left. I think I took 15 shots to get this one pic.

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There’s more evidence of the fire on the East side than West.

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Personally, I love the fire remnants juxtaposed against the lush life of the green on the mountain looking over  the lake.

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Yeah, ROCKS!

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There’s a peek at the little rock wall built at the Park’s inception to prevent cars of the 21st century from dropping thousands of feet! LOL

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Next, I drove to Browning, MT in the Blackfoot Reservation where there’s a cool shop I’d visited before called the Blackfoot Trading Company. The ladies there were so nice. The recommended I have a quick bite here at the Junction Cafe. They have a killer hamburger on flatbread!

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Then home again, home again, jiggly jig! Now driving West on Hwy. 2 giving me a great view of the Flathead River you can’t grasp going East!

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Yeah, it’s all about the water and the rocks for me…even at The Southern Comfort Cabin!

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It’s off toward Auburn, California tomorrow as I’m expected there on Monday and it’s could be a bit of a drive (to say the least) considering the distance and the weather promised! Oh well. It’s the journey! All about the journey!

HAPPY TAILS!

 

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Categories Baby Boomer, life adventures, northwest, travel
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