EagleMoon.net Journals

Journals: Week 17 (August 6-12, 2007)

[weeks 1-10] [weeks 11-20]

DAY 113: Monday, August 6, 2007 (Kenmore/Seattle, WA)

This morning Marci and I went for a stroll, while Jonathan attempted to catch up on pictures for this website. Marci (who is 71 years old, and no I don't think she would mind me announcing this, has more energy than Jonathan and me put together on our very best day!!) walked while I jogged around the neighborhood. At one point I asked Marci if I was jogging too fast for her, and she just giggled. She said, "No, but I could slow down and do this instead if you like" (and she proceeded to show me how she could slow down if she jogged at my pace). Marci is such a cracker jack! She is either making another batch of cookies, making blankets for her friend's grandchildren, watering her neighbor's flowers, visiting a sick friend, speed walking, riding her bike or doing something else. She stays up late, and gets up much earlier than I do in the morning. I hope I have energy like Marci when I am her age. What a great example she is to her children and grandchildren!!

When we got back, we had breakfast and got ready to head out to the Kenmore Post Office to finally mail out our wedding invitations!! We were so glad that we were able to accomplish this larger than life task while in the midst of our cross country road trip. Thankfully, we have some pretty awesome cousins out here who have been so very helpful- assembling invitations, letting us use their printer, and Marci, who basically let us turn her dining room into Wedding Invitation Central. With the invitations out, we have one more wedding item to cross off our to-do list. Hopefully this will allow us to focus our attention on our next stop- Glacier National Park in Montana, where we'll be heading after our stay in Seattle.

When we came back to the house, we had a really cool surprise. Marci's brother Lon, his wife, Camille, daughter, Julie and granddaughter, Morgan, all stopped over on their way from California to Alaska. We got to meet another extension of this huge and wonderful family. We rolled out the genogram Jonathan, Marci and I had created the other morning, and showed them where they fit into the big picture. They really liked this, and we spent some time chatting and figuring out how everyone is related. They couldn't stay long- just long enough to sample Marci's third batch of Snicker's cookies, and then they had to go. It was so great to meet them!

We had a nice quiet dinner tonight with Marci, who whipped up a fresh batch of delicious clam chowder! That Marci, she is too amazing. After dinner, I wrote down several of Marci's recipes, including: those wonderful Snicker's cookies, her reverse chocolate chip cookies, white bean chili, minestrone, home made kosher dill spicy pickles, and of course, the clam chowder. We are all set for good eats around here.

Jonathan continued his photo magic and it was a pretty early night for all of us. ~E

DAY 114: Tuesday, August 7, 2007 (Kenmore/Seattle, WA)

Today we spent the late morning/early afternoon getting our minivan up to snuff as we prepare for our journey eastward tomorrow. This meant taking it in for an oil change and an overall inspection of fluids, pressure, etc., etc., etc. Everything is in fine working order and, to Hyundai's credit, we have had minimal problems with the van. We spent the afternoon with Marci and she took on the role of tour-guide, taking us to downtown Seattle and the famous Pike Place Fish Market - you know, the one where they all call out in unison as they throw fish (ordered by customers) to each other. They even brought up a few volunteers to catch some fish and leave with a nice souvenir - a nice fish smell on their clothes! All in good fun. We walked around the rest of the market where things like flowers and fruit were from local farms and fresher than fresh - and not too expensive either. We rounded out our walk with a stop by the edge of the market, where you can see the water and downtown traffic. A three-piece band (playing big bass, guitar, and violin) called Slimpickins was playing some "Rags, Cajun, and Country Blues," and mighty well, I might add.

We got back to Marci's place in time for her to start packing for her two week trip to the east coast to visit with family, and for Elena and I to head on over to Tracy and Bob's home, as we were invited over for dessert. Little did we know they would have dinner prepared, and even enough for us. (Little did they know that we hadn't had dinner yet!) Dessert was, well, how shall I say this... delish!!! Think cheesecake. Now think banana split. Now think of combining the two into one of the best cheesecakes Elena and I have ever tasted. And it was especially terrific because it was homemade by Tracy herself, apparently a connoisseur of these types of desserts. Our compliments to her indeed! We made it back to Marci's place in time for her perform on her Singer, preparing a Red Sox blanket for another cousin back on the east coast. We then said goodbye to Marci and she was picked up by her friend who took her to the airport.

We now have the run of the place without our host, which she has graciously offered to us for as long as we like. Meeting Elena's cousins has been a real treat for me, as I know it has been for Elena to reconnect with them. They have been so welcoming to both of us, we want to thank them for everything they've done for us and with us. We hope we can repay your kindness in time. Despite the open invitation to stay here for a while, we plan on leaving tomorrow, heading west for Glacier National Park in Montana (though we might not make it all the way there tomorrow). Until then... ~J

DAY 115: Wednesday, August 8, 2007 (Kenmore/Seattle, WA)

Well, we had hoped that we would be leaving Marci's place today, especially since Marci's not here with us anymore. She left late last night to fly to CT for a family wedding. But she offered for us to stay at her place for as long as we need to. She also offered for us to take with us her delicious jarred peaches, pears and pickles (yum!!). We'll be finishing up the rest of our pictures and journals for the website, and then be heading out to Montana. I would like to just take this time to say a huge THANK YOU to Marci for her warmth, generosity, and most gracious hospitality while we visited. Thank you for all the home cooked meals, recipes, trips around town while we ran errands, help and encouragement with wedding plans, and for showing us all around Seattle and the surrounding towns. We had so much fun hanging out with you. Our visit to your home was one of the highlights of our trip, for sure!
And to the rest of the Seattle gang whom we visited, thank you so much for taking the time out of your surely busy summer to spend time with us ~ for helping us with wedding invitation making, trekking out to Mt. Rainier with us, and for making an exquisite banana split cheese cake (Tracy)!! We had a great time getting to know everyone, and we are so glad we made the trip to Seattle. Thanks for making us feel so welcome and so special! ~E

DAY 116: Thursday, August 9, 2007 (Wallace, ID)

Today we left the Seattle area. No really, we actually left today. Okay, so we did stop at a library to upload our website updates, and when that connection wasn't working too well, we stopped by the nearest Starbucks to finish the job. We intended to make it to Glacier National Park by this evening, but things don't always work out the way we plan 'em. A few hours before we were to cross the panhandle part of Idaho, we remembered that Elena's cousin, Dean, had mentioned he had a friend who recently opened a restaurant in Coeur d'Alene called Bardenay. Dean said he might call his friend, Mike, to let him know we might be stopping by the area. After a quick call to Dean and a subsequent call back from Dean, we were headed to Bardenay for dinner! The place is set in a beautiful recently developed area, next to a picturesque lake and fountain. Inside, it felt like a huge log cabin, and it was packed, inside and out. (This was a good sign!) Mike wasn't there when we got there, but we had a delicious dinner and dessert while we were there. By the time we were ready to leave, Mike was working in the back and, despite not being able to come out to meet us because of how busy it was, he graciously treated us to our meal. Thanks Mike, and thanks Dean!

By this time, it was getting late and we decided to find the cheapest motel we could find. We drove to a nearby town called Wallace, a quaint small town with a population of about 950. We ended up finding a pretty great rate at the Ryan Hotel in downtown Wallace, a hotel just as quaint as the town itself. We just caught the remaining sweet light from the sunset as it went down beyond the mountains that surround the town. Tomorrow, we'll be driving to and arriving at Glacier National Park for sure. Until then... ~J

DAY 117: Friday, August 10, 2007 (St. Mary, Mt)

Today was a pretty long travel day. But it started out with a bang. Jonathan and I had an early morning run around the beautiful downtown area of Wallace. This old fashioned downtown seems to be located in the middle of nowhere, but it is quite quaint, and made a great home for one night. We left the Ryan Hotel and headed around the corner to the Brooks Hotel for a hot breakfast before our long drive to Glacier National Park in Montana.

The drive was a really beautiful one which took us through the middle of some very beautiful evergreen-filled mountains. There were sparkling emerald green rivers around every bend, and a beautiful blue sky. Thankfully we had this amazing scenery around us, or this drive would have really been tough. We also had an Ipod full of Wayne Dyer seminars to listen to. He is so cool! If you've never heard of him, we highly recommend him. He's a very inspirational guy. We listened to him for hours while we made our way almost to Canada!

Around 5:30 we finally made it to the KOA in St. Mary, Montana (on the east side of Glacier National Park). We set up our camping gear (it's been quite a while since we've slept in a tent- thanks to Marci), and cooked a hot dinner. We also dined on Marci's spicy pickles. Pretty tired from our long drive, we read for a bit inside the tent and fell asleep when the sun did. Tomorrow we plan to go exploring around Glacier National Park. This is a beautiful spot, full of glacier melt lakes and rivers, amazing mountains (you should see the view from our campsite!!), beautiful pines and so much wildlife (ospreys, woodpeckers, flowers, deer, elk, moose, mountain lions, bears, mountain goats, big horned sheep, etc.). I really hope we see something amazing on our journey tomorrow. I'm hoping for a bear!! ~E

DAY 118: Saturday, August 11, 2007 (St. Mary, MT)

(Before I start on today, we forgot to mention something about our time in Crater Lake. When we first got there, we met a very nice family who were on their way out the day after we arrived. Ed and Jane, who hailed from New Jersey, were on a 6-week (I think) cross-country trip with their four kids (who ranged, it seemed, from almost-teen to full-fledged teen). They were kind enough to loan us a couple of there buckets in which to do our dishes. They also gave us some recommendations as we head to Yellowstone and South Dakota, and we gave them some recommendations about Bryce Canyon and Zion, which is where they would be heading soon. If they happen to be checking in on our website, please let us know how the rest of your travels went. Well, we hope!)

On to today! After a morning jog around the campsite (my second day at giving jogging a shot again!), we cooled off in the pool, then headed off to explore Glacier National Park. A quick stop at the visitor center gave us some good tips for the area, and they also had a 15-minute movie of the area. We opted to drive the 50-mile scenic drive along the Going To The Sun Road, which goes from St. Mary to West Glacier, stopping along the way at the various overlooks to take time out to enjoy the scenery. We thought we might do one of the hikes, but we didn't end up doing so. At one of the stops, we were able to walk down to a rocky beach area on a pristine lake where we practiced the long-forgotten art of rock skipping! Another couple and their daughter came by and tried their hand at it as well. Mostly, we got two or three skips, four if we were lucky. This is, until... you know those old sports commercials for sneakers (possibly Nike) where it ended with, "It must be the shoes!"? Well, it must've been the rock, because I belted out about a 10-skipper that seemed to just hang on the water until finally, after like an hour, it decided to sink into the lake! Okay, maybe not an hour, but it was a beautiful skip, if I do say so myself. Of course, I stopped skipping rocks at that point. You've got to leave while you're ahead, right?

Anyway, we continued our drive and when we got to the end of the scenic drive - well, almost the end - at the Apgar area, we found that we could rent a canoe for a relatively cheap price, so we took one for a spin around beautiful Lake McDonald. Except for a few passing motor boats (which can also be rented), it was generally a peaceful and beautiful spot to take a canoe. The water was a deep, dark, greenish-blue color, and it was so clear, you could see the sun's rays deep into the water. We splurged and shared an ice cream cone after that, then headed back along the Going To The Sun Road, back to our campsite.

Elena's hope to see a bear looked like it would remain an unrequited hope until the next national park. That is, until... Driving along the road, about three-quarters of the way back to our campsite, we passed a few cars parked along the side of the road. Some people standing and pointing up into the mountainside. What made the scene somewhat unusual was that it wasn't a regular stopping point, which generally means you-know-what!. Elena, who was driving, stopped along the side of the road and we walked back to where the hubbub was. Turns out... you guessed it... it WAS a bear!!! It was way up on the mountain, and it took the help of some of the onlookers to point out exactly where it was - "You see that black dot up there? That's it!!!" Oh, right. But then, with the help of the binoculars and the zoom lens, we DID see it. They said it had been closer to the road before we got there as it eventually made its way higher up the mountain, but we still got to see it; it was just a little smaller to us by that time. It was still one of the highlights of the day, and possibly the trip for Elena (she just nodded her head, yes!).

The bear quickly went behind some distant shrubs and then out of view for good, so we headed out, back to our campsite for some grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup (fast becoming a staple lunch and/or dinner of ours). Though our visit here has not been nearly long enough, we'll be heading out tomorrow for yet another travel day, towards Yellowstone at the very southern part of Montana (though most of the park is in the northwest corner of Wyoming). We're not sure if we'll make it there by tomorrow night, but we'll give it a shot. Until then... ~J

DAY 119: Sunday, August 12, 2007 (West Yellowstone, MT)

I woke up at 7:30 this morning, ready to go for a jog with Jonathan, when he informed me that he had already gotten up and gone for a jog by himself very early this morning- before the sunrise. Apparently Jonathan couldn't sleep (perhaps it had something to do with the crazy wildlife sounds we hear all around us as we are tucked tightly into our sleeping bags at night. The other night it sounded like a mountain lion was being mauled down at the river by another mountain lion. We heard it gasping it's last breaths very loudly. This was more than just a little disconcerting at 3 am, as you can imagine!). Anyway, Jonathan told me the sights and sounds of the pre-dawn morning here in Montana were really amazing. He had taken some digital pics to prove it. He had seen a great blue heron, a herd of running deer, and caught the beautiful sunrise- all before I even woke up (sweet guy, he lets me sleep in!). But he agreed to accompany me on his bike while I jogged the two miles around our campsite, just to keep me company.

The landscape here is really wonderful. The mountain view from our campsite is extremely beautiful. It is a lot like Utah, except instead of red, orange and white mountains, these ones are purple, blue and grey. But they are as large and magnificent as the Utah mountains. A crystal clear river runs through our campground and cuts across the road, underneath a small bridge, leading to it. This makes for really lovely scenery while taking our morning jogs. Afterward, we cooked up a delicious oatmeal breakfast and got ready to head out to Yellowstone National Park. (I can't believe we're already heading to Wyoming!!) Before we headed out, we were lucky enough to be serenaded by our tenting neighbor who plays the ukulele and sings- what a treat! (Jonathan nicknamed her Annie Ukulele. We have no idea what her real name is.)

On our way to Yellowstone, we stopped for a quick "snacky" lunch at "Gates of the Mountains"- a spot named by Lewis and Clark, who while boating down the river, discovered that the mountains seemed to open up like gates- mountains which they thought completely blocked the river. This is apparently a good site for spotting eagles, but we had a lot of driving ahead of us, so we decided not to take the hour long boat tour.

Instead, we drove southeast through Montana, down toward the west entrance of Yellowstone National Park. As we did, we noticed a huge plume of cloud and smoke rising above the mountain ahead of us. It looked like pictures we have seen of volcanic eruptions, and we hoped we were not in the midst of one. We found out after a while of driving that this was actually a forest fire burning in the Montana mountains. We would soon learn that there are quite a few forest fires burning around the Yellowstone area right now. The east entrance to Yellowstone is completely blocked off due to one that is burning thousands of acres. (Contrary to popular belief, forest fires can actually be very healthy for the forest. They remove debris, clean out the forest floor, and open up the forest canopy so that light can get in and help new seeds to germinate. Also, the smoke and haze which rise and spread many miles from the forest carry nutrient rich air which promotes growth and new vegetation in surrounding areas. Forest fires, like most natural disasters, are very good for the planet- helping it to recycle and flourish. Unfortunately, they tend to be not so good for people.)

We arrived at West Yellowstone around 6:30 pm, and enjoyed a scenic drive down the west end of the lower Grand Loop to our KOA campsite. We decided we'd stay for three days, set up our stuff, and have a light dinner before heading to sleep. This was a very long day of driving, and we were both eager to get some rest. Tomorrow, we will go exploring and hopefully see some of the highly touted, magnificent geological wonders and wildlife that Yellowstone has to offer. ~E

[weeks 1-10] [weeks 11-20]