Early Mothers Day

Kalispell Farmers' Market.....this has grown from a 3 row event at the mall into a huge parking lot sprawl, with a great choice of natural foods from pork to pansies!

Back at the park

The swim platform needed re-sealing, so we took turns on that.  Done in a flash.

Glacier National Park in the spring

 After grocery shopping, setting up the trailer, etc...we finally had a chance to visit the park.  Beautiful weather and no crowds!

 Going to the Sun Road is only open up to Avalanche campground until they get the road plowed, so we took a picnic next to McDonald Creek.

 The creek hasn't quite reached its spring melt high level.

 One of many falls cascading down the mountainsides in the park from melting snow.

 Luna enjoyed a swim in Lake McDonald.

And I tried to get the stick from her.

 Now you see it.........

 Now you don't!

These butterflies blend in so well with the tree bark.  Mother Nature is such an artist!

WE MADE IT!

 We stop at the viewpoint overlooking Flathead Lake, and it looks like good weather is ahead.  We took the east road up the lake, past cherry orchards and views of Wild Horse Island. 

 Seems to stay light much later up here, we always forget about that.  Here it is 7:30, and it seems as though the day is ahead of us.

Luna has been enjoying many log retrievals since we got here.  She was born to be here at the lake.  She loves running through the woods, and smelling the rich, earthy scents.

ALMOST THERE....

We woke up in Missoula to a little of the white stuff.  But we weren't discouraged!

BANNACK STATE PARK, MONTANA

 Located in the lower southwestern portion of the state, this is a ghost town that has been taken over by the state to prevent vandalism and decay.  It became a gold mining camp in 1862, swelling from 400 people to 3,000 over that winter. 
We were the only campers in the campground, and for good reason; no hookups, and the temps were in the 20's at night.

 We were met by one of the caretakers who told us a little about the town.  Just about all the buildings are open to the public, and we had a brochure to guide us.  Unfortunately, my camera battery (and the backup one) failed, so we only got a limited number of pics.

 This building started out as the courthouse, but that got moved to Dillon, and was turned into the Hotel Meade. 

 The inside of the hotel has restorative work going on.  We were amazed that we could just wander up and down the stairs through the building with no restrictions.  Very cool.

 I am standing at the bar in what was called Skinner's Saloon.  Many a poor soul was shot and killed here, sometimes just because they got in the way of a stray bullet being fired by drunken patrons.

At the end of the street, several large pieces of mining equipment are laid out for inspection. 

THAT WAS UTAH?

 It seemed as though this year we really sped through Utah, not stopping for scenic views or side trips.  I got this picture of Brigham Young University football stadium as we drove by on our way to Park City.  We paid a quick visit to the town, and headed out the next day for the north country. 

We made a stop as we drove past Bear Lake.  This picture just doesn't show the beautiful turquoise color of the lake.  Plus, it's a little early for leaves on anything, so not so pretty.

FLAGSTAFF AND SEDONA

We arrived late yesterday in Flagstaff, and had a great dinner at Beaver Street Brewery.  Flag has a lot of good restaurants, and we found this one on a hidden side street in the college district. 
Today we drove down to Sedona to re-visit the red rocks and unique beauty of the area.  Lack of sleep the night before kept us from going on a hike.....first night in the rv took some adjusting.  Speaking of red rocks, I failed to get pictures of them!  We went straight to Tlaquepaque for some shopping.  The flowers were just getting started, and I still can't figure out how they got this foxglove to grow in the arid climate up here! 

 Darrell is a good shopping husband. :)

Don't miss this if you come to Sedona....I could have spent the entire day here, but would need to rob a bank first.

LET THE PACKING BEGIN!

 Once again, the Palo Verde is loaded with yellow flowers, even after we trimmed 2 truckloads of branches from it.  Once all the blossoms fall off, we'll have to have a gardener come and clean off the front yard since we won't be here.

We're getting ready for our annual journey up north to Montana and our park-hosting gig.  Looking forward to another interesting, fun summer.  Can't wait to see Amber, and Luna is looking forward to swimming in the lake.  This year I have vowed to take less clothing and "essentials"......we'll see how that works.

Luna is modeling her new jewelry that I made in class.  So far she likes it, and the stone hasn't fallen out. lol.  (had to practice on someone!)