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!)

FLAT STANLEY

 Flat Stanley is a recent phenomena at our house.  For kids who are in the fourth grade, it seems to be on the curriculum.  Flat Stanley is a book the children are reading at this point, and their teachers have decided to include friends and grandparents in the formula by having the kids send a letter to the person of their choice (in this case, we were chosen 3 times) with a cutout of Flat Stanley, usually their photo glued to the figure, and ask them to take Flat Stanley on a tour of where they live.  Arizona is fertile ground for unusual places to see.  The first two times, we took Flat JJ and Flat Tyler to Tombstone, Bisbee, and anywhere else we could think of that would give the child's class an idea of what Arizona was like. 
The third time around found us just returning from up north, having company, getting settled, and not really wanting to travel to those places anytime soon.  But, we rallied, and found some nearby fun places to photograph.  One of them was Traildust Town, which has lots of photo-ops.  Also, we went up to Mount Lemmon, a nice break from the still warm desert floor. A trip to Home Depot was documented, because, hey, we go there a lot. lol

FOOL HOLLOW RECREATION AREA

 Our last 2 nights "out on the road" were spent at this great campground we found a few years ago.  It is by far, the best place we've stayed in our travels.  Level cement pads, spaced far enough from each other that you have privacy, and it's on a lake.  Located in Show Low, in the White Mountains.  We can slide on home from here.

EL MORRO NATIONAL MONUMENT

 Southwest of Albuquerque, we swung by this monument that we had never seen.  It is a bluff in the middle of nowhere, and at its base is a large pool of water that's been here for a long time.  It has been the only water source for 20 to 30 miles around, and became the natural stopping point for travelers, as well as a perch for an ancient pueblo, around 1200 a.d. From ancient petroglyphs to inscriptions written by weary travelers, people have left their mark to say "I was here".  As we looked at the writing, it made us imagine those people standing where we were, up to 800 years ago, and then in 1605, when the first Spaniards came through looking for gold. There was an inscription by a young girl on a wagon train heading to California, who was later shot with an arrow, but survived.