Visiting with Family and Attending a Conference

The past couple weeks have been pretty good.  I got to visit a little with my grandmother's cousin Jalane and I took a trip with my church to Pocatello, Idaho to attend a missions conference.  While I was in Pocatello, I had lunch with my cousin and her two kids.

Grandma's cousin was traveling from North Dakota to Washington.  Jalane lives in Washington, but every summer she goes out to North Dakota to stay with some of her family.  She was on her way back home and was able to see me.  Of course she came with her yellow lab Shammy.

My cats didn't approve of the dog very much but they put up with her.  Butterscotch, surprisingly, did the best around the dog.  Eventually, Butterscotch was willing to watch Shammy at near eye-level (instead of from her perch on top of the piano).

While she was here October 9, Jalane and I talked about some family history.  She has a very clear mind still and is able to tell stories.  Although I didn't record her voice, I wrote notes about things I didn't already have.  We discussed some notes that were written about her half-brother who was adopted and about our family.  Our debate was who the authors were (since we could both tell that the documents were written by two separate individuals), and when they were written.  I know that doesn't sound very exciting to many people, but I enjoy research.  Jalane and I decided that the first two pages were written by Betty, Grandma's sister in 1997.

Since I've had time to go to Bozeman on a more regular basis lately, I have been going to Calvary Chapel Bozeman.  I've enjoyed being part of a church for the first time in many years.  Yes, I'm taking a long time driving twice a week, but it's been a good experience.  It's been great meeting new people and fellowshipping with believers again.

A missions conference was being held at Calvary Chapel Pocatello October 19-20.  I definitely see things from a different perspective after my mission trip to Angola this year.  I looked forward to going with a few people from our church.

It ended up being a guys' road trip.  I drove from Gardiner to West Yellowstone through the Park, where I met up with the rest of the crew.  It just so happened that they arrived in West Yellowstone at the exact time that I did and I turned right behind them.  After leaving my vehicle near West, I traveled with Pastor Ted and his son Stephen, Josh, Pat, and Robert.

Once we arrived in Pocatello, we registered at the Best Western Cotton Tree Inn, which is only a block away from Calvary Chapel Pocatello, where we registered immediately afterward.  That night we did get started into the conference.

The next day we listened to speakers for most of the day.  I enjoyed hearing some of the stories, especially from John Michaels, who had quite a bit of experience on the field.  (We truly live insulated lives in the United States.)  The conference covered several topics but the speakers used Joshua 1-10 as a basis for their talks.

For lunch, I separated from our group a little bit so that I could eat with my first cousin Kim and her two kids.  She's a store manager in Pocatello and seems to be pretty successful.  It was great getting to know Ashley and Mark.  I haven't seen them since 2000 when we all went to a family reunion at Silver Falls, Oregon.  I hope I can see Kim's mom/my aunt Sue soon.  I really have been wanting to visit with Sue and George for awhile now.

My cousin Kim is pictured with her children, Mark, Ashley, and Brandon at Silver Falls State Park on June 17, 2000.

Mark, Ashley, and Kim in Pocatello October 20, 2012

We had to leave at the Question/Answer portion of the conference on Saturday so that we could get back to Montana for church the next morning.  We got to my car, and I drove the rest of the way through Yellowstone Park in the dark.  Fortunately I didn't have any problems with animals on the road; I only saw a mule deer near Gardiner.

As I write this blog, it's snowing outside--the second or third snow of the season in Gardiner.  I think winter has arrived in Montana!

Spending a Few Last Days with Jean

Things are starting to change around me.  Jean moved to the Seattle area today.  She found a better job than the one she had here in Montana.  It's been kind of surreal seeing her pack up all her stuff at Gardiner and get ready to leave her condo in Belgrade.  She and I are about as close as a brother and sister even though she's my aunt.  Originally she came to Gardiner in 2008 to help me take care of Grandma.

Since Grandma's stroke in 2010, the circumstances have dramatically changed.  Jean no longer worked at the veterinary clinic she worked at when she first arrived; she'd been working at a nursing home.  Grandma's condition has pretty much stabilized and nothing really changes at the moment.  There's not a way for Jean to help Grandma right now.

I know that eventually Grandma's house is going to get sold.  I've been preparing for that.  Now that it's autumn, I'm getting the house ready for the winter.  I rolled up the hoses and put them away; I have drained the underground sprinkler system.  Up until recently I had been taking care of most of Grandma's paperwork and bookkeeping.  Because of a little Medicaid twist I've had to give those responsibilities to Dad.

I'm recognizing that pretty soon, we're going to have to pack up the house and do something with all the stuff here.  Jean and I have gone through most of Grandma's belongings and have discarded the aluminum foil, toilet paper rolls, and other needless things she saved for a rainy day.  At this point, what's in Grandma's house is going to get packed and stored or get divvied up to those who want those things.

Yes, things are slowly coming to a close for me in Gardiner.

Feeling a little nostalgic lately because I knew I didn't have very much time with Jean before she had to go, I made some cheesy chicken chowder for us on  Thursday, September 27.  It was one of the meals that we would make for each other, especially on cold winter nights on our days off.

I've always enjoyed cooking for Jean.  One of the main dishes that we would make on a regular basis was fish.  She liked the way that I seasoned and prepared it.  Often I would broil salmon or make some pan-fried tilapia.

In a place where I didn't always have a lot of friends in the area, it was nice to share with Jean.

On Monday, October 1, I met with her and we drove along Trail Creek Road.  She had wanted to do that for a long time, and since we never got to it, I thought that it was important to get it done then.  Autumn was in full swing out there; the trees were beautiful.

Autumn along Trail Creek

Trail Creek Road

After we got home, we rested for a little bit and then went to some of the coke ovens near Gardiner.  Coke is a product of coal, and was produced by the workers of a ghost town that used to exist across the river from me.  A hundred years ago, the city of Electric probably had about 7,000 people living there.  Today, only a few structures are left of that once-burgeoning city.  That night we got to see a beautiful sunset.  It was a lovely close to a nice day.

Jean sits in the opening of one of the coke ovens near Gardiner.

Trees are in their autumn foliage behind the foundation to the general store and payroll safe in the ghost town of Electric.

Sunset over Devil's Slide

Jean and I hiked to Natural Bridge Tuesday, October 2.  She hadn't been there before, and it was an easy-enough hike for her.  Afterwards, we drove to Old Faithful where we walked to Morning Glory Pool and saw other geysers like Giant, Grotto, and Grand.  A long time ago, people could drive to these geysers, but today it's a path with pavement and boardwalk.  In total, we walked about seven miles.

Natural Bridge

Sawmill Geyser soaked us as we walked past it.  We weren't expecting that!

It was the last beautiful day before bad weather arrived in Montana.  The next day was suddenly cold, and since then the weather has been more unpredictable.

Jean's last day of work was Saturday.  I saw her on Sunday, October 7 at lunch when her co-workers gave her a going-away dinner at IHOP.  She got some nice gifts from her friends at the nursing home.

Her last day in Montana was yesterday--Columbus Day.  I dropped off some stuff at her condo in Belgrade.  I gave her some gifts--a bottle of wine, some homemade chocolate chip cookies, and a gift certificate to Cold Stone Creamery.  I helped her pack her U-Haul trailer with the necessities of life.  Afterwards, I treated her to dinner wherever she wanted.  It's kind of funny that she just wanted a steak from Applebee's.  When we got back to the condo, I prayed with her before I had to go back to Gardiner.

I love her a lot, and I'm going to miss her.  She finally left the condo this morning.  I hope everything goes well with her as she heads to the west coast.

Taking a Beautiful Hike to Lava Lake

On Saturday, September 29, Jaret and I hiked to Lava Lake.  This past weekend was the last weekend before we started getting a little bit of weather out here.  Since that hike, the temperature has decreased pretty significantly.

The trail head is located near Highway 191 between Gallatin Gateway and Big Sky.  The hike itself is about 6 miles long and has a 1,400 foot elevation gain.  This particular hike is more difficult than the Pioneer Falls hike we went on the week before.  The path was covered in rocks, and had a constant incline.  Near the end, we hiked up some switchbacks to get to the lake.

The day we walked on that trail was one of the best we could have gone because of the autumn colors.  Although most of the forest was made of evergreens, the bushes and plants on the ground were so beautiful.  There wasn't much water in Cascade Creek, but it didn't make it any less pretty.

The Gallatin River

The trail to Lava Lake

 

Once at the lake, we rested for awhile at the serene beauty.  The lake is set between tall mountains, making the area carry sound like an amphitheater.   When we had just arrived, it started lightly raining, and the sound of the rain on the lake was very soothing.  There were three guys fishing across the lake from where we were.

Jaret looks at Lava Lake.

Rain falls on the lake.

Walking back was a lot faster than going up.  Once we got back to Bozeman, Jaret and I ate dinner at Outback Steakhouse.  There's nothing like a good steak after a good walk like that!

Hiking to Pioneer Falls

On Saturday, September 22, Jaret and I hiked to Pioneer Falls near Gallatin Gateway, Montana.

I've typically hiked in Yellowstone National Park, but I haven't really explored the rest of the area that I live in.  There are so many awesome places to see, but because of my proximity to the park, I've normally stayed in that area.  Since I'm still on my leave of absence, I'm taking advantage of the ability to come and go a little bit.

I picked up a topographical map of the area from Northern Lights Trading Company and we got some lunch before heading to the trail head.  Even before we arrived there, we could see the colorful trees at Spanish Creek.

Although the area had a few hikers and campers already there, it didn't seem crowded, even for a Saturday.  From the parking area we hiked along Spanish Creek until we came to a fork and then followed Falls Creek.  We went up some switchbacks to finally get to Pioneer Falls where we explored around a bit.

The fall colors were starting to come out.  There were a few snow berries and rose hips along the path.  One cliff that was next to us was made of granite, but there was evidence that a glacier had moved through the narrow valley.  There was still a bit of smoke in the air lingering from fires in Oregon and Washington.  We only saw a couple grouse along the path, but couldn't get very close to them.

Jaret rests along the path to Pioneer Falls.

Autumn in Yellow

A rock cliff near the trail

Although the falls didn't have a lot of water coming down, it was quite beautiful.  We were able to get down to the base of the falls without a lot of difficulty, but we still had to hike down a short cliff.  The rocks down there are pretty slippery because of the algae growing on them.  I had to be especially careful that I had good footing down there near the base.

Jaret at Pioneer Falls

Me at Pioneer Falls

Pioneer Falls

The pool at the base of Pioneer Falls

We also spent a little time at the brink of the falls.  There's a lot of room up there to put packs while one explores the base a bit.

In all, I estimate that we hiked about 7.5 miles and only gained an altitude of 800 feet.  It was an easy hike, but was in some beautiful country.  The trail wasn't steep until the very end near the falls, so the altitude change didn't seem very severe at all.

After getting back to Bozeman later, we ate at Applebee's and then went back home.  It was a very enjoyable day.

Sticking around Livingston

I'll tell you what, the smoke in the region has been pretty terrible!  On Saturday, September 15, the smoke billowed in from the west and we've been under it since then.  Apparently all the smoke is from Washington and Oregon.  For some reason, this smoke has really activated my hay fever!  Oh well.  I'm just going to deal with it as best as I can.  Thank God for meds!  At least today I can actually see Electric Peak out my window again!

On September 12 Jean and I went to Livingston to eat at Montana's Rib & Chop House to celebrate birthdays with Dad, Bonnie, Chris, Edie, Janet, and her husband.  It's an annual event that we do.  It's interesting that Chris' and Bonnie's birthdays are on the same day and year.  It's now official--my dad is 60 years old now!  Oops--did I let that slip?

Dessert at Montana's Rib & Chop House

Also this week I finished making the DVD of Betty's Memorial Service and her slideshow.  I got slowed down by a couple of factors--proprietary HD video formats and faulty machines at Insty Prints in Livingston (that company has always done a great job on my DVD projects, by the way, so I was happy to wait for the machine to be fixed).  I sent out the first few DVDs on Friday.

Jean has been growing a garden this year.  She's gotten some nice-looking tomatoes, some big zucchini, a couple squash, and some big sunflowers and hollyhocks.   Yesterday I measured her sunflower at 100 inches, give or take an inch.

Jaret and I hiked to West Boulder Meadow on Saturday September 15.  It was good to hang out with him.  Usually our schedules don't work out together but this time they did.  After picking him up at his house, we drove southeast from Livingston on Swingley Road past Ellis Basin to get to West Boulder River.

Ellis Basin

The Pine Creek Fire is still active, which is on the other side of the mountains from where we were hiking.  That fire is 8,509 acres at present and is 51% contained.  It's about 11 miles from where we were hiking, so we were well away from it.

We started walking from West Boulder Campground to the south.  The hike follows a lovely forest for about a mile and a half before it comes out into an open burned forest for the rest of the distance.  We crossed the river on a footbridge and hiked up switchbacks a short distance before heading south again toward the meadow.  Once we were there, we stayed in the north end.  The autumn foliage is out now, and the colors were great.  In the meadow, the West Boulder River's beach is sandy, but as one gets to the north end of the meadow, it turns into rocks.  The area was full of granite, quartz, and limestone.  The cliffs around us at the meadow appeared to be made of limestone.  We saw a lot of rose hips and snow berries too.  Round-trip, we hiked about six miles.  Along the route we saw a grouse, a couple healthy white-tailed deer, and Angus cattle.

Scenery near the beginning of the trail

West Boulder Meadow Trail

Autumn foliage along the trail

The opening of West Boulder Meadow

Jaret at West Boulder River

I'm at West Boulder River.

I'm looking forward to my next hike with Jaret!