Blaine had a business meeting in Kalispell at the end of June. So we took a couple of extra days before the meeting to tour through Coeur d'Alene, Sandpoint, and Bonners Ferry. After the meeting Cindy, Blaine, & Jennifer spent a week in Glaciers and Waterton National Parks. What gorgeous country!
Even in the high mountain country the temperatures were in the 90's and waterfalls were flowing. It is sad to think that within ten to fifteen years there will no longer be glaciers in Glacier National Park. We took a hike every day and saw much wildlife. Although we were prepared for encounters with grizzlies we didn't have any. There were several places along the trail where bears had just been grubbing for insects and the soil was still fresh. But it was likely the bears heard us coming and moved off into the brush. We made noise each time we approached a blind spot in the trail so we wouldn't startle a bear. The only bear we saw was a black bear as we rounded a bend in the road in our car and spooked it just as it was crossing in front of us.
In both parks we stayed in rustic, historic lodges built by railroads in the early 1900's to lure travelers from the east coast. It was our quietest 4th of July ever, with only the silence of the lake and the beauty of the night sky, to help us celebrate. Our longest hike, to Grinnell Glacier from the Many Glaciers area, occurred our last day in the park. We want to go back sometime and take the Crypt Lake Hike in Waterton.
A few photos shown above tells how pretty the scenery is.
It was terrific to have Jason & Mary and their two boys, Tyson & Ryder with us for a few days during the Christmas holidays. Here Tyson & Ryder snuggle up to grandpa on Christmas eve, in their new Christmas PJ's, waiting for the customary reading of the Christmas story from Luke in the New Testament. 
