Paws and Friends

  Here we are in Minnesota! (And you have to say it "Min ne a so ' ta! (Well, only if you are a Swede!) And it is a grand park! We are in Country Campground, south of Detroit Lakes, with 30 sites, which are grassy/hard parked dirt, with a concrete patio and picnic table at each site. We have 50 amps, water, sewer and cable. We are receiving our satellite signals, depending on the rain.... Rain did chase us here. In fact, we debated leaving Jamestown, ND as a storm was coming, potentially severe. We talked to our neighbors there, from Wisconsin, who shared two different thoughts. 1)  He didn't think the storm would be too severe; and 2) He would MUCH rather be at a park than drive in a storm...!  We decided that we could go on, and probably be at our site before the storm hit....Both of us were a little edgy as we drove down the road. We got fuel at Fargo, noticing once again the black clouds to the west. We made it, and were almost set up when the rain came, and...

Error messages demand attention. But for readers of our blog, you will recall our first experience with an error message, resulting in a mistake in the computer software....so we did ignore the first time "Coolant Level Low" came up, as we traveled from Polson down US 93 to I-90. And yes, we did notice a very slight rise in the engine temperature--a never before occurrence in our travels with this coach. The second time the message appeared, Mike took it seriously. She found a shop with a Cummins engine sign, and pulled off US 93 there. They were busy, but a tech did come out to the rig and noticed that a special coolant was required, one he did not have. He recommended a freightliner shop a couple of exits away on I-90, so off we went. We pulled into I State Truck Center, Missoula, and met with Derick, a service advisor. He advised a two hour express assessment, and suggested we pile into the toad and enjoy lunch, etc. So we did--finding a Costco for shopping--we ha...

Wildhorse Island seen through the trees  We enjoyed our four hour cruise on the waters of Flathead Lake in our rented, 20 foot in-board/out-board motor boat. But we wanted to see more of this gorgeous lake, so Tuesday, July 15, we drove from our RV park east and north around the lake on MT 35.  Our goals were simple:  pictures, particularly of Wild Horse Island, find some local cherries, and have fun! Of the several state parks along the lake we stopped at two:  one on the eastern shore then one almost directly opposite on the western shore. In Eastern shore, Yellow Bay State Park between these two state parks Lindy asked Mike to stop and Lindy snapped pictures, and we found cherries! West Shore State park We stopped and bought a bag of delicious bing cherries. Later, still on the eastern shore, we stopped at Bowman Orchards , just south of Bigfork. We left with delicious fudge (and of course, it was made with cherries), and two kinds of wine:  pl...

In Polson, MT  Currently 81, feels like 80  (YEA!!)    High:  81   Low:  55 What does "Three Dog Down" mean? Are three dogs down? Why are they down?  Oh! Three Dog Down has down comforters, and the number "three" relates to the level of comfort one receives from a down comforter with a "Three Dog" rating! Just right for the COLD Montana winters!  We just HAD to check this store/factory out! And yes, it is a factory, making comforters and duvets here in Polson. Can you believe it? In little ole' Polson, Montana! They have: Down Comforters Pillows Coats Robes Slippers And Unique and Eclectic items too, including Salty Dog's Salt Water Taffy! AND:  Adventure Tours And did we have fun "shopping" and chatting with the owner! "Click" for link to Tours In front of their shop, they have a 35 foot-long Vietnam-era amphibious military vehicle aptly names "Happy Hippo". Read about these tours in the Happy Hi...

Polson, MT  Currently 85   Feels like 83  High:  93   Low:  59 What a day to spend part of it on one of the most beautiful, pristine lakes in the northwest! Flathead Lake is located in the center of the Flathead Valley bordered by the Mission Mountains to the east and Glacier National Park to the north. It is 28 miles long and 15 miles wide making it the largest freshwater lake west of thee Mississippi, with over 200 square miles of water and 185 miles of shoreline. There are many islands that dot Flathead Lake, the most notable being Wildhorse Island. Wildhorse Island is a primitive state park that encompasses 2,162 acres and is the home to native wildlife such as bighorn sheep, mule deer, bald eagles, osprey and even the namesake, wild horses. View Larger Map We wanted to explore the lake, and take Rupert with us, and Flathead Boat Company , Boat Rental Specialists fit the bill! We rented a 20 foot inboard-outboard boat for four hours, with the pl...

Naples, ID  High 85     Low 54    Humidity 35%  (at 3:00 PM PDT) Polson, MT  Friday July 11   High 86  Low 55 Our site in Blue Lake RV Resort  A-1 Blue Lake RV Resort just outside of Naples, ID and south of Bonners Ferry is an OK place.... We would not have fit in the pull-through site originally "assigned" to us so he "upgraded" us to a back-in. We could park the car across the road from our site. Site is gravel, roads throughout the park are gravel/dirt. Our site was not level, and it took us a few times to get rid of the "excess slope" message from the levelers. It is so hard to push buttons to level the coach!  Of course one of us had to be outside arranging the jack pads under each, to "fool" the jack....THAT was the warm job! Blue Lake RV Resort Office and Lake on the right There is a small lake, made by a glacier, estimated to be 100 feet deep. The lake is fed by an underground aquifer. It is home to turtles, catf...

Soap Lake WA:  High 98, Low 72--currently 98! We are in the HOT once again!  We are here for one night, and plan on taking off early in the morning, heading for Bonners Ferry, ID. We just might enjoy temperatures slightly lower...highs 90, and 86; lows 58 and 56!  We shall take it! Smokiam RV Resort looked nice from the highway--but it took us about 45 minutes to locate a suitable site! We were told by the office which sites were 50 AMP, and which were open. However, we found those supposedly "open" sites occupied! Plus these "pull-through" sites were NOT level, and they were side by side hookups. We finally chose a back in, which meant Mike would have to unhook the car. NOT a problem! We will NOT stay here again! The history is interesting. Soap Lake is "soapy!" There are concentrations of minerals in the water, the most abundant mineral is a "washing soda". It is a meromictic lake, where two layers of mineral concentrations do not mix. Th...

Weather Currently in North Bend WA:  66 degrees  98% humidity (!!)  high to be 84 degrees Happy Belated 4th! Ours was relatively quiet, as Valley Camp is part of a nature conservancy....55 "protected" acres. We could hear the occasional booms from the neighbors, however, but only the one day. No grand show for us! We enjoy the elk and the deer! We understand a young black bear is near...we have only seen his sign...! Rupert, we think, smelled him once, as he let loose his scared bark early one morning!  It was July 1, 2010, when we left Gallup, New Mexico, heading east to South Dakota to "confirm" our "residency!" So it is as July comes around, we think about our "RV roaming" (as in the Seattle Times, NW Traveler, July 6, 2014.  More on this article below!). What a grand four years since! We have upgraded our coach. We have experienced the loss of our original "paws":  Bandit, Rusty and Puff. We experienced the gain and joy of Bitty...