We were in no hurry to get around this morning. We have been getting up and getting on the road fairly early for three mornings. I puttered and wrote thank you cards. Gayle caught up on the news. I used the stopper on the bathroom sink this morning to soak some things and then I couldn't get the stopper to open. So I asked my sister (who is eight years older than me) to help me figure out what to do. She was down on the floor with her head under the sink before I knew it. We eventually got the stopper up and then Gayle researched the problem so she can communicate with the owners using all the right terms.
We went to Loula's Cafe for brunch. It is around the corner from our rental. It was a half hour wait time so we took a quick drive to see Whitefish Lake, which is considerably smaller than Flathead Lake. We had to stop for a deer to cross the road.
We returned to Loula's. This restaurant was on my list because Food and Wine considers their huckleberry pie to be the best pie in Montana. When we finished our food we ordered two pieces of pie to go -- Huckleberry Mixed Berry and Huckleberry Peach.
Then we headed off to take a drive around the entire Flathead Lake. We read that it would take two hours if we didn't stop anywhere. We planned to make multiple stops. We were in search of the best place to watch the sunset across the lake.
We made multiple stops to make sure we would be able to see the sunset in the northwest without trees blocking the view. We entered several of the state parks along the road to check out the exact location we would return to in the evening. The sunsets around 9:30 p.m. here this time of year.
On the east side of the lake there are many cherry orchards. We stopped at a roadside stand and got Bing and Rainer cherries. Gayle quizzed the people working there to ask about optimal locations for viewing the sunset. They confirmed what we had already discovered. We journeyed on around the lake, eating cherries, which were incredible. There is something magical about eating fresh fruit, ripened on the tree.
When we got to the southern part of the lake I told Gayle I really wanted to hike down to the viewing point for the Kerr Dam. Gayle has a bad back and has had a back surgery. She has problems if she spends too much time vertical. She was fine with waiting in the air conditioned car and letting me hike to the view. Right when I started I met a couple on the steep steps who gave me advice on the best way to descend.
It was 180 steps down to the viewing area. The dam is on the Flathead River.
It was worth the hike down to see the dam. Montana is dealing with a drought and there wasn't much water pouring over the spillway.
The view was worth the descent but I began to wonder if it was worth the ascent up all those stairs. When I was almost back to the car Gayle called me. She said the couple I had met on the way down was concerned about me making this hike on my own. I assured her I was fine and would see her in 30 seconds.
By the time we got back to our rental we had been gone for seven hours. We decided we had no desire to go out to dinner. We ordered ribs from a restaurant nearby. When I went out to go pick up the food I needed to wait until this buck moved on down the alley.
We spent time this evening making plans for the day we leave Whitefish. We will be driving through Glacier National Park on the Going to the Sun Road. Then we will cross the border into Canada. We are required to use an app called ArriveCan and upload our passports and vaccination records within 72 hours of arrival. We spent time doing that so we could receive a receipt that will make that crossing possible.
I got out the two pieces of huckleberry pie and we tasted both of them. We were of one mind. Huckleberry mixed berry is better than huckleberry peach. The pie crusts were excellent. I admit that I am partial to rhubarb or lemon meringue but I am enjoying the search for the best pie.
No comments:
Post a Comment