Tuesday October 21: We were going to put the big tarp over the Pony yesterday since there is a forecast of rain, but we were too tired and cold when we got back from hiking and figured we could do it this morning. Then it started raining in the night, so it is too late to put up the tarp. Too wet for a fire this morning – I could build a fire, but can’t read and edit in the rain, so it is an inside morning.
Rainy day at Charlie Waters Campground
Mossy tree trunks, all in a row
The rain emphasizes the moss on the tree trunks
Later, when the rain lets up a bit, I decide to go for a walk across the meadow,
Our campsite as seen from across the meadow
and once there, emboldened by my successful hiking yesterday, I hike on up the hillside to the grove of young aspen that I have admired from a distance.
Hiking to the aspen grove
Nearing the aspen grove
It is pretty here, even if there is no sunlight to bring a glow to the leaves. I walk amongst the trees, admiring their autumn colors and smooth cool bark. I could be an aspen tree.
Walking with the aspens
By time I get back to camp, my shoes, socks, feet, and sweats are wet; I change clothes and wear slippers the rest of the day as I only have the one pair of shoes with me. Another oversight in planning and packing – of course I know better, but sometimes things fall through the proverbial crack. I haven’t gotten all my ducks lined up properly this fall.
Rainy view from the Pony
I finish editing “Against All Odds” and then edit photos from our British Columbia trip until the battery on the laptop runs out. That is the drawback to camping without enough sunshine to inspire the solar panel to create electricity for us. Time now to write in the journal – real paper, real pen – no electricity required. Chilly outside all day, but the Pony is cozy, so we don’t mind.
Monday October 20, 2014 – It is going to be sunny today, but I make a small campfire for the warmth until the sun reaches the campsite, enjoying my morning ritual of fire, coffee, and journal. After breakfast we make a quick trip to Stevensville for ice and a few groceries. Back at camp, we decide to hike the Bass Creek Trail which leaves from a parking lot at the end of the campground. Based on the doctor’s recommendation, I’ve not been exerting myself, but every day that we are here, I feel better. There may not be another chance to hike the trail with a great blue sky and sunshine while we are here. We drive around to the parking area, although it wouldn’t have been terribly far just to hike to the trail head. I have a small thermos of tea, my hiking sticks, and the Canon G1X. I am going to mosey along taking photos while Clifford goes on ahead. I will only go as far as I feel totally comfortable with.
I am thrilled with the sunlight coming through the aspen trees, turning yellow to golden. The western larch are also a rich autumn color.
Although I can hear the creek below me, the dense growth often obscures the sight of it,
The creek below the trail
Colors of autumn
The further up the trail I go, the chillier it is. As we were getting ready to go, I discovered my day pack was left at home by mistake. It was warm enough at the camp that I didn’t think I would need more layers than what I am wearing, but now the windbreaker and gloves in the day pack would be most welcome. Reminder to self to have the extra layer just in case.
Patches of sunlight on the trail
So, I hike from one sunlit patch to another, stopping to take photos whenever autumn leaves catch my attention.
Several times I stop, thinking I will turn back, but after resting on a rock in the sunshine and drinking some of my hot tea, I go on, eager to see what is beyond the next bend in the trail.
Around the next bend in the trail
Eventually, it is the deepening shadows on the trail and the chilly wind that forces me to turn back. I am glad that my stamina was not the determining factor.
Trail in shadow
Deepening shadows on the trail
Down the trail toward the lingering sunlight
I hike briskly back down the trail, not stopping until I reach the trail head, where the last of the afternoon sunshine brings a bit of warmth.
Last light coming through the trees
Back at the campsite, I am too cold to play cello, so go on inside the Pony to warm up. Make a hot cup of tea and get on with editing. Clifford has hiked considerably further up the trail than I did, so it is a while later before he comes. Then we have dinner and I continue editing. I am nearly finished with the book I am working on. I download the photos taken today and am pleased with the beautiful autumn colors. I am looking forward to doing some photo editing soon. And off to bed with vision of golden trees dancing in my head.
Friday October 17, 2014 – Partly sunny and 32 degrees when I get up. No campfire this morning; I just find sunny spots and move my chair and table to keep pace with the warmer oasis of light. Make a cup of coffee and read “A New Earth” – thoughts on how thoughts/emotions come from the ego trying to strengthen itself, which is always at the expense of the “other.” Edit “Against All Odds,” play cello while the sun shines,
Wood, dense and mysterious
and explore the woods, gathering more branches and twigs. I love the woods, so dense and mysterious. Haven’t explored them nearly as much as I’d like.
When the campsite is in shade, I build a campfire and continue editing until it is too dark to see outside.
Saturday October 18, 2014 – Today is a town day and so off to Missoula first t hing. Run errands, visit my mom – a very bright 88 years young, and go to Barnes & Nobles for the bookstore fix. Home after dark and head to bed soon after unloading and putting away our purchases.
Sunday October 19. 2014 – Nice day, no need for a campfire this morning, and I’m saving wood for the cooler days that are forecast. Katie, Jeremy and the boys come out in the afternoon and we do a walkabout in the woods to the creek and to the little A-frame “fort” that some industrious kids built sometime this summer. The boys (my grandsons ages 2 and 4) have a great time playing in the water and exploring the fort.
Finley throwing rocks in the creek
Jude at the fort by the creek
Katie and Finley in the fort
Finley peeking out of the fort
Katie and Finley headed back to camp
Back at the camp Katie gets the campfire going and starts dinner while the Clifford, Jeremy, and I gathered more wood. After dinner we sit around the fire enjoying the time to relax and chat. I’m really glad that they were able to come out again,
Later, more editing. Hard to put it down. The Novels of Shannon series which I am editing takes the reader to another world where the characters become real while their adventuresome journey, fraught with peril, draws the reader in. Our lives may seem tame compared to theirs and yet we all face common questions about the intricacies of life: how to live with our weaknesses and our strengths, how to survive pain and loss, how to become fully alive.
Wednesday October 15: This is a day of changing weather.
Overcast, then the clouds begin to part
Cloudy when I get up to make my campfire and a cup of coffee. Read “A New Earth” resonating with the words, the meanings, going beyond ego to BEING. Well, I might not be getting there, yet, but it makes sense, anyway. Write in my journal and have breakfast by the campfire, enjoying the warmth.
Then the sky clears up enough that I get out the cello, glad to have enough sun to sit and play a bit. But by time I get the cello out and set up, and play through one piece, it clouds up and starts to rain. I scramble around getting the cello and music put away as quickly as I can. The little storm passes, the sun come outs, so I get the cello out again. Then the rain comes again and as I am putting the cello away, a big gust of wind knocks over the stand and music is blowing everywhere. I could have used some help, but Clifford is not is sight. This time the rain continues through the remainder of the afternoon.
Sometime during the afternoon the rain lets up enough to let the wonderful warm late afternoon light come through and a lovely rainbow appears arching over the trees at the end of the meadow. Sweet.
Cloud moving on, sunlight coming in
Rainbow arch at the end of the meadow
Dark clouds in the background, warm sunlight in the foreground
My homemade chicken soup has thawed out, so I simmer it an hour to be on the safe side. How much nutrition is left in a soup cooked that long, I don’t know, but I am not taking any chances.
Our battery is not charging, so light and power are an issue tonight. Too bad, as I can see to write blogs with the laptop, but once its little battery is dead, I am out of luck.
Thursday October 16: I light the stove to start warming up the Pony and get the tea water going. There is a pretty sunrise this morning.
Sunrise color
Take photos of the droplets on branches on my way to the restroom, nearly a block away. It has been good for me to do a morning walk, albeit out of necessity, and this morning it is especially pretty out after yesterday’s rain.
Delicate seed pods
After breakfast we go to Stevensville for ice and groceries, then explore the Chief Looking Glass State Park. It was too expensive for us, and I am really glad we didn’t go there, as it is much prettier where we are at Bass Creek.
Mountains of the Bitterroot Range
Later Merri and Ali come to visit. Merri and Clifford have a plant identification project going on, which is fun for Merri, as she loves plants and knows a LOT about plants and trees.
Looking at the trees
Ali is kind of bored and just pokes around at the fire. Maybe walking around looking at trees and moss and berries are not her thing. We all have a cup of tea before they go. I am glad they got to come out, even though Merri and I didn’t really get much time to visit. Just nice to have her here for awhile.
Decorating the pumpkin with gifts from the forest
We do the CI meeting from my cell phone. I’m not feeling great, but can’t distract myself with photo editing, as my laptop is dead, and it would be rude to distract myself with reading or writing. Finally I just crawl up on the bed and don’t even pretend to be actively involved. Wonder if it was eating a whole raw potato that caused my indigestion.
Yogurt and mint tea for my dinner and by bedtime, I feel better and sleep okay.
Sunday October 12: Wake up early; too dark to sit out, so I make mint tea and sit inside to read “A New Earth” until it is light enough to head outside to make a campfire. The wood under the pull-outs is a bit wet, but the wood under the tarp is good and dry, so I soon have a cheery fire going. The way Tolle explains some concepts in “A New Earth” helps me to make sense of the lessons from “A Course in Miracles” which were not resonating with me. A different way of looking at things can be very good.
Ang and Oden come
about 11:30 and we
have time to do a
walkabout taking
photos of raindrop
on leaves and
other delightful
after-rain images.
Give her a camera and a cup of coffee…. and she is all set!
Then we head out to see my sister, Lillian, who lives about 10 miles outside of Stevensville on the other side of the Bitterroot valley. As we look back, we can see snow on the mountain tops on the western range. We have a nice visit with Lillian; I let her know that I have been to a doctor for the first time in about 20 years and that there are some health issues going on.
Lillian, Carol, Ang
Oden displaying 12-year-old dorkiness
Lillian’s driveway
From the eastern side of the valley where she lives, we have a clear view of the snowy mountains to the west, so more photos are taken as we head back to the campground.
Across the Bitterroot Valley – we are camped over there
Back at the Pony, after Ang and Oden leave, I do some editing and read portions of the journal from 1979 to 1980. There was an entry regarding a conversation Katie and I had regarding priests and bishops, and how bishops could tell the priests where they had to go. Katie, who was four years old at the time, totally got the idea and decided that she would be a bishop when she grows up so she can tell people what to do. It was really quite delightful, the best part of the whole 6-month journal, and it made her day when I sent it as a text to her. No campfire tonight as it is a bit chilly this evening and more comfortable inside, even though I struggle to read by the available light.
Monday October 13: Wake up early with leg cramps, but luckily I am able to go back to sleep and get up after daylight to go out build a campfire. I make tea and as I get settled by the fire to read, the tea spills and I have to go back inside to make a new cup. Clifford is up and we have a discussion about the pan that needs replacing, which gets me thinking about what I have been reading about ego – is my suggestion to use more butter in the pan merely a suggestion or is it my ego coming forward to say I know better than someone else how to use the pan. There are definitely some grey areas here. I do a walkabout looking at the other campsites, gather wood, and explore the woods which are enchanted, I’m quite sure.
Enchanted woods
Old school cello is camping cello
Mild temperatures and sunshine in the afternoon gives me the opportunity to play the cello again today.I am not very satisfied with this cello, not liking the sound of the A-string or 4th position, both of which are used all the time. It creates a quandry for me – how to go camping AND have a pleasing instrument to play. Haven’t felt like playing the flute because the higher registers are not appealing to me. Oh well……
And so goes the day. Later in the afternoon the picnic table at the vacant site next to us is still in the sunlight, and I move down there to continue writing in my journal until the sunlight is overtaken by shadow. Before the sun sets behind the mountain, the last rays hit the young aspen grove on the hillside across the meadow from where we are camped. What a wonderful burst of color.
Last glow of light on the aspens
Back at our spot, I build another great campfire and sit out editing until it is too dark to see. As the fire dies down, I leave the embers to glow while I go inside to join Clifford and make us a tasty dinner. After dinner, I make notes in a word document from the old journal. Not sure I want or need to save the old journal once that is done. I had written down many dreams that might be of interest, but maybe not worth keeping, either. If I was going to learn from them, it should have have been then. Head to bed, thinking how much different my life is now. The struggles of that period of my life are far behind me. How joyful it is now to be camping, drinking a morning cup of coffee or tea by a campfire, having the day to read, write, or walkabout taking photos, and quiet evenings with Clifford. My kids are grown and are people I enjoy spending time with. Life is good.
Friday October 10: Looks like it will be a sunny day,
Morning campfire and tea
but I make a small campfire so I can sit out to read and write until it warms up some. I read “A New Earth” and write in my journal, enjoying my hot tea and the warmth of the flames. After breakfast I go searching for wood for the campfire, finding some cut wood behind one of the camps. The woods here are dark and mysterious, and dense with a variety of trees and shrubs. I almost expect a wood nymph to show herself. I think I could explore forever and not tire of it.
Woods dark and mysterious
Shrubs highlighted by a ray of sunlight
After several walkabouts to take photos, bringing back some wood each time, the wood supply begins to build up. This is a good thing, since the forecast is for rain one of these days. I have another campfire in the evening as it is much easier on my eyes to edit by natural light until it gets too dark to do so.
Evening campfire
Saturday October 11: It is mostly cloudy this morning,
Mostly cloudy
so I build a campfire, glad for the wood I gathered yesterday. The guy in the campsite across the road from us says we can have the wood that is at his spot, as he isn’t using it. I happily gather it up, stockpiling some under the pullouts of the Pony and the rest goes in a pile that I cover with a tarp at the first sign of rain. I keep the campfire going as long as I can, but eventually the rain becomes too heavy for me to read or write outdoors and I am forced to go in to continue with my editing.
I brought one of my old journals with me from 1979 to 1980, and begin reading it, curious if I should keep the old journals or begin getting rid of them. The entries are mostly quite brief, but bring back painful memories of how difficult my life situation was at that time. I am ever so grateful for all the good memories I have since Clifford and I have been together. And this camping trip to Bass Creek will be the next addition to the good memories bank.
Wednesday October 8: Yesterday we made it as far as Ang’s cabin on our way to Bass Creek south of Missoula, Montana. This morning she and I have coffee while we chat, and after sharing breakfast with her and Oden (my grandson), Clifford and I head on to Bass Creek.
Sharing a cup of coffee at the cabin
We arrive at the Charlie Waters campground in the early afternoon and are surprised to find it nearly full, which is unexpected for a mid-week day in October. We later find out that hunting season for something-or-other just started and there is a church group gathering. There are not many sites to choose from; Clifford wants sunshine, I want secluded and pretty. We drive through the entire campground at least three times before we compromise on a site: not secluded, but pretty with the woods behind the campsite, and a moderate chance of sunshine throughout the day.
Exploring the woods behind the campsite
We explore the woods at bit, looking for the creek that we can hear. It is not accessible right at our campsite, but can be reached further along. Then we get the Pony set up and this is home for the next couple of weeks.
Creek hidden in the woods
Thursday October 9: Wake up to sunshine and beautiful blue sky. I set up a small table and my chair in a big patch of sunlight, make a cup of French Press coffee (doesn’t need electricity, as well as making good tasting coffee), then sit in the sun’s warmth to write in my journal and begin reading “A New Earth” by Eckhart Tolle. The book opens by discussing the insanity of the human race because of ego identification with thought. So far, so good.
After breakfast we drive to Stevensville to get ice and a few groceries. I am pleased to find that the Super One store there has a good section of organic produce. On the way back, we explore the group campground not far away, a couple of side roads, the picnic area, and the road that goes beyond the trailhead and up the mountain that is across the meadow from us. In our exploration, we find a little niche off one of the side roads with a couple of primitive campsites. Good thing to keep in mind for next time.
Back at camp I edit “Against All Odds,” my project for this outing, while Clifford does research and plays with his ham radio gear – his projects. I play my cello for a bit
The cello
before walking across the meadow to take photos. The autumn colors are just beginning here.
The light in the afternoon hits a grove of young aspen on the hillside across the meadow causing them to glow as if lit from within. I can’t get to them now, but I am certainly drawn to their vivid color.
Aspen grove on the ridge
Another family of aspen
Katie calls: she is concerned that I am not getting enough good meat in my diet, based on the lab results I have received, so she is bringing her family and dinner out to our camp this afternoon. When Katie, Jeremy, and the kids arrive, we build a good campfire. Katie cooks a great dinner over the fire; we eat and visit until after dark. It is such a treat to have visitors, and especially fun to have visitors who cook!
Katie cooking dinner over the campfire
Jeremy and Finley
Justice holding little brother Jude
What an enjoyable evening! A really nice end to this lovely day at Bass Creek.
No, its not a camping trip; its not even an outing, exactly.
Temperature is up to 20 degrees and I need to get out and walk,,, and take photos.
So, I walk the back way to the bridge over the South Fork of the Coeur d Alene River near the Wallace Visitor’s Center and then back along the river to the crossing at 6th Street.
Zen Rock
Now 20 degrees on a sunny day is one thing, but 20 degrees on a cloudy day with a breeze and high humidity is something else.
However, I am warmly dressed and I don’t mind the cold.
It is very lovely along the river, seeing what the low teen temps have sculpted.
Tuesday September 16: I wake up, no longer in Canada, with a headache and the bothersome pounding in my eardrum. Although I seldom do it, I take an aspirin and fortunately feel fine the rest of the day.
I walk down to the shore of the lake and take a few photos. After breakfast we head to Metaline Falls, which I thought was a falls on the Pend Oreille River. Turns out it is a town named after the falls that were covered when a dam was built there. So, for the third time I am rooked out of taking photos of waterfalls on this trip. Oh well. We go to the Visitors’ Center, which is an attractive once-a- boxcar building sitting on a great lawn with trees and flowers all around.
We read about the history of the area, which is quite interesting.
On the way back to the campground, we stop at the Mill Pond Historical Site on Sullivan Creek and look at the kiosks. There are many photos of the area showing the dam that was built on Sullivan Creek, forming a large mill pond and another dam built at the outlet of Sullivan Lake, raising the level of the water by 40 feet.
The spillway below us is quite a dramatic falls, and although not natural, it is the closest I’m getting to a big waterfall to photograph on this trip.
Back at camp, I sit in the shade with Clifford, playing the flute while he reads. As the shadows grow longer, I build a campfire and write in my journal by the warmth of the flames. We make nachos for dinner using the last of the ingredients, and the cooler is almost empty. Good timing, as we will be home tomorrow.
Wednesday September 17: We’ve enjoyed our brief stay here by Sullivan Lake, but pack up after breakfast and head south and then east on I-90, arriving home by late afternoon.
It was a great trip; I am grateful that we had the opportunity to visit Canada, and I look forward to exploring more of that beautiful country next summer.
Sunday September 14: Sitting on a log in the sun rather than at a campfire this morning, I enjoy the beautiful blue sky, sunlight on tree branches, and the promise of a warm day. Read from the Course in Miracles “I see nothing as it is now” – but what am I seeing if I don’t see it as it is now? Unless it means I don’t see the Whole Truth of the river, the blue sky, the tree, and so on. That concept I can understand – who can know the Whole Truth of anything? But the way it is explained does not resonate with me.
We take showers (thank goodness for sunshine) and then head to New Denver. Today I have a red latte – very tasty – with my sandwich. I upload a blog to wordpress and send some emails while Clifford does what he needs to do. After taking care of our internet business, we head down to the park alongside the lake. It sure is pretty here. I am really going to miss Rosebery, Slocan Lake, and New Denver.
Back at camp, I make my last campfire and we begin packing up the things that we won’t need in the morning.
Monday September 15: I get up as the sunshine comes through the trees.
Last morning at Rosebery
No time for a campfire this morning. Finish packing, make tea for the road, and within a couple of hours, our Pony home becomes a little rectangle to be pulled down the road behind the Blazer. Before we pull out of our spot, I go down to Wilson Creek to say good-bye.
As we travel south on highway 6, we pull into a scenic overlook so I can say good-bye to Slocan Lake.
Good-bye, good-bye. But I’ll be back! Then on to Nelson.
We had heard about Nelson, a town we should visit while in British Columbia. Once we get there, we discover it is very difficult to find parking when traveling with an RV. Eventually we find a spot at the far end of town and walk uphill to the main downtown, which, like other tourist towns, is filled with galleries, gift shops, and cafes. If a person has money to spend, then Nelson would be lots of fun. But I have neither the money nor the need to buy stuff. After a little lunch, we walk the streets looking at all the attractive wares, but I am glad when we head back to the Blazer and hit the road.
We are going home by way of Coville National Forest in eastern Washington and our destination is a small reservoir called Sullivan Lake.
Several campgrounds are shown on the map, but the first two we come to are closed. Luckily, we spot a small 10-site campground not too much further along and since there is only an hour of daylight left, we quickly find a spot and begin setting up, keeping it as simple as possible since we won’t be here long. It may not be Rosebery, BC, but it is a pretty spot surrounded by big old trees and a little lake nearby.
Some health issues have reared up again today: heart palpitations and the sound of my heart beating in my eardrum and a headache (very unusually for me). Obviously something is not as it should be. Going to have to look into this once we get back home. But in the meantime, I am glad when the Pony is set up and we have a moment to walk down to the lake as dusk becomes night. A peaceful close to our journey today.
