The Nomadic Neuman's
July 2004 Travel Log

July 1, 2004
Lewis & Clark Resort      Kamiah, ID
We thought we'd be staying here for several days where Chuck, Christopher & Sandy would later join us but.....
There was no satellite and no phone reception. Not good for us!
It was a beautiful area, though, so we drove around that evening to see the sights,


The yellow fields, the grazing cattle, the view of Kamiah from the mountain above all made for a pleasant drive.

We followed a road that ended up just ending......
they were building at one section at a time out throught the mountainous wilderness.

July 3, 2004
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
Chuck arrived from Olympia and Chris gave us a quick tour of the area in his new car!
We love trying new "hamburger joints", so we had lunch at Paul Bunyan Burgers. Not too bad.


Happy 4th of July !

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
Sandy arrived late the night before and in the morning, siblings together again,
We all made breakfast with Chuck including a Mickey Mouse pancake for Sandy.
     
That evening, Chris brought us to a spot in the hills surrounding Coeur d'Alene Lake where
locals gathered for the annual fireworks display. Here we grilled hot dogs & burgers before the show.

      
After the big show, both Dan & Chuck had fun with their share of fireworks & sparklers as we watched.


July 5, 2004
We took an informative & relaxing boat cruise around Lake Couer d'Alene.
Osprey nest in this beautiful area and the pilons along the shores were filled with nests & birds.


   
Coeur d'Alene Golf Course & Resort
For you golfer's.....this is the country's only "floating green". A boat ride out to the 14th green, if you make the shot!

After the cruise, we walked aroung the beach & downtown area for a bit, seeing colorful moose on nearly every corner.
It's a very nice city with lots of activities for the whole family.
  

July 6, 2004
Libby, Montana
We said our goodbyes to Chris & Chuck before heading out for a week with Sandy as a house-guest.
We boondocked in Libby, MT a cute & quiet town in the foothills of the Rockies.
Next day when I called Tara, she informed me of the controversy of asbestos poisoning with a well known mining company in that town. Apparently it has one of the highest cancer death rates in the country related to the various mining projects. Remnants of the mines can be seen all over if you look.

  
   
July 7, 2004
Downstream from Libby, the Kootenai River enters a canyon and flows over Kootenai Falls,
one of the largest free-flowing waterfalls in the northwest. The falls and surrounding area are considered sacred to the Kootenai Indians whose ancestors inhabited the region. A forest trail leads from the highway parking lot
down to the Swinging Bridge and makes a nice hike that is not too strenuous.
Kootenai Falls was the setting for the filming of the movie, "River Wild".

     

It was really beautiful here, and the swinging bridge was fun to cross.
 
          
Below, on the hike back to the car, a train sped by right under the walkway.
   

We had a bit of a wait as the local emergency crews assisted a motor home fire on the bridge ahead.
Luckily, no one was hurt, but the home was lost. This Harley Davidson group sure was a sight to see....
I kept thinking how excited my grandson, Jacob, would be to see them!


Alberta, Canada
Waterton Lakes National Park
Seeing rainbows....always so special!

Red Rock Canyon was beautiful. It seemed so different from the rest of the area.


Brrrrrrrrr......... It was a windy 58 degrees here, but what a sight!

My photo just doesn't do these falls justice.      
We had quite a hike to get here, but it was worth it.

This deer wandered around Waterton Township grazing and keeping the tourists' cameras snapping.
Driving around the area we met this trio of friendly horses!
     
Prince of Wales Hotel literally stands above the rest. High on a bluff, above the township and the lake of Waterton.

Waterton Village from above.

Back in the USA
July 9 & 10, 2004
"Chewing Blackbones RV Park & Campground where we stayed during our visit to Glacier National Park.
A pretty sunset view of Lower St. Mary Lake from our coach!

Glacier National Park, Montana
Rainbows & more on our drive across the middle of the park on "Road to the Rising Sun".
This is what's known as "The Weeping Wall". The whole drive was incredible.

Waterfalls, wildlife, tunnels and much, much more.
      

Below is a very scenic photo of Lake McDonald and a close up view of the surrounding snow-capped mpountains.
   
 
We boon docked for a couple of nights on our way back to Spokane, WA .
July 13-17, 2004
Kahnderosa Campground    Cataldo, Idaho
A nice, quiet campground where we stayed for 5 days taking care of business
after we dropped Sandy off at the Spokane Airport.

There was a small group of the white supremist group from the Aryan Nation staying on the other side of the park for their annual parade in downtown Coeur d'Alene. This group of FBI?/police officers were stationed just outside the entrance just in case some protesters might make some trouble. Kind of strange to see!

Cute bathroom signs.

I guess you can tell by now that Dan & I prefer finding spots near water!
We find it so soothing & peaceful.
July 18 - 20, 2004
Haugan, Montana
The 10,000 Silver Dollar offered free RV parking with 30/50 amp electricity included in back of their business.
Rex the owner was a pleasant man who gave us permission to stay for a few days while we explored
the surrounding local towns. As you'll see below, this is some beautiful country with lots of mining history.
  

Camel's Hump in Montana?    We even spent time driving through Paradise!
The tiny, old jail with bars on every window was in Plains, MT, just down the road from Paradise.
Very scenic country, we enjoyed exploring the back roads.
 
   
   

One day we drove the Jeep into Wallace, Idaho for an interesting silver mine tour given by a Norwegian, Lenny.

   
      

This was a separate exit off the I-90, an unusual spot we couldn't find any info on
but we assume its' fountains were made from mining parts.

          

July 21 - 23, 2004
Missoula, MT
We finally got to see some herds of buffalo at the National Bison Range in Boise, MT, very exciting!
Boy, did they snort. This was a 19 mile drive through the widely varied range of forest, hills & plains.

This collection of antlers was outside the ranger entrance station.
Apparently there are quite a few deer & antelope on the range but we weren't fortunate enough to see but a few.
   
We also saw these unusual cows on the drive home.


July 24 - 30, 2004
Butte, Montana

Here we found a small, quiet RV park where we'll stay for a week getting our taxes finished.
New Client------2 Bar Lazy H RV Park
 How wonderful too help another RV Park get presence on the Web!
 

Butte is a wonderful, old town filled with working & non-working mines and lots of history.



This Berkeley Pit is a tourist attraction for some reason. The mine closed and they let it fill with water.
We think it would have been more interesting to see the mile deep hole instead of lake!


Old Lexington Gardens was an interesting display of the mine stamping history.
   


July 29, 2004
2 Bar Lazy H RV Park     Butte MT
We've had a nice week here, aside from doing the "dreaded taxes".
This evening the Montana Moon came out at dusk and we enjoyed it on our evening walk.



July 30, 2004
Evel Knievel Days in Butte MT
Wow, the sreets were filled with people, bikes and more people!
These dare devils really put on quite a show.



This young, professional biker never let his feet touch the ground for his entire 30 minute show. Quite a balancing act.
Not to mention his skill jumping over these 7 kids! All the young kids were so awed.

This is a 12 year old biker about to ride in the cage on the right. Glad he wasn't my son.
But I know my grandson Jacob would have been just as awed as the other boys there!
     
Thanks for visiting our travel site!

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