Daily Bread, Daily Blessings
May 2021
A simple listing of a few of the blessings I encountered (or perhaps simply noticed!) throughout the day. I consider these as much my 'daily bread' as the food I put into my mouth.
Thanks be to God!
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Monday, May 17, 2021
Montana Habitat Build May 2021
JOURNAL
FLATHEAD HABITAT TRIP
May 7 – May 24, 2021
Friday, May 7
Baker City to McKay’s Bend BLM Park (East of Lewiston)
246 miles
We are off on our first ‘unofficial Habitat CAV’ build since construction of our own home in 2019 and the Covid Pandemic of 2020. (We went to Kalispell for a couple weeks in October of 2020, working just with Tom Hinkle on a drop in basis.)
Excited for we will be seeing some CAV friends we haven’t seen in several years, especially Clint and Kathy Norrell!
Smooth sailing (in spite of some strong headwinds) until near Emigrant Springs State Park when we came to “Rolling Slowdown” signs...two pilot cars led both lanes of traffic in addition to a state trooper with flashers going. This continued ALL THE WAY PAST the Mission exit at the bottom of the hill. We never saw a sign of construction, accidents, NOTHING that might indicate the reason for the slow parade. Fortunately we were turning off at the casino exit and heading north!
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| Green fields and fluffy clouds in eastern Washington |
Rick drove the whole way today. We stopped for gas in Milton Freewater, then into Washington (surprised that gas prices were comparable for once in the Evergreen State!). The green hills of winter wheat, spring wheat, and who knows what else were GORGEOUS! So many shades of green.
New highway today! Instead of heading north on towards Colfax, we stay on US 12 through Pomeroy (quick stop for a drink and potty!) toward Clarkston and the Lewiston, ID border. This route makes sense because we are heading up the Lochsa to Rusty’s south of Missoula, but otherwise we agree that the upper Palouse is prettier!
About 8 miles west of Clarkston we meet up with the Snake River and follow it to the border and a bypass of Lewiston. We were beginning to wonder if we would pass the necessary gas station, but we found one on the east side as we left the congestion. Then it is just a quick 18 miles up the Clearwater River to McKay’s Bend RV Park, run by the BLM, which means our Senior Pass gives us half price! Full hookups for $9 a night! (All we use is the electric, but still!) We deliberately left early this morning to make sure we could get one of the 14 sites before they filled for the weekend. (And as I write tonight at 8:30 pm, there are still a couple sites empty!)
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| Lupine is gorgeous near the river |
A very well maintained campground with resident hosts which explains a lot! We are parked in Site #1. You can hear the highway noise, but it isn’t obnoxious. After getting settled and paid, Rick and I take a walk down to the river, along the bank for awhile, marveling at the beautiful lupine that are partially submerged by the high water levels! They a loop around the homes on the bend – all beautifully maintained.
Afternoon spent relaxing, eating some leftover salmon and salad, and then finding my log to reminisce of when we were where for Habitat builds over the years!
For the record:
2012 Pagosa Springs CO, Las Cruces NM
2013 Hobbs NM, Las Cruces (DropIn), Mankato MN, Coatsville PA
2014 Las Cruces NM, Silver City NM, Columbia Falls MT (S & F), Belgrade MT
2015 Libby, Kalispell (S & F)
2016 Mason TX, Tuscaloosa AL, Kalispell (Spring, Fall, Nov)
2017 Kalispell, Rexburg ID
2018 Kalispell (Across the Street)
2020 Lakeside (Kalispell)
2021 Lakeside!!! (Kalispell)
We were signed up for 2 more Kalispell and 1 Libby that we had to pull out of, either due to Mom or High Country Lane building.
Rainfall and high winds on and off for about an hour late afternoon, but calming down for a clearer….cooler….evening!
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| Clearwater River and lupine at McKay's Bend Campground |
Saturday, May 8
McKay’s Bend to Rusty Munn, Corvallis, MT
220 miles
What a good night’s sleep when you go to bed at 9:20 MT (which was REALLY 8:20 Pacific Time!) It felt good! Still up early to wander around campground stretching my legs before we hit the road again. I did manage to get in my steps yesterday! We are on the road by 8:10 to wind our way up the Clearwater and Lochsa Rivers to the Montana border and then down to Rusty’s house!
It is a cool damp day. We encounter a little light rain in places, but mostly dry. The clouds are wisps drifting in and out of the hills. Quick stop in Orofino to top off the tank and get some coffee. At the town of Lowell we officially are on the Lochsa River, famed for his kayak and river rafting. We saw lots of rafting camps and trucks and trailers, but under 10 I on the water. Cold and wet day!!
The Lochsa is NOT the fastest route – it is a winIdy curvy road, but beautiful as it traces the river through narrow canyons. Up ahead in places we could see the snowline as sharp as if God drew it with a white pen! Basically we had over a 100 miles of river to drive – a bit more taxing for Rick….no guard rails, a few pot holes, and narrow lanes. What turnouts there were for our slower passage we often short.
Near the top of Lolo Pass we did indeed run into falling snow – the trees were flocked with fresh flakes. It was beautiful! Then over the pass and within just a few miles, or so it seemed, we are out of the snow. This thirty mile section of US 12 as it drops down into Lolo has been the site of many a wildfire over the years. You can see hillsides in all stages of recovery.
A stop in Lolo to top off the tank once again – thrilled to be back in Montana and prices under the $3 mark!! Thirty more miles south on Highway 93 and we turn off on Dutch Hill Road for the 2 miles to Rusty’s place, where we circle in the pasture and tuck the trailer in next to the fence along the driveway.
And a delightful afternoon and evening! Rusty’s place sits up on a bench on the west side of the valley, with a deep notch into the Bitterroot Mts on one side and the expanse of the valley and the Sapphire Mts on the other. He has about 4 acres with a big old yellow farmhouse that is filled with both his art collections and Anne’s (which is quite extensive!) We had planned to visit the local tap house with its outdoor seating and tremendous views, but with the weather still in the 40’s and damp, it would NOT be a fun night!
So...we pull out some chicken and a prebaked scalloped potatoes and I provide the bread and tossed salad. Rusty had purchased a bottle of wine just for me and a fine claret for he and Rick to share. He told me to take the rest of my bottle with me….(and I will for I know Rusty doesn’t care for my sweet wines!)
We sit for hours visiting in the little round breakfast nook with windows on all sides where you can see both ranges of mountains. After a couple showers, Rusty brings out a dessert concoction of ice cream, Baileys, raspberries and chocolate. So good! Anne calls around 8:30 to say HI from Tennessee.
Out to the trailer around 9 to relax for a bit and hit the sack.
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| Driving up the Lochsa with misty clouds on the mountains. |
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| We found 'winter' at the top of Lolo Pass! |
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| Parked in front of Rusty's shop/barn. |
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| The amazing cleft in the Bitterroot Mountains just west of Rusty's. |
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| Rusty's classic yellow farmhouse from the front. |
MOTHER’S DAY, May 9
Corvallis, MT to Lakeside, MT
149 miles
Well, the weather doesn’t appear to have cleared at all – still clouds and a dampness to the air! I am up around 6:20am to work on devotion and watch the quail that are landing on the fence right outside the trailer window! I see Rusty outside filling the birdfeeders!
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| Parting shot photo of the three of us. |
We enjoy a relaxing morning of conversation, bacon and eggs and pumpkin scones, and shortly before 11 Rick and I pull out to head north! It is a 3 hour drive up to Lakeside (actually Kalispell) and we have a stop to make in Missoula at the Walmart! (Not realizing we would pass another one in Polson.) Final stock up of a few groceries, new bathroom rug for trailer, etc.
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| Mission Mountains near St. Ignatius, MT |
I take a few pictures of the Mission Mountains near St. Ignatius, but the clouds are hovering low (and raining at times!) Better the rain today than later in the week when we want to be working! The Flathead Lake is low – more beaches showing that we are accustomed to along the drive up the west side.
We arrive around 3pm, assigned spot #21, and get all settled into our site, after kibitzing with Norrells and Gary and Tom for abit. First time to actually hook up the water, sewer, TV cable, and turn on the gas! So it takes a little longer!
Happy Hour time in Tom’s rig (we are all vaccinated!) from 4 to 6. Lots of laughter and memories. Back to trailer for a bite of dinner, Rick takes a shower (the bathrooms are quite nice) while I walk around the park getting in a few more steps. The boys call around 7:30 and we talk for two hours!!
No work tomorrow …. I just have to remember I have a Session meeting at 6:30pm!
Monday, May 10
Off Day
C
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| My only picture for the day, taken at the build site! |
would be usual for a 6 month period between our visits.
I picked up a book in the lounge next to the laundry yesterday and began to read it after doing several Soduko puzzles! Rick started the laundry around 3:30 and we had Happy Hour in Tom’s rig again around 4pm. Back at 6 for a quick dinner and then over to the lounge to set up for my Google Meets Session meeting at 6:30.
Back to trailer around 8:15...read and write for abit, and prep for tomorrow’s first day on the job!
TUESDAY, May 11
Creekside Build Day 1
A partially sunny/cloudy morning greets us – the sunrise over Flathead Lake beautiful in the distance. Up and prep for the day and by 7:45 we are headed up the hill to Creekside Subdivision and the 5 homes being built. Steve and the Americorp NCCC crew arrive right at 8 and we gather for about a half hour up by the office trailer for introductions, laughter, stories, and figuring out the status of the build.
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| Opening introductions and instructions with Steve (plus a story or two!) |
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| Front of garage still needs siding, plus front porch area |
We break briefly around 11 and then again at 12:15 for lunch, which we ate INSIDE the heated house! The day is overcast and sunny, with a light breeze coming up in the afternoon. Late in the morning we had to stop siding to move scaffolding from the east side of the house and set it up along the garage wall so we could work on up the higher wall. I LOVE tearing down and moving scaffolding! (Sic!)
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| Rick takes a measurement around the eyebrow. |
We had one big clap of thunder and a lightning bolt during Happy Hour and then a pretty steady drizzle for a half hour. Intermittent rain the rest of the evening.
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| Rick and Karen take a measurement. Gary is our cutter! |
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| Our accomplishment for the day! |
Wednesday, May 12
Creekside Build Day 2
Siding and Eyebrows!
Not quite as cold last night, but since we only ran one heater, the trailer was a chilly 51 degrees when I got up! But as the sun came up, things started to warm. Weird morning as the fog drifted in from the lake as we were preparing to leave, but by the time we got up to the job site the sun was shining.
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| I confess this is photoshopped because the birds flew away just as I clicked the camera! |
A full crew today as it is a regular workday for local volunteers. We see folks we know – Steve Maneras, Pete M from Whitehorse, plus several we just met last October. A total of 16 volunteers today – the most in LONG time according to Steve!
Steve deploys all the locals to the homes across the street, while our group continues to work on the townhouse. Tom, after finishing up some more ‘fixes’, joins Clint and Kathy on the backporch. Rick is set to work on the eyebrow roofing, but when Steve can’t find the flashing he wants and runs to get it, Rick lines up more walls with the storyboard in prep for siding. Gary, Karen, and I put up the siding on both sides of the garage opening, and then spend the rest of the day inside the front porch! A few glitches along the way which we have to take care of, but all in all, a good day!
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| I visited the back of the house long enough to snap a picture of Clint, Kathy, and Tom! |
We were able to eat lunch outside today in the sunshine. My regret is that with Covid, there was no intermixing with the local volunteers except during orientation. Plenty of jovial banter then, however!
We don’t start cleanup until 2:45, so it is easily 3:15 before we head for home. Back to camp and we remember that we talked of having Happy Hour outside today, so Rick drives back up to site and gets all the chairs out of the closet we had put them in...just in case. As it turns out, Gary was cold and we had HH inside their trailer!
Quiet evening. I am nearly done with the book I picked up in the lounge!
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| Steve goes over the eyebrow roof with Rick |
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| Rick works on the eyebrow roofing project |
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| Just a few boards left to finish the front door alcove! |
THURSDAY, May 13
Creekside Build Day 3
Eyebrows, Siding, and Scaffolding!
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| Karen and I measure across door so Gary can cut the final piece! |
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| Rick puts up another sheet of roofing |
Another day on the job! It rained again lightly shortly after we went to bed and clouds dot the sky this morning. But the sun is trying to break through!
Today it is again just our 7 and the 3 NCCC youth. Kelsie and Kathy are asked to paint soffits today, while Phoebe and Christian continue up on the roof. It is Phoebe’s birthday and we were hoping she would have a present of a finished roof but I don’t think it happened. Close, but not quite!
Clint and Tom continue to work on the back porch, altho Tom has to leave at 10 to pick up his son Adam from the airport! We will have an additional worker for two days! Rick finishes up the final touch on his first eyebrow and moves on to the second one. He is done with it shortly before lunch – experience helps! Then he moves more scaffolding so we can move on up the wall to the big gables high overhead.
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| Rick's finished (almost) roofing job on Eyebrow #2 |
Gary, Karen, and I work back and forth from under Rick’s eyebrow to the front porch – trying to get the bottom layers of siding up before scaffolding covers the entire wall (which is so much harder to work around!) We have a few boards to finish the porch, and then a few more when Steve tells us we CAN go up to the ceiling above the doorway!
Overall? A good day. We need to meet with Steve in the morning to complete the siding right around the eyebrow (an awkward spot is an understatement!) And then we are prepped to move up the wall to the gable top. Rick spent much of the afternoon tearing apart scaffolding and moving it to form the next layer necessary for the gable.
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| All done for the day! The upper gable looks daunting! |
Done by 3 today! Skies have cleared (although raindrops continue to fall intermittently between sunny skies). By the time Happy Hour starts at 4:30 I have finished reading my book, showered, and enjoyed just sitting in the sunshine! Tom is hosting today and we all get a chance to visit with Adam, who has heard all our names but never seen the faces. Sunday and Monday they are taking off to do a little exploring before Adam flies back to Illinois on Tuesday.
Friday, May 14
CREEKSIDE HABITAT BUILD DAY 4
Soffits,
Sheetrock, and Siding (and more Scaffolding!)
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| Our starting point for the morning. |
Rick spent the day on the north side of the street helping to install soffits in Dawn’s house – all across the back of the house. He also put up sheetrock in some of the closets so the HVAC guy could finish up his work. He had two locals working with him.
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| While I wait for boards to be cut, plenty of beautiful trees and sky for viewing! |
We stopped enroute home today to pick up a few groceries at the little Blacktail Market here in Lakeside. Bought two frozen dinners for evening meal!
Happy Hour and then a quiet evening reading, writing, and relaxing.
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| Taking measurements from up on high. |
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| ALMOST to the top!! |
SATURDAY, MAY 15
CREEKSIDE HABITAT BUILD DAY 5
Soffits, Siding, and Scaffolding (Again!)
Whew! This working five days in a row is hard work! But it is a BEAUTIFUL day in the neighborhood – sunshine and a few clouds dot the blue skies!
Saturday is pretty much the build day for the homeowners and today both Betty and Hosanna show up ready to put in some hours. Hosanna was hoping her husband John could come, but he ended up working. She is paired up with Rick to work the soffits on Dawn’s house, a job Rick started on Friday. Christian, one of the NCCC crew, is also on their team. Rick later said it was a joy working with Hosanna.
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| A little fuzzy, but I caught a picture of Rick and Hosanna on the other side of the street! |
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| The corner that gave us so much trouble! |
Steve had run to town to get supplies after getting all groups going, but around 11:30 EVERYONE had questions, so we took a lunch break early!!
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| End of day? Just the two boards over the eyebrow! |
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| Early day accompklishment - All the way to the top of east gable. |
We are all heading up to Somers and Steve’s place for campfire and dinner tonight. We discuss who was bringing what during lunch – originally it sounded like appetizer Happy Hour menu – but at the dinner hour, so….Rick volunteered that we would pick up a couple of pizzas, Tom said he’d bring desert of pies, Karen a salad, and Norrells ice cream and a growler of beer! So when we got back to the trailer, we looked up the menu at the Stagecoach Pizza here in town and called in our order – a cheeseburger pizza (including the pickles!) and BBQ chicken and bacon with pineapple.
All converge on Steve’s place in Somers (which is just down the block from the next five lots for Habitat homes when Creekside is finished) around 5:30 and we enjoy three hours of fun and laughter and sharing. Lisa had prepared a couple of treats as well, and the pizzas were a hit. As were the marionberry and cherry pies! Found out that the NCCC kids are done at the end of next week as well. Surprise of the evening was Clint’s presentation to ME! of a cartoon. I was really touched!
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| Rick, Lisa, Steve, Gary, and Karen around fire pit. |
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| Kathy, Clint, Adam, Tom and back to Rick. We did eventually light the fire! |
Heading back down to Lakeside around 8:45 and into the park by 9. Everyone is going in a different direction tomorrow! Neighbours down to Arlee for a Dog Competition, Tom and Adam to Loon Lake to scatter some of Diane’s ashes, and Norrells to ???.
SUNDAY, MAY 16
Day Off – Bigfork and Laundry!
Today is forecast to be the warmest day of the year so far. We have a leisurely morning and by the time we leave around 10 to head around the top of the lake to BigFork, there is a steady stream of cars heading south along Highway 93. But we are going north! A bit hazy today, but the mountains and farms are beautiful as we wind around into BigFork. I was using the google directions to the laundromat I found, but there was major construction going on in the center of town, which closed the road right where we needed to go! Had to back track, and then we couldn’t find the laundromat. Got out and searched. Rick found it! We were the first ones there and in an hour and half we were done! A little more expensive, but everything clean and worked!
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| Bear water feature in a BigFork plaza |
We then wandered up and down main street of BigFork, checking out some shops, the little plazas and sculptures. Town seemed busy for the middle of May. A few postcards and then we found a creche in a shop that was marked down! Hurray! We were going to eat at the Brewery, but discovered it was closed on Sundays. A stop at the market in BigFork for a few groceries plus some deli salads and then back to Lakeside.
We defrost the ham and enjoy a meal out on the picnic table of ham, baked beans, homemade bread, and either broccoli or macaroni salad. A little reading in the sunshine, a walk up and down the length of Lakeside and around Volunteer Waterfront Park, and then an hour plus of conversation with Adam while showing him the trailer.
Tomorrow?? Blacktail Mountain exploration!
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| We've seen the Little Library Exchanges before, but never one with a prayer box as well. The paper slips indicated a local church that includes the prayers with their own on Sunday mornings! |
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| Another plaza off Main Street boasted ....what else? A BIG FORK! |
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| Our evening walk down to Volunteer Park and back revealed the majesty of the Swan Mountains east of Flathead Lake. The park was swarming with kids and youth in bathing suits, kayaks near the shoreline, and in general folks enjoying a Sunday of warm weather! |
Monday, May 17
Exploring Blacktail Mountain
Our destination today is not overly ambitious, but rather exploratory! If we get a mile or so hike included….great!
We are on the road around 9:15 am headed up Blacktail Road toward the top of the mountain we see each day from Creekside. I am on a quest to find out if that white dome is an observatory! The road is windy and about halfway to the top it changes from pavement to gravel, but GOOD gravel! This area has been heavily logged and section are clearcut, save for the tamarack trees. The higher we climb, the better the views in the distance, altho the morning seems to be a bit hazy (it improves as the day wears on!)
I took a lot of pictures, as did Rick, so will simply post and comment in the captions!
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| View of Flathead Lake southern end from part way up Blacktail Road |
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| The shadow looks like a giant mouse head, but the cornice was.... |
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| ....drip, drip, dripping! |
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| It was a sizable snow bank along the road! |
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| Warning signs at the top of Blacktail Mountain regarding.... |
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| ....what I will call the giant alien soccer ball! From the build site, all you can see is the white dome and I thought it was an observatory. |
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| Turns out it WAS a radar station during the Cold War and the Youth With a Mission Camp next to the build site was an Air Force encampment. The radar has been dismantled and now it functions for air traffic control. |
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| View from top of ski area toward the Swan Range |
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| Blacktail Mt Ski lodge - the ski area opened around 1998. It is unique in that the lodge is at the TOP of the lifts. |
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| Rick found another snow sculpture! |
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| Not pussy willows, but definitely fuzzy! |
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| Just a few of the cell towers at the top of the mountain. |
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| Across the lake toward BigFork and Mt Aneas |
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| The tamarack trees have been spectacular! |
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| Wish we could identify some of these peaks! |
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| Example of all the logging - bright green larch trees! |
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| Classic little church along the highway in Lakeside. |
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| We walked down to the Tamarack Brewery after cleaning up! Rick had a salmon sandwich and I tried a buffalo taco! Good - we brought home our leftovers. |
Tuesday, May 18
Creekside Build Day 6
Siding the Gable!
What a change in the weather! From 80 degrees on Monday, the clouds BLEW in – low temps were higher than they have been and it was windy all night. (Rick kept getting up to see what was banging – finally found it was the blinds on the window over the sink!) High today is only forecast for 60 degrees and windy!
Small crew today. Tom is taking Adam back to the airport to fly home to Illinois. Just two NCCC youth. But...Garrett, Steve’s assistant is back from vacation and on the job. When Rick doesn’t have a partner for his soffit work, I grab him to help with the long spans we need to do on the gable. Much easier if Gary doesn’t have to keep climbing up the scaffolding! And Rick’s long arms will be quite helpful!
Rick guides us in relocating the scaffolding around the eyebrow, building the second layer on one set and then we lay the bridge across to the roof. Now we can access everything we need to reach. And…..by 11:30 we are done!! (At least up to ripping the backer boards and installing the belly band.)
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| Rick operates off the east gable roof as we mark studs, run chalk lines, and nail up the siding. |
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| Putting up the siding! I mostly sat on the bridge and measured, chalked, and nailed! |
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| Belly band on top of upper board and then board and batten to finish. |
After lunch we get the filler boards up and then work to fit the belly band into place. We discover we are just a few inches short of the pre-painted boards. After much discussion, I finally text Steve and ask for guidance. “Forget belly band for now and work on some of the other siding!” Which we did!
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| We got one side of the garage done while Rick marked all the corners on the other side. |
Close up promptly by 3pm, stop at store to get some goodies for Happy Hour as Jen Schultze and the kids are coming down to see us! In spite of the cooler temperatures and the breeze, we gather outside between Norrells and Tom. Jen is here for almost 2 hours!! Ethan showed up with a story for Rick and an ETHAN football card! Mahrias is wearing tie dye sandals! And little Isaiah is unstoppable. Jen shares the story of his club foot and treatment, we talk about home schooling and Mahrias going to high school next year. Rick takes the boys down to the lake to throw rocks! All of the current CAVs had worked with the Schultze family at some point so everyone knew Jen. It was a wonderful visit.
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| With my tie dye best friend - putting our hearts together! |
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| Rick (holding Isaiah), Mahrias, Ethan, and Jen |
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| Mahrias wore her new shoes just for me! Love them! |
Thankfully the 40 mph wind gusts haven’t seen to appear. Windy, but not such gusts. The skies are clearing and its a beautiful evening.
Wednesday, May 19
Creekside Build Day 7
Soffits, Scaffolding, and Siding (Again!)
Clouds have come in and the temps are definitely dropping! We have to pack up a few extras for warmth today!
And it is a regular work day for the local volunteers and with our crew we have another crowd of 15 on hand. NCCC is painting boards and roofing, Clint on a porch, Tom inside with dropped ceilings, Rick grabs two locals and continues his soffit work on Dawn’s house across the street, locals Pete and Larry put up the trim work on the dormers, and our siding crew went to work on the garage and front porch.
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| Rick's crew had to assemble scaffolding, then put up the gable soffit, then take the scaffolding apart and move to the next gable! |
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| One of the finished gables. |
But….other than boards up the
right side of the garage, we didn’t finish the long span on top
because Pete took our scaffolding! Not a problem as we turned to the
porch area, which basically took up the rest of the day! Lots of
easy cuts and lots of detail cuts around plugs, doors windows, and
trim work!
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| Measuring and marking for the siding boards inside the front door portico. |
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| The locals working on the dormer were right above us all afternoon. Made for cozy work quarters. |
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| Gary and Karen install the last board of the day. |
Happy Hour at Tom’s (Rick stayed ‘home’) and then a quiet evening. We did sign up for the Fall build this morning and cancelled out of Idaho Falls. (End of Sept – Beginning of October)
THURSDAY, May 20
Creekside Build Day 8
BellyBands and Boards, Siding!
Flathead Lake Brewery, Big Fork
Brrr! It is 40 degrees when we get up and I don’t think it got much about 47 or so all day long – with a nice 15 mph wind blowing off the Glacier Mountains! But...at least the forecast rain hasn’t (and didn’t) materialize and we were able to get a full day of work in.
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| Rick puts in the last piece of drip edge over our belly band. |
Just our 7 plus Garrett the assistant today. Steve gets everyone going and then leaves to do his usual Thursday paperwork. We don’t see him again the rest of the day. Kathy and Garrett paint siding boards over in Dawn’s house, while Tom and Clint work in the duplex in Betty’s side putting up false ceilings in places where ductwork needs to be hidden. They move to Robert’s side by the end of the day.
And Rick rejoins our siding crew today – a formidable job as the belly band for the front gable is ready to install along with a drip strip. We are able to finish all that off working from the current scaffolding/bridge set-up.
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| Waiting for delivery of another panel for the board and batten |
And then….we must go higher! So another layer of scaffolding, more planks, and the bridge is raised. We have to tie the upper scaffolding to the house, tie the bridge to the scaffolding, and also tie the lower ladder to the scaffold. Rick and I end up the only ones clear on the top bridge, and it is cold breezy work, being very careful to stay ON THE BRIDGE! We break early for lunch with the major portion of the gable covered in the center, but we needed to warm up and get off the heights for abit!
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| Rick takes a few final measurements right before lunch while Gary waits one level up. |
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| Lunch break and center portion of upper gable done. |
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| Karen took this shot from down below as Rick and I install the first board. |
After lunch, I took a break to snap some photos while Gary worked to cut our final two panels. Then back up on top and we had that job finished in no time. Can’t say I was disappointed to drop down off that level to ground floor!
We then finish up all the little jobs over the garage opening and the porch, ending the day by marking the story-board, moving siding, and prepping the walls on the back porch to start there tomorrow. The sun even TRIED to break through a bit this afternoon.
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| Front of house is finally all brown!! End of the day. |
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| End of day garage and front alcove all sided! |
Back to park and showers and we are all gathering at the Flathead Brewery over in Big Fork for dinner. We are in a back room with another group (a rather loud business meeting) and it is hard for our ‘hearing challenged’ group to carry on discussions. Tom and Clint at the end especially had trouble following the conversation, which was hard. But….good meals. Rick had Cajun chicken and because it took so much longer to bring out, the waitress comped his second beer! I had a ‘Garden Portabello’ – basically a pesto veggie feta stuffed portabello mushroom on a bed of spinach. Very good! I drove us back to the park (they didn’t have an sweet wines, so I told Rick enjoy his beers and I would drive!)
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| I really like this picture of Rick! (Also Kathy and Clint!) |
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| Gary and Karen Neighbours (and Tom!) |
Suppose to hit 34 tonight! Time for both heaters again!
FRIDAY, May 21
Creekside Build Day 9
Gable Corbels, Trim, Vents, and Batten
The one heater did it’s job and it was ‘only’ 51 in the trailer when I got up this morning! Slept toasty and warm! Today isn’t going to be much warmer than yesterday, but not quite as windy which will be nice!
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| Rick up in the rafters of the garage. |
Fridays are a ‘local volunteer’ build day, so we have a number of them show up to work – mostly on porches, soffits, and roofs on the north side of the street. Tom and Clint are back inside (with heaters!), and Gary and Karen tackle siding by themselves. Rick and I are back up on the ‘heights’!
Steve gives us our instructions for the day, and amazingly, we got it all done by 2:45 pm!! But….it was another day of multiple trips up the scaffolding (more than yesterday since I stayed up on top most of Thursday) and multiple trips to the saw in the back of the house. I had NO TROUBLE getting my steps in today!!
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| Rick putting up the trim around the vent. Corbels in place! |
Once the corbels were in place we moved to the soffit trim. Steve had been working to stay ahead of us because both trim and batten had to be ripped on the table saw before we could install. We had to play around briefly with the angles and then I did all the cutting, climbed the ladder and halfway up the scaffolding to hand to Rick, who then installed. A few recuts at times to get the fit right!
Visit today from Executive Director Bob and a fire burned in the wood pile across the road. Looked very appealing in the cool temperatures!
Happy Hour at Neighbours minus Clint and Kathy. Kathy wasn’t feeling well today and stayed at the park.
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| Rick installing the last of the battens....just about finished! |
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| Front of the duplex from the other side of the street |
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| Only included this because it is the BEST job I have EVER done on coiling up the air hose... all 100 feet of it! |
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| Close up of the finished gable. Trim will be painted around the vent, but not the battens. |
SATURDAY, May 22
Creekside Build Day 10
Siding!
Our last day to work! And it is a BEAUTIFUL morning! Sunshine and by 10am warmth enough to shed some layers of clothing! Homeowners are present today including John (Hosanna’s husband), Robert, and Betty. Dawn worked yesterday. We also have all the NCCC crew present except for Christian, so we got to meet the two young men we hadn’t met before.
Our team went to work – Kathy painting more siding, Tom and Clint doing detail trim outside the duplex, mostly covering up all the ‘bird nests’ in the soffits, Gary and Karen returning to their siding on the back. Steve asked Rick and I to finish a couple siding area – the front porch on Betty’s and a strip at the back of Betty’s house up high. It felt good to NOT be up on the scaffolding!
We finished our task around 11:15, and then went to help Gary and Karen. I saw a short wall that was about a third done, so took it upon myself to finish it up. Rick helped me rip the final top piece and I got it nailed in just as we were told to clean up. We are only working a half day today!
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| Gary and Karen siding the center back gable. |
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| Rick and I finished up the last panel plus on this side of Betty's house. |
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| While waiting for lunch I sided up the top 2/3 of this wall. |
It’s party time then! Lunch has been provided (for the first time in over a year) by Buffalo Terrace – all individually packaged due to Covid, but a full meal with cookie, chips, cheese stick, apple, and a huge sandwich! Rebecca, volunteer coordinator, was there, plus Bob the ED. Hosanna showed up with the family (although the 13 yr old daughter chose to remain in the van the entire lunch time) – and Rick immediately attached himself to the 2 ½ yr old Abigail and 1 ½ yr old James! Fun time and I think we were the last to leave along with Garrett, who introduced himself as Steve’s apprentice!
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| Rick found young friends in Hosanna and John's family! |
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| Homeowners Betty and Robert (duplex) sit at right end of table. Executive Bob and volunteer coordinator Rebecca behind Robert. |
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| Steve prepares to give his words of wisdom (and gratitude!) He unabashedly says we are his favorite group - largely because we don't have to be 'taught' every day! |
Back to the trailer to do a little preliminary cleanup and then relax in the wonderful sunshine! Happy Hour arrived all too soon and we asked one of the neighbors to take a photo of all of us as we exchanged our hugs and goodbyes. Rick and I will be out of here early, so our hugs were final for now!
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| After Happy Hour the guys all help Clint load up his kayak. |
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| We ask a neighboring trailer to take a group shot of all: Norrells, Rick and I, Tom, and Neighbours |
We fold up the front end, drain the tanks, and turn off the water so we can make a quick get-away in the morning!
SUNDAY, May 23
Lakeside to Baker City
499 miles
Pitter-patter! After a beautiful day Saturday, the sound of raindrops on the trailer canvas begins around 4 am. A good day to get out of Montana, as it is forecast 100% rain today! We are up at 5:50 and pretty much had the trailer ready to roll (even hitched up) after folding up back bed and unplugging the electric and cable. We pull out of Edgewater at 6:20 and by 6:25 are heading down the highway with hot coffee in our cups from the Conoco station!
Constant rain, varying from light to heavy, all down the west side of the lake and past Hot Springs. Clouds misting through the mountains are fascinating and by St. Regis, the roads are relatively dry. Good thing because I didn’t want snow on the highway when I drive over Lookout Pass! And it’s my turn to drive!
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| Clouds over mountain ridges as we drive down along Clark Fork toward St. Regis |
But first? Fresh coffee and a chance to check out the mountain artwork in the St. Regis truck stop. And then it’s highway time along I-90 to Couer d’Alene and the road south to Plummer. Rick’s turn again for the curvy two lane roads through the palouse of Washington. We try to figure out what the other crop that grows in this area is (besides wheat) and I later google it…..LENTILS! (Like 90% of the US lentil production!) So many shades of green and brown!
I drive from Milton Freewater to the rest stop just north of Ladd Canyon, encountering a little rain along the way over the Blues. Rick takes us home and we arrive around 3:30 pm Pacific time! Right around 10 hours driving time! And the Baker skies open up to winds and rain right as we try to unload the trailer! Half hour later the sun comes out and it is beautiful!
A good trip and lots of positive work done!
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