Coeur d'Alene, Idaho 8/13 - 8/17

From: casarollnotes.blogspot.com 

Tim and Linda Bunyan

Coeur d'Alene We have arrived Jim and Linda Drinkard's front yard to find Rob and Sandy Connelly right in the middle of it....so we join, right into the driveway!
Linda greeting us to their neighborhood.

A good road trip connects us with childhood rides with the family station wagon.  A good road trip reminds us of the history and allure of our country provided to us to experience by our designed highway system for all.

Visiting Bill and Jane at their house.....and they are making room in front of Rob and Sandy.  There is something decidedly freeing about hitting the open road.  Traveling in your self-contained world with loved ones and a few possessions tweak a hidden longing we all possess.

Next door to Jim and Linda is the Munster's Mobile.  The young boy from the show is now grown to be near our age.  He shows this vehicle around to Festivals keeping the memories of the show to the next generation.  

Jim and Tim were happy to help polish. Everyone is a movie star!

Jim and Linda have a Birthday Party for Tim, 8/14/1956!
BBQ, cake, and friends: Rob and Sandy and Bill and Jane.

Today we are going boating!  Jim and Bill have partnered this boat moored at the CDA Lake and we are set to spend the day in the warm sunshine and........the water is warm, perfect to dive in and go for a swim from the HouseBoat Dock!  A perfect way to spend the day!!!

 

Packing supplies, Rob with Sandy and Tim at the dock.

 Sandy Connelly

 Tim and Bill

 Bill and Jane, Rob  Sofia and the adopted boy.

 

Tim sitting on the House Boat Dock.  We have the Lake to ourselves ....and an island !!!

T

The House Boat 'Rocks'!!! 

 

Sunbathing after our swim!

Rob tames the Mighty Bull!

Bill has IT !!! 

and I've the Horsepower!!! 

Rob and Sandy and Bill and Sandy (pants) !!! 

 

We land back at Bill and Janes's house for comfort and sundown at the balcony patio.

Time to round up the wagons: Jim and Linda, and Rob and Sandy are driving their rigs with us heading south from CDA to Yellowstone National Park !!!

We make an overnight stop at Indian Creek RV Camp Ground in Deer Lodge, Montana

Jim convinces all of us to take a ride into the town of Deer Lodge and we sure are glad he packed us into his car to drive-thru town because we found ourselves a real live RODEO!  The Tri County Fair type and we fit right in with our $5.00 entrance fee at the corral entrance and gain us seats in the stadium for some cowboy roping and rodeo burgers! 

Rob and Sanday and other cowboys too!

The next day Jim with Teddy (Linda is going to meet up as she is on her way to Napa to greet in her new grandchild!)  pull into his Delux RV Campground in West Yellowstone.  It's clean gravel and paved spaces and has full hookups! 

 Tim and Linda stopped by Steve and Rita's Delux fishing hole in Ennis in the Madison Valley along the beautiful Madison River!

 Lewis and Clark traveled nearby at the Caverns on their return trip on Jefferson River, U.S. 359, Cattle Country now.  

We have reached Yellowstone National Park !!!!   Rob and Sandy have remained with Steve and Rita and heading back to their home in Nevada.  Jim is with us and Phil and Tracey Chovanec are greeting us here at the RV Park!  It is wonderful to meet up with friends during our 2019 Travel Tour.....makes the experiences all the 'richer' in memories and shared explorations!!!

We are at Buffalo Crossing RV Park in West Yellowstone

Sedro-Wooley-KlausReunion; heading East to CDA 8/12 - 8/13

From: casarollnotes.blogspot.com 

Tim and Linda Bunyan

Sedro-Wooley, the town where I was born, remains the ideal location for the Klaus Family Reunion.

We stopped at this corner for lemonade.  Three boys on the corner marketing with their sign and ice chest.  Warmed my heart to see these young men joyful and doing what I recall as a young girl about the same age...…. nearly 50 years ago!









 We are heading east from here so the local waste treatment plant has a dump station we are able to drive-thru to begin our eastward journey.

Here is some of the family at the Klaus Reunion.  Christine is speaking.

Tim with Keith Klaus and Barb Klaus with the Klaus Family Reunion T-shirt....She's got the spunk!

Here is the group as much as would fit in the picture.  Many children are out running around and playing in the park.

Mike and Christine are the lead in organizing the Klaus Family reunion and the park setting is perfect and all bring a side dish and chicken is the main course.  The children abound and there are happy sounds to this group.  Barb and Bev and Keith remain the mainstays and Terry is here for the day with Angela by her side.  We say goodbye to family and so glad we planned our 2019 Travel Tour to be at the Family Reunion in WA in August.  So fine to see everyone together!

We are headed east to CDA and onward to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons.  This 2019 Travel Tour began in May at Connelly's, in Nevada.  We traveled up the Oregon coast and around the WA Olympic Peninsula to Mike and Paul and the Alwood Family Reunion in Bow, and the Klaus Family Reunion in Sedro Wooley.  Now, August, heading to Idaho to take in some more National Parks!
North Cascade Scenic Byway
We choose the long road heading east and glad we did for the day drive is delightful as wandering through a forest and along lakes and rivers.

 Lunch Stop in the parking lot; behind this trailer, an attractive dumpster.

.We are driving Highway 20 along the beautiful Baker River, passing by the Nehalem North Cascades National Park in alpine and heather scenery.  The Cascade Loop through Winthrop is some backcountry on the 'east' side of WA.  passing by Ross Lake, Blue Lake, and Cutthroat Lake over the WA Pass, leaving the North Cascade Scenic Byway to find Methow River and Old Vardan Creek to reach Alta Lake at Highway 17 to the hills of Apples.  

Huge warehouses and stacks of crates will with apples ready for distribution.  Apple orchards are fed by the water diverted by the Grand Coulee Dam!

 

  

 We turn to WA 174 East passed Chief Joseph Dam to the Grand Coulee RV Park just near the Grand Coulee Dam in Coulee City, 
Hwy 2.
The Grand, on the Columbia River (1,243 miles long), is the largest power station in the United States at over 6,000 MW capacity.

 Here we are at the Grand Coulee RV Park

 The Grand Coulee Dam premiers a light show at night!

 It is spectacular!

We toured the generating plant.

 

 The Generators

It is time to continue from the East side of the WA cascades to CDA; we've friends awaiting our arrival.  Rob and Sandy Connelly have planned to meet up with us at Jim and Linda Drinkard's home on the golf course in CDA.

 Fueling UP from WA to Couer d' Alene, Idaho!