Traveling Moon Pass from Wallace to Avery

Since PKR and I have been immersed in the 1910 fire commemoration in one way or another this summer, I have wanted to drive to Avery over Moon Pass.  This week I got my wish.

On Tuesday, we didn't have anything planned during the day, so I suggested to Paul we drive to Avery.  He was up to it, so off we went.

I was awestruck by the beauty of the drive, and also the surprises in store that I didn't know existed.  Here are some pictures of our trip.

The Post Office and Museum in Avery.

The Milwaukee Road train car in Avery.

Inside the train car.

Who knew you drove inside of train tunnels on the road from Wallace to Avery.

Here is another.

And another.

This one was a little longer.

You see the bottom of the start of the Hiawatha Bike Trail on your way.

The Beautiful North Fork of the St. Joe River.

Burned snags from the 1910  fire.

Snags along the water.

Look at the burned and charred inside of this snag.

The snags have a beauty of their own.

Beautiful water.

Another snag.

On top of the pass.  Breathtakingly beautiful.

One more shot from up on top.

Embracing August

This week I gave the sibling assignment, which, to put it simply, is What do you like, and what do you dislike about August.

Here you can read about IEG's last days of August.

Traditionally, August has never been my favorite month.  Either it is too hot, or the evenings and mornings are too cold, and it goes by too fast, because school begins, which in our house signals the end of summer.

But this year, I decided to embrace August, and consciously enjoy the eighth month this year, and be in the moment during each part of August.

As I toured my yard this week, I realized August brought with it much beauty and the beginning of harvest.  I'm going to take you on a tour of my lovely August yard and garden.

String beans growing up the teepee poles.  The beans grow overnight I swear.

Still picking pea pods.

Cilantro, lettuce and Sweet Million tomatoes.

Yellow and green zucchini.

Lots of green tomatoes.  I hope they get enough hot weather to ripen before it frosts.

Goliath grillers.

Goliath grillers and banana peppers.

Yummy carrots.

I got a blossom, but I fear no pumpkins this year.

I've enjoyed picking raspberries all summer.

Sweet peas climbing the rusty bed springs.

My absolute favorite perennial...Moonbeam Coreopsis.

My wagon wheel herb garden...that needs some grass removal!!

My house plants are thriving outside.....I wish I could keep them out all winter long!!

My favorite tree....the Tri-Color Beech Tree.

One of my new rose plants.

Another lovely rose.

I love this shade of pink.

Almost ready to bloom.

I keep

Despite the fact I have quite a few projects going this summer, I have to say it has been one of the most relaxing summers I have ever experienced since moving back to the Silver Valley.  Partly because most of the things PKR and I have been involved in take place in the late afternoon or evening.  So I have had my mornings to putter around the yard, and enjoy the beauty of the backyard.  It has been wonderful.  I wish I could have this schedule year round.

As August winds down, I am embracing the cooler evenings, and cooler mornings.  I am enjoying the harvest from my backyard garden.  I am enjoying the peaches my sister brought me from the orchard near her home.  I'm embracing the final days of vacation before I officially return to work on August 31st.  I'm enjoying the last week of all our 1910 Fire projects coming to an end, where I have dressed as Emma Pulaski and hosted the Trailing the 1910 Fire Trolley around the town of Wallace.  I also helped direct the show at the Sixth Street Melodrama this month, which PKR wrote about his grandpa's birth, called "Rustler's at the Ranch, or...How Swift Can the Taylor's Run?"  And PKR and I have also been presenting "Voices of the Big Burn" a historical presentation on the 1910 Fire where we share first hand accounts from the fire, newspaper stories, and photographs taken by the Forest Service after the fire.  We continue this presentation through the end of the month. 

Soon my schedule will change.  I will be back on the school schedule, and back at Kellogg High School working with ninth, tenth and eleventh graders in the Gear Up program.  School begins September 7th.

But until then, I will continue to enjoy and embrace the month of August, with the slower pace, and days filled with no obligations.

Coeur d'Alene Lake

Inland Empire Girl gave us the next sibling assignment:

Coeur d'Alene Lake



One of my first recollections and memories of this lake involved a speed boat and a flying saucer. Yes, interestingly enough I have this memory of being in a speed boat on the lake when I was about 3 or 4, and I was hanging over the edge of the boat in Beauty Bay, and there was a silver flying saucer in the air. Not sure if I actually did encounter a UFO, but I sure do have a memory about this incident.

I often like to try and imagine what the lake was like back when the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, or the Schitsu'Umsh freely roamed this land, and were the only inhabitants of the lake. I picture tribal members quietly canoeing across the lake, calling to the birds on a cool, misty morning as the fog settled on the lake, and then, all of a sudden, the sun bursts through. What a peaceful, quiet time on the lake that must have been.

I like the lake better when it was filled with rustic cabins. Some of the "cabins" on the lake now don't seem to fit. They are million dollar homes that don't quite fit in their wooded setting.

It is still a beautiful lake, despite the onslaught of tourism that has taken over parts of the lake, but you can still find the quiet, peaceful parts that don't have as much traffic, and perhaps, in these places, if you listen carefully, you will hear the Schitsu'Umsh voices of long ago.

The Fourth Commandment: Refreshment of God's Creation

Raymond Pert gave us this sibling assignment:

I woke up this morning with the words "Remember the Sabbath. Keep it Holy." (my paraphrase) repeating in my head.

Reflect however you'd like upon the idea of the sabbath and your practice of it.

We had recently been talking about this one afternoon at my Mom's house when RP was there, because he had taken a Sunday afternoon nap, and I told him, that was a good thing, because our pastor at church had just talked about the fourth commandment in the Bible.

These are some of the notes I took from that sermon that Pastor David Langer gave on July 18, 201o at Mountain View Congregational Church in Kellogg.

God built into His commandments a day of rest.

Working seven days a week breaks people's spirit. If they do work this hard, they can find ways to repair their spirit, such as drinking, drugs, illicit relationships, etc.

God realized people needed a day of rest.

If we over burden ourselves with work, we shouldn't pretend that we are doing this our of obedience to God.

God wants us not to overwork, but to refresh.

We must labor not for our own good, but for the labor of others.

Our fortunes and well being are not in our own hands, but they are in the hands of God.

We need rest!! God's purpose for the day of rest is to recreate us and refresh us.

God wants us to experience the blessings He has given us in life.

The Sabbath Day is a special gift of God to people.

God in His abundant grace wanted a time of joy and rest for all of creation.

Christ's love is meant to unite...God's Sabbath is meant to unite God's people in refreshment.

Concepts like a weekend or a five day work week came from the heart of God.

I know I feel much more rested if I get a nap on Sunday afternoon. Especially when things are really busy at work, and hectic and I'm working lots of hours, that day of rest is so important. I like being refreshed. I like slowing down the pace, and taking it easy.

I'm glad God steers us toward that time of refreshment.