More Vacation pics - are you sick of em yet?

These were actually from June 20 and our drive from Glacier to Idaho. We stopped at this dam (sorry, but I can't remember the name of it) on the way. It was tucked back in this little town and we parked and hiked across this quaint little bridge and there it was. The water around this dam was just surging and was actually quite pretty.


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We hiked around the area to see what we could find. We saw an Osprey nest up on one of the telephone poles near there. We saw a chipmunk and a really cool looking squirrel. Here is the squirrel. I got some good close up shots of it with my zoom lens. I thought they came out really nice!

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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

Here is the sign that was posted about the Osprey. I thought it was pretty interesting.


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

This particular osprey picture was one I actually took in Idaho and not one that we saw where this sign was. There was a nest near the dam where this sign was, but it was so high up that I could not get a good look at the bird inside! But, the picture I did get was taken alongside the road in Idaho - alongside a road that lined water. There in the water were all these platforms they had built presumably for the osprey to build their nests upon.

More Vacation Pics - June 21

June 21 we spent our first day at the condos in Blanchard, Idaho. This farmhouse was right near the entrance to the area where we stayed. I just loved the way the sky was so blue against the red farm house. They also had Llamas out in the field. When I got out to take the picture, these llamas RAN as fast as they could over to me and started making this funky noise. It was funny! In the second picture, you can see the Llama in the bottom right corner.


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

This day we just had a rest day - just drove around in the towns near our condo and relaxed. We were pretty tired from riding in the car so much.

Continuation of Vacation - a "Beary" Scarey Day - June 20

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OK, so the title is goofy. It wasn't really scarey at all.

Continuation of our trip earlier this summer. We were really hoping to see some bear and we did see a couple in Glacier National Park, but we were always on the lookout for more. So, on this day, we were driving to Blanchard, Idaho (from Glacier) to our condo where we would spend the next week.

As we were driving, my mom shouts "hey, there is a bear in the middle of that field!" So, we turn the van around and drive back by to see if it really was one. She was right.

This is what we saw:

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See the black line looking thing in the middle of the grass. Yep, its a bear!

This next picture gives you a better look at it.


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I must mention there was no shoulder on the road in this particular part of the highway. So, Dad, Brandon and I got out of the van and Amy halfway pulled the van over in the grass. There weren't any cars coming at that time. I got out my zoom lens and started shooting.


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Is that cool or what? my zoom lens really came in handy when this guy decided to stand up in the middle of that field. He was eating something in the field and every now and then, he would stand up and look around at us.

We eventually walked over to a gravel road beside the field and a sheriff's car was siting there also watching the bear. It turned on its siren to show us how that made the bear stand up. It did indeed stand up to see where the noise was coming from. I got some more shots of it. I just thought it was so cool to see it pretty close up (but not so close it could get us). I am loving this 400 mm zoom lens I got!


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

We felt we were really lucky to be able to see this bear and get some good shots!

Stay tuned because there are still more nature and travel shots to come.

Oh yea, and Brandon is coming home late Thursday night. They decided to drive back tomorrow all day - they will be here late, but he should be here tomorrow night. I talked to him today and he said the soaring through the trees deal was FANTASTIC. He wants me to come back with him and do it at night!! I would love to go. Maybe we'll be able to go back someday.

*Freezer update - I still haven't tried anyone's suggestions and the shirt is still stuck in the freezer. I do plan to get it out one way or the other. Thanks for all your helpful suggestions.

More Vacation Pics - June 20

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I really don't have time for a decent post though I want to post something to say hello...so here are a few pics from June 20 of our vacation. These are in, you guessed it, Glacier National Park!!! These were taken early one morning on our drive up Going to the Sun Road. I tell you, I never tire of being around this type of scenery. Isn't it gorgeous? I hope to post some bear pics tomorrow (or soon) - as soon as I have a chance to get back to the computer.

I actually have a date tomorrow night so that is exciting!!!

Enjoy the scenery:


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

P.S. - the last two pics aren't identical, though they look like it. I took sooo many pics of the same scene, many turned out similar. I think I probably took over 100 just of this little scene.

Have a great Tuesday everyone :)

June 19 pictures - Mountains and Waterfalls

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Time for more vacation photos. These are as you guessed, from June 19. This day we drove to Waterton Lakes National Park (spent a couple of hours) and then drove on Going to the Sun Road for as much as we could of it.

Going to the Sun Road is this awesome road that spans 40 miles from West Glacier to St. Mary, and it goes right through the heart of the park. However, because of the high elevations, and because it was cut right through the mountain, there are many parts of the year that the road is closed. Unfortunately, the road hadn't even opened for the season while we were there. So...you could go about 12 miles up on side and 13 miles up the other..but then you had to turn back around and go back down the way you came.

The parts we did get to see were breathtaking. I was very disapointed we did not get to drive the whole way. I have heard it was an experience like no other. They said on the very top of the mountain, around Logan's Pass, that the snow drifts were at least 100 feet high!! Also, they have lots of avalanches and so the road was just not passable yet. It was hard to imagine that only a few miles up, these conditions existed, because where we were was very temperate and beautiful.

These first few pics were of one of the stops on Going to the Sun Road. I can't remember which one exactly. But aren't they beautiful? The one below is of course, my dad. I thought it turned out good. Actually, I'm kind of disapointed in the quality of these pics displaying on here. The actual photo itself is much superior to the version being shown. I think this is a drop shots thing. Not sure. These photos appear sort of blurry or grainy to me and the actual photos just aren't like that. I hope it isn't too distracting.


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


As we drove along, I saw these pretty flowers that I had to get a shot of.


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These next two shots were of one of the most beautiful scenes I think. The below picture is of St. Mary Lake. In the second shot below, the island in the middle is called "Wild Goose Island".
This was what we saw at the BOTTOM of Going to the Sun Road. Can you imagine what scenery would have been waiting for us at the top? I can't imagine.

In fact, going back to Glacier National Park and traveling Going to the Sun Road (the whole way) is one thing that I am putting on my "Bucket List" or things I want to do before I die. It was just breathtaking.


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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

The last couple of pictures were of a lake that was on the Going to the Sun Road. The water was crystal clear and the way you could see the rocks through the glass-like water was just so cool.

Going to the Sun Road and the scenery we saw in the day and a half we were at Glacier National park was probably the favorite part of our entire trip. I will leave you with a narrative from the back of a book I purchased called "Going to the Sun Road by C.W. Guthrie. The following is from the back cover:

"Traveling Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road is an experience like no other.

Crafted over a steep and unforgiving route - one that some thought impossible - the Going-to-the-Sun-Road spans 50 miles from West Glacier to St. Mary, taking travelers through the heart of Glacier. This marvel of engineering offers visitors some of the most awe-inspiring views in the world as it traverses the Garden Wall, with its 1,000 foot drops, crosses the Continental Divide at 6,646-foot Logan Pass, and winds its way through the magnificent mountains and along the shore of St. Mary Lake.

Park officials, landscape architects, construction engineers, and countless laborers toiled nearly 20 years to carve a road that least damaged the magnificent country it crosses - something that had never been done before on so large a scale. It was designed to harmonize with the landscape in such a way as to be almost unseen.

One of the most scenic highways in the world, the Going-to-the-Sun-Road set the standard for all national parks. It is the best of its kind."