Posts from the ‘Weather’ category

Summers’ RV Park

The short story is that I had intended to leave early this morning for Costco/grocery …then decided I’d take the motorhome as it needs a run and would be cooler for Karl as I can run A/C off the generator when it is parked (plenty of space to park it where I shop). THEN decided that as long as I was doing that, why not take a run around the lake and maybe stay somewhere overnight if I found a spot I liked…and THEN decided why go to Kalispell, will just head around the lake – there is a Safeway I like in Polson (south end of the lake) so can get everything I want there… which I did but ended up coming home as it is hazy and sultry so wasn’t really looking like being outside would be nice and the place I had in mind didn’t have a great spot.

The spot I tentatively planned to stay overnight was just north of Polson on Highway 93. But when I decided that I would rather just go home, I about-faced which took me back across the river and through Polson…

Across the bridge.

Through Polson.

The Safeway.

Along the south east edge of the lake on MT 35…preparing to turn north towards Bigfork.

A quick stop at Bowman Cherry Orchards for some Rainier cherries…

…and some Flathead Cherry Wine! I bought a pound of Rainier cherries and a bottle of cherry wine. This particular bottle is a blend of pie (tart!) and sweet cherries – labeled a medium dry by Bowman.

So, currently, Bob, Karl and I are set up in the motorhome at home…central air and what we needed was here and it just shakes up the routine a bit, even if the house is just on the other side of the garage. It is thundering and dark and the A/C covers the noise. I get 1 tv channel and have Antiques Roadshow on which I never saw and am partly fascinated and partly just liking the human voices while I do the post and think what I want for my supper. Neither Bob nor Karl wanted out when we arrived at Summers’ RV Park.

The road home: the misty, low cloud version

The day ranged from dark with downpour to bright sunshine and back again. When the sun was out, it felt warm at 62ish F. When it got dark and poured, I thought about a fire. A pre-weekend, mid-morning run for a few supplies was during an in between time.

The clouds hung low over the mountain tops, misty wisps of vapor dotted the foothills… the misty, low cloud version of the road home.

Big Sky Canola

Prepare yourselves…Canola is vibrant in the fields right now – this will probably not be the only canola photo… The deep, bright gold against the lush spring green, under a clear blue sky…the landscape in the valley is like the best box of Crayola’s you ever had…clear, true color that makes you want to yell to all – LOOK AT THIS!

And this afternoon, on an errand run to Bigfork, the sky was changing – clouding up, looking like it wanted to rain and thunder and add to the triumphant mix of color on the ground.

Big Sky Canola.

First day of Summer 2010: Northwest MT

Summer normally comes in fits and spurts to Northwest Montana. Warm and even hot days in March, April and May are interspersed with blizzards, snow squalls and rain. June typically is cool and rainy and an early June snowstorm is definitely NOT unheard of.

So far, June 2010 has skipped a snowstorm … in the valley. But on the eve of the Summer Solstice we had:
76F sunshine and blue sky
dark clouds giving way to wind…
marble sized hail….
torrential downpour with the temperature dropping into the 50’s in half an hour…
lighting with accompanying thunder that rattled the windows…

The first day of summer dawned less than clear and stayed that way – a rainy day that had me finally starting a fire in the woodstove late afternoon. And given that it was the first day of summer and a fire was roaring…I decided that sipping whiskey was in order and made a dash to Bigfork for some Old Overholt (Rye whiskey).

But before the Rye, a respite in the rain and a possible bear, necessitated a walk.

The air was sniffed…

The beardog was on full alert.

No bear was found.

The whiskey was sipped…on the front porch as even at a damp 50 something F, a fire in the woodstove heated up the little house in the woods to over-warmish…

First day of Summer 2010: Northwest MT.

Rain!

These are real raindrops – NOT water from the sprinklers – on the lily-of-the-valley leaves…this morning!! So very exciting as rain is both rare and welcome in July in Montana. And especially welcome as yesterday’s forecast was for dry thunderstorms… as in lightning and thunder but no rain. And also for windy conditions. There was a fire weather watch and to me that is scarier than bears or mountain lions or coyotes. It is a fear based on a natural and healthy fear of fire, combined with some irrational fears of being trapped by fire.

And although some extra humidity last night as the clouds formed was encouraging, the rain this morning sealed the deal and made things much less scary and cooler.

Rain!