Flathead Lake, Lakeside, Montana

 

Sunday August 1

On most of our days at Lakeside on the west shore of Flathead Lake in Montana, the sky has been smoky giving the days a gloomy overcast and the setting sun an other-worldly orange glow. Fortunately neither of us has respiratory problems, but my eyes have been more irritated than usual.

Monday we tried to take a walk at a local Lavender Farm, but just as we arrived it started to rain and they closed. The rain didn't last long, but we headed back to the Alfa anyway. On Tuesday Craig, with the help of a mobile RV repair guy, successfully installed a new microwave to replace the one that had failed in July. It weighed 75 pounds and we felt it was best to get another man in to help.

Wednesday the smoke cleared for the day and we decided to take the evening Far West Boat Cruise.

The dock was just across the street from our RV park.  Taking boat trips like this is one of the things we enjoy doing. 

We do not pull a boat of our own and do not fish, so this is one way to see the larger waters we visit.

The Northwest shore of Flathead lake is very built up with huge  homes built quite close together.

Each of these has a multi-million dollar price tag.

No two are alike, and our cruise announcer dropped numerous famous names. 

This one was built by one of the original owners of Starbucks. While most of the homes are built as close to the water as possible, this one is high up, and there is a clog lift down to their dock. A good view and a four minute ride up or down.

 

 

I can only think "Location!" when I look at this one.

We cruised south for about an hour and then turned around to go back to Lakeside.

 As the sun slid towards the mountain ridges, we could see there were promising elements of a beautiful sunset. A scattering of clouds and a reflective lake only required us to sit back and be patient.

 

This reminded us of the Arizona flag.

 

It just kept getting better

until it was gone. 

Thursday we decided to drive around the lake. We headed around the top of the lake and down the east side.

But we were stopped by a road closure due to a wildfire.

We turned around, went back to Lakeside and headed south on the west side of the lake. 

As expected, we were turned back again, just past Polson. But all in all it was a nice drive.

If you're interested in old machinery and oddities, visit the Miracle of America Museum in Polson. We did not go in, but these were a couple of the unusual items along their driveway:

 

 

I love stuff like this! 

It makes me smile, and there is nothing better than that.