This is the "good" shoulder. it's already tan, doesn't hurt at all. same with the neckline but....
I hate cliches'. You know...the "if you love someone, set them free", "God only gives you what you can handle", "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger"...those sorts of things. I despise them, especially when used in reference to relationships and illness. 
Just a little bit of the Bob Marshall Wilderness on the way through the Seeley Swan. Note the reflection in the rear view mirror :)
Just hanging out at the mouth of Avalanche Gorge. Remember, when I die I want to be left in the dirt here. 
Avalance Lake was as still as glass. What an expansive sky reflected in her waters.
We ran into a slight obstacle on the trail. No worries...I am SHE-RA, WARRIOR PRINCESS! Once Rachel scooted safely underneath I ducked under myself. 
Day 2 we drove back to the entrance to use our cell phones to call various guests we were expecting in camp. This sign is new as of this year. Newly designed and placed at the beginning of the season. Yes, that's a sweatshirt. It got a bit chilly.
Taking a moment to reflect next to Avalanche Lake. Backpack straps are NOT good for belly profile pictures. Oh well, I was in the woods...who cares!
A trip back to Montana isn't complete without a trip to this little joint. This is a Montana legacy. The York Bar. Only thing on the menu is burgers, fries, onion rings. That's it. Maybe occasionally poppers or something else breaded and deep fry-able. Full bar and the best homemade Ceasar's in the country. The bartender makes her Clamato juice for them from scratch. That has to be the "special" touch. 
So the gang gathered at our usual table at York Bar and burgers were had by all. I had several Caesar's and a mushroom swiss burger. What a great night!
This is Avalanche Lake. I have hiked back to the Lake on many occasions and the Gorge further down from the Lake too many times to count. But I've never hiked around the Lake all the way. The above picture is the view of the Lake when you emerge from the woods. Rachel and I took off to the right and hiked to the end of the Lake which you can barely see in this picture. Once you get there, you are probably still a good half mile or more from the waterfalls that feed the Lake. 
We stopped to stock up the cooler...Kokanee and Huckleberry Soda and beer. Had hamburger, eggs, hot dogs, potatos, breakfast skillet fixin's...we were loaded. We arrived in camp and home sweet home was set up in 10 minutes. Not bad, uh? Definitely looks a little more livable than Os' tent. 
This picture of Rachel is my favorite from the entire weekend. Once we got to the Lake we reconnected with ourselves a bit. She found the shoreline rock, I found a taller tabletop rock a bit further back. The Lake was like glass and only a few people around the entire shore so it was quiet and very reflective. I have tons of color photos of the park so I mixed things up a bit this time. This one turned out awesome! Like Rachel's HNT said last week...Change in Altitude, Change in Attitude. It works. 
Meet the national symbol of Logan Pass...the mountain goat! These guys scamper and jump around the rocky uplands of the park with ease. And they are awful darn cute.
SUNRIFT GORGE: Another favorite spot in the park. Ex never did get the hint that this was where I wanted him to propose to me at. Oh well! Have no clue where that water comes from. Will do that hike someday, I'm sure. 
LIFE AT CAMP: While it was just the two of us at camp we had a few visitors...four legged and otherwise. The fat squirrels were everywhere, waiting for their next handout. We also had a little baby bunny and a couple robins too. A fellow Montana blogger stopped by for dinner and was impressed with my hobo dinner making skills (throw burger, potato, onion, corn in foil with as much butter as you can fit in there and slow cook over fire). There were s'mores to be had too but I'm a weird s'more eater...graham cracker and very very slowly browned and gooy marshmellows only...no chocolate and god forbid, don't char the mo-mo! 
APGAR VILLAGE: Tradition followed the two of us on the trip. For as long as I have been going to Glacier Park the last thing I do whether I stayed a week or a day is stop at Apgar Village and get a Huckleberry ice cream cone before leaving. We got our cones and stood by the Lake McDonald and enjoyed. It was a fabulous trip with great company. It provided me the time to reflect, let out a few tears, and recharge until next year. It works every time. And a hell of a lot cheaper than those professional therapists I have paid. 
This little one wasn't making mud pies but she sure was adorable! Heather had to babysit so I tagged along for a trip to the Park for lunch and wading. What a cutie pie!
Now for the REAL mudpie. There is a restaurant in Helena called The Windbag...formerly known as Big Dorothy's. If you can't guess who Big Dorothy was, she was the Madame in charge. Yup, the Windbag was a roaring brothel in the gold days of Helena on Last Chance Gulch. It has been my favorite restaurant since the first time I ate there. They make THE best teriyaki burger ever. Baked potato...loaded. Great beer selection.
We had to get a little silly. Two microbrews chugged in the first half hour helped contribute to mine goofiness. Not sure about the other two. I finished off two more, so all in all, a good night.
Every year my mom's cousin from Los Angeles comes out to spend part of the summer in South Dakota. While she's here she throws one heck of a party. Sort of an unofficial family reunion. Check out what my family does! trying to dress the boys up like girls!
The lovely lady on the left is the Grand Pupa of the party throwing...Barbara. The lady on the right is my mom. God bless her; it was 107 out that day and we were outside from 2 pm till 9 pm. What a good time we had though.
Doh! Yeah, I'm a dork! Cousin Tom was taking a nice picture of the three of us Kahl girls (yes, it's pronounced CALL) and I had taken my sun glasses off to get a nice shot. Well, the sun was really bright and it made my eyes water. Mom's laughing because she thought I was thumbing my nose at some one. The other one is my little sister. We obviously had to take a better picture but I thought this one was mroe fun to post :)
The weekend concluded with a trip to the cemetary to say hi to Grandma, a drive out to the farm and then a stop at the nursing home on the way to Mom and Dad's to visit the other Grandma. A good night's rest in my old bedroom and I was off to Montana. More to come :)
More of the trip to come over the next week!
