Travelogue: Home Again, Part 3

I've already talked about our trek over Loon Creek Summit.  Staying at the Diamond D wasn't in our budget, which is why we decided to drive in and back out the same day.

Maybe the stress of the road was what did it, but going into the ranch felt downright anticlimactic.  Really, that was the one place I had to go to, no matter how difficult I thought it was going to be. And it hasn't changed much since the last time I was there. Yet I still felt kind of disconnected from it. It was also another one of those super hot days, so that didn't help.

When we pulled in, the cook came out to greet us and looked surprised when I started asking for people by name. Sadly, Kara and Dana were both away from the main ranch area, and Linda was taking a nap.  So we sat down to eat the sandwiches we'd brought. When Linda came out, one of the kids asked me, "Who's that?"  As I started to say, "Grandma Garvan's best friend in the whole world," I started to tear up.  By the time I got over to give her a hug, I couldn't say much of anything for a few minutes.

Click to embiggen.

Eventually, we sat chatting on the back porch, and I saw a bird flying over the mountains closest to us. Linda said that she thought it was a golden eagle, and I put my new toy to the test again. I got two pictures, and it's hard to see, but if you zoom way in, that sure looks like a bald eagle to me. Another animal I hadn't ever seen in Idaho (although I have seen one in Michigan). 

It was still really hot, and this time the kids did have their bathing suits, so they jumped into the (ICY COLD) pool.  They had some fun splashing around, but then I wanted to walk around  I particularly wanted to find the chapel that Linda built some years ago, and she gave me directions to get there.

Loon Creek

We walked through the corral and down past Loon Creek. I started heading up the hill on the other side, while Jeff & the girls stayed down to play in the cool water.  Linda had told me not to go all the way up to the lake, but I missed the path opposite the gazebo, and before I knew it, the lake was in front of me.

View from the lake.

So I'd gone too far, and I was getting tired, and I hadn't really told the rest of the family exactly where I was going. I didn't want to go all the way back down to the creek, though--I knew I'd never go back up the hill once I was all the way back down.  As I was about halfway down, I saw a little path and thought, "Aha, I bet that's it," and followed it. Sure enough, there it was.

The Little Chapel in the Wilderness

It isn't very big, but blessedly cool inside and beautifully simple. The stained glass is really lovely.  Its story is wonderful--in fact, Jen's whole blog about winter caretaking up there was beautiful and fascinating.  It really opens up a whole new world, and her photography is absolutely stunning.

By this time, we were getting tired, so we went back to the lodge to talk with Linda some more.  The kids were getting tired and antsy, but just as we were getting ready to leave, one of the ranch hands  asked if we wanted to go pan for gold for a little bit. Regretfully, I knew we didn't have time--add it to the list of things we have to look forward to!

Did I have a good time there?  Yes, absolutely!  Do I wish I'd had more time?  You bet!  And if the road wasn't such a bear, or if we had a different car, it might not have been so exhausting for all of us.  I'm very glad we went, but I don't know if we'll make that part of the trip again the next time we're in Idaho.