Alone again – what’s a couple to do.? We go out and have fun. We are winding down our time in the Polson area, so now we have to get things done. We finalized our plans and got them to the architect. We were on pins and needles waiting to hear from him – I finally go ahold of him and he is so busy and backlogged, he doesn’t think he can get the plans back to us until June 19th or so. Fine, as long as we know about when, we can let it go and just wait.
Flathead Valley sits between the Mission Mountains (our view) and the Bittersweet (more West of us). But just on the other side of the Mission Mountains is another Valley (Swan/ Seeley Valley). We have always wanted to see what this area looks like, so we decided to do a day trip to check it out. We started off with a great breakfast at the Echo Lake Cafe (now one of our favorite breakfast places). Then we drove south on Highway 83.
This Valley is beautiful! There are many lakes and rivers that the road follows. We drove as far as Swan Lake last year, so our first stop was Holland Lake. We found a quaint lodge that sits right on the lake. Great setting. Rooms or cabins overlooking the water and it includes a three-course meal. We will definitely be coming back here. There was a waterfall, kayaks and canoes, and Adirondack chairs waiting for us. There is also a forest service campground there too.
We drove further south to Seeley Lake. Larger, near a bigger city, but still very nice. On the back side of the Lake is the Seeley Lake Lodge – another place we’d love to stay at in the future. Newer than the other, it too has rooms and cabins right on the water. It would be wonderful stay at either of these areas.
We continued our way South, stopped by Lake Placid (Montana, not New York). It is a few miles off the highway. It is a smaller lake and has a campground. Good boating and fishing. We’d be happy to camp there. No hookups, but we can can manage for at least 4-5 days on our own.
We continued down Highway 83, and then onto Highway 200 and eventually ended up in Missoula. We then took Highway 93 to Polson. It was a long day but we loved seeing that valley and all the lakes and mountain views.
Marsha had chicken duty again. Our friend Michael was traveling with his niece’s family (who normally takes care of the chickens when Michael is gone). He has a lot more now than last year, but they are still really cute. They seem to know Marsha and come running to her and talk to her the entire time she is with them. It’s enjoyable to do for a few days, but it requires a lot of work. My heart goes out to farmers and ranchers.
Our time in Polson came to and end. We have been here for so long we kind of feel like this is home. We both feel a bit sad to leave, but we know once we get going, our new adventure will make us smile.