NORTHERN CASCADES

Leaving the Hungry Horse Montana area was hard as we didn't want to leave such a beautiful area. We drove a few miles down the road when we saw a "wreck" sign placed at a curve. We watched a wrecker pulling a car onto it's wheels. A man was doing about thirty miles an hour around a sharp curve and hit loose gravel causing the car to skid off the road onto it's top. He wasn't injured but his car will need some body work. We had well laid out plans about where we wanted to arrive at. But getting there is half the fun. I have discovered that I am going to have to start taking notes during the journey. So much happens that I tend to lose the time, places and area in which to place the photos and events.
I do remember Libby, Montana, aka "The City of Eagles"...

Amazing little town with eagles on ever major corner, on signs, on roof tops, and on murals. The one above is on the main street into the business section of town. It reminds me of a gateway. Looks to be wooden but it really is metal that has been painted. Also there are murals everywhere you look, such as this one below...

 But not all murals were eagles as there where elk, mule deer, mountain goats, and bear. As this photo shows...

When we arrived at Farragut Park in Idaho we were not impressed because it was totally geared for the tourist. Even to the point of having a big amusement park just a mile away. It reminded us of Yellowstone and Disney World combined so we drove on down the road. We found a park that was too expensive for what it offered but it did fine for getting a night's rest and moving on down the road the next morning. As we were setting up the camp we looked up to see two young mule deer with their antlers still in velvet. I managed to get a few photos before a crowd of people caused them to leave...

We saw miles and miles of wheat farms. There were also miles of lava rocks scattered throughout them.

Then we went through the Colville Indian Reservation. We were amazed at how friendly the Native Americans were. We have been through other Native American Reservations but didn't find them all that friendly. Here they were the ones that started the conversations and were very enjoyable. At a gas station a guy asked if we were going through the town of Keller. He informed us that it had been declared a disaster area because of a storm the night before. Seems that had we not stopped at the campground when we did then we would have been very close to the area that the storm hit. The photo below was taken at Omak, Washington. It is  a metal works representing Chief Joseph.    

And then we start the climb up into the Cascade Mountains of Northern Washington.  The views are spectacular. Phil decided to pull over to let the traffic pass and take the dogs out...

Phil is alot braver than I am. He went down into the draw to see if he could get a picture of the stream that we were hearing. What he found was a sheer dropoff before he could get to that stream so he came back up without the picture...

After that it was fasten seat belts, lock doors and enjoy the roller coaster ride. I had to replace my camera batteries from taking so many pictures of snowy mountains, lakes, and snow in the forest and near the roads...

The mountain with the snow on top is the area we are headed. Below are a few photos I took on the drive getting there.

And the photo below is the sign for the park campgrounds that we are staying in. We are on what is called the Cascade Loop Scenic Highway. It was constructed in 1979 and until then there were no road in the Northern Cascade Mountains.

We are just a few feet above the creek that runs through the valley. Our campsite is really beautiful and peaceful. But the tent campsites  just below us post bear warnings. One was seen last night at the ranger's station just short distance down the road. There are bear signs all around the area. Phil showed me what to look for like the fresh tearing up of rotten logs as they are looking for grubs.

I will leave you with this wish.... That Angel Wings Surround You and Lift You Up When The Going Gets Tough....Just Keep On Dancing!