Last Days ~Alaska Trip Days 51 &52

Scenes from Joe and Denise's near Caldwell, Idaho...

Last leg of the journey...

7 weeks and 4 days later, we arrived home! Hallelujah!

The end.

Horses and Butchering

June 5. One last morning at the ranch. Janae led Morgan around the ring for the children to ride. It took awhile to get through that group of kiddos! Even some adults rode too!

Gina walked down with her twins

Meanwhile Sam hitched up horses to the wagon. As the children piled on, the horses became distressed, so off they scrambled, until the horses took a short calm-down stroll unloaded. Then Trents and we took a turn.

The excitement wasn't over! In pulled the mobile butcher truck and crew. They shot a steer, moved it with a skidsteer from the pen to the truck, then quickly cut off it's head. These guys were fast! We were all gathered around watching with curiosity. They skinned, gutted, and quartered the beef, and beeped the horn as they departed, about 30 minutes later.

We left soon after, headed to Glacier National Park, munching our lunch on the way. What a morning!

Jason & Kendra's

Tuesday June 4, our last full day visiting friends and cousins, Jason & Kendra Rinehart, during their 12 month stay near Bonners Ferry, ID. Kendra's brother Trent and his family were here too.  Fun family fellowship!

Miss Meg smiling in the morning

the ranch hay shed & milk barn

Jason making cream top yogurt in the milk barn

Gina & Janae made iced coffees for us all, then these gals delivered them

lunch on the cabin front deck

girls' pretend store and restaurant in the pines

walking past Sam, Danielle, & Janae Wray's ranch house
(plus 3 boys & Joe at this time) to get to the dairy barn

bottling time again today

Aaron helping, see the yogurt incubating?

Tyrel, Noah, and Cora with a real toy

another bike ride to the lake... Janae, Jennifer, Kendra

relaxing in the sun's warmth and the water's coolness

the whole crew went fishing in the late afternoon, Stephen's relaxing too

Tori caught the only fish (she's waving)

Jason grilled the fish we had caught that week along with hotdogs. Jennifer baked fries from sweet potatoes that needed used. Kendra made bean chip dip...we had quite a feed for supper!

fixing children supper plates, the view from cabin loft

All the folks on the ranch took a walk up and around the mountain on 'blue gate' trail. Harley & Pat Helmuth and 2 girls came along too as they had arrived this evening. The boys had fun growling and jumping out suddenly on the trail hikers.