Well, this is an alternative, I suppose...

Well, this is an alternative, I suppose...  To:

   Rope.
   Tree.
   Congresscritters.
   Some assembly required.

Via my mom...

Olsynium douglasii...

Olsynium douglasii...  Via BPOD, of course...

Oh, we had a lovely afternoon...

Oh, we had a lovely afternoon...  Our friends and neighbors Tim and Jeannie D. surprised us yesterday morning – they called and asked if we'd like to go on an afternoon's drive with them, up to Bear Lake and the surrounding country.  We said “Hell, yes!” and at 1:30 they picked us up and we took off. 

Our route took us up Logan Canyon, then over Logan pass to Garden City along the west short of Bear Lake.  There we stopped for a late lunch at Cafe Sabor, where I had an excellent arroz con pollo, and Debbie had a sweet pork quesadilla with jalapeno jelly.  Tim and Jeannie looked at our food with great interest – they've been to the restaurant often, but have never tried dishes they're unfamiliar with.  I think they're going to be trying the ones we had next time :)

With our bellies full we set off counter-clockwise around Bear Lake.  The eastern shore is relatively undeveloped, with steep slopes and lots of sage and pinon-juniper scrub.  The views are spectacular from here, as I tried to capture in the photo at right.  Our route took us to the west along the skinny spit of land between Bear Lake and Mud Lake, and from there we headed north, toward Montpelier.  We turned west onto Idaho State 36, and headed up Strawberry Canyon, over the 7,400' pass, and then down into Preston, Idaho.  That whole trip, from Bear Lake to Preston, is full of beautiful scenery – farms, forests, streams, and ponds.  We saw lots of wildlife, most especially deer, turkeys, and Canadian geese.  Tim and Jeannie pointed out scenic side roads we could take in fine weather, all of them heading for spots they know and enjoy.  Tim told us these mountains are full of elk, good hunting for him and his children (hunters one and all, sons and daughters alike). 

Nearing dusk we were headed south on U.S. 91, toward home.  Even that drive was scenic because of the gorgeous sunset we were treated to.  On our right (west) we had the dramatically lit and colored clouds, along with some contrails.  On our left (east) we had the Wasatch Mountains, snow-capped and lit with the orange-red light of sunset.  When we finally pulled into our driveway, there was just barely enough light to see.

A just plain lovely day, we had – scenery, wildlife, good food, and even better company...