What a fun day today! I wandered my way from Chewelah to Colville to Kettle Falls (Salish: Shonitkwu, meaning “roaring or noisy waters”, browsing through thrift stores along my way.

Where are the falls? Well, the history is very interesting and very sad and you can read about that here. The falls are long gone, buried under water created when Grand Coulee Dam was built.

My search was for a hot pad and some hand weights. Anyone who has tried to buy hand weights knows that they are extremely scarce because of Covid. I didn’t want to spend much, and only need them for a short time, so I thought the more “rustic” the thrift store, the better my chances.

I first stopped at Colville Goodwill. I found a lovely chartruse 100% suede leather jacket I REALLY wanted to buy for $12.99 – but resisted! There were no hand weights. I forgot about the hot pad.

Next, instead of going back south, I continued North to Kettle Falls. On the edge of town was a small thrift store called “Thrift Ministry N Mind”. There were lots of books on religion and a pink hotpad–for .29! I only had a $20 dollar bill, so I went ut to the car to find some change and when I walked back in, (without any change), I saw two handweights just inside the door! Perfect. Cost on the hand weights? $1.99! Holy cow! Success on both fronts.

From there, I thought I would try to find a trail to run, so I went on to Kettle Falls State Park. It is right on the Columbia River or Lake Roosevelt for this stretch. Scott and I camped in this campground once in the Westie. I think we were on our way to Red Mountain. There were mostly pickups with boat trailers in the parking lot. Apparently folks were out fishing for Trout.

I found a really nice trail that wound through the park. Along my way, I had birds watching over me. First was an adorable Owl.

Not far from the owl was a larger, more threatening bird. I can’t help but wonder if the Eagle knew about the owl.

The trail emptied out into a huge “meadow” called Colville Flats on the map at the Ranger Station.

Maybe the river fills this is in the summer. This is where I turned around. Soon after, I spotted this huge immature Eagle. Must be lots of good food for them here.

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Yes, I officially left the workforce on Jan 1, 2021. I re-joined on Jan 14, 2021. That was a very short retirement! My new job is helping out Ray – the guy overseeing the work on my airplane. His business is booming and he has a million small pieces of paper, with illegible notes scribbled on them, to keep track of what comes next. It’s no longer working….so we are setting up some systems. Poor Ray. This is painstaking for him. So many details! So many small pieces of paper! So much to fill in.

Today, we added up real numbers to determine his profit margin on his most popular products. The relief on his face when I told him the numbers made the past two days of data entry, price searching and list making all worth while.

The most important part of this new “job” is that it’s super flexible. When I was delayed finding a trailhead today, I just texted him and told him I would be about an hour and a half delayed. His reponse was the best “Ok, not much chance of you getting fired!”. Hilarious – and the only way to work, while retired.

I was able to find a trail head, which is not that easy in this area. I trail ran (and walked) up Quartizite Mountain. Straight up for a mile, then a bit easier for another half mile. I parked about a half mile or so from the trailhead to avoid the solid ice on the roadway and that gave me a bit more mileage. Amazing views from the top. I need to figure out how to get up some of the other peaks near by. A peak a day? So far I am 2/2.

This morning when I woke up it was 18 degrees outside. I was warm and cozy in the trailer. A little worried about everything freezing……but I think all is fine.

I was questioning my sanity in brining so much bedding, but this morning it all made perfect sense! I have an electric blanket, then a feather bed, next two sheets and on top of those, two down comforters. It’s rather heavenly, and rather pink!

I was determined to ski up the 49 Degrees North ski area today after being shut out yesterday. When I arrived in the parking lot it was 21 degrees. My Denali down parka was pretty hard to remove when it came time to head up.

The skin up was beautiful, though the “snow” was ice. I had to boot up the last section because it was so icy I kept falling, and of course my ski crampons were in the car……

The top was FAB!

The ride down was slow and on a cat track. That’s how bad the snow is up there. They need lots of new before I will go back, but what a great start to my Thursday!!

Now I am off to my new part-time job…..more about that tomorrow.

Yesterday, I left Winthrop and drove back to the trailer. It was so fun to ski and hang out with Lynn and Eric in their fabulous home on the river.

The drive was so fun! I decided to take a “low” route so that I was not driving in snow for four hours. This took me over Loup Loup (not low), through rolling wheat fields to Grand Coulee Dam.

I received a call from my bank, and had to do some address change work that was not going well, so I stopped by the Electric City Airport to use their wifi. I love that place. Scott and I started camping there shortly after 243CM was flying, so around 2001. They now have an outhouse down by the campsite and they are wiring the pilots lounge with fiber. That area is growing! Houses have sprung up everywhere. It’s no longer a secret…..

It was almost warm there (40 degrees) with no snow on the ground. Seemed like a great time to go for a trail run. At the GC Dam visitor overlook, there was a notice about a trail I had not run. So, I thought I should go there.

It was beautiful! Running along an old road for awhile, then onto a trail through a swampish area, finally coming out to a big meadow with a house, and several outbuildings. Along the way you run under the high walls of coulees formed over the eons. It’s spectacular!

Back on the road, I went through Wilbur and remembered when Scott and I took Bob and Janet (his folks) there. I passed the Wilbur Motel where we stayed. I then meandered my way past the rolling wheat fields, The Columbia River, Lake Roosevelt, and then over a VERY foggy pass.

That four hour drive, per Google, took me about eight hours. LOL. Lot’s of stops, a run, and slow driving in the fog. I am surprised at how many people are moving to this side of the state. The times, they are a changin.

I am still in Winthrop skiing every day. The weather has ranged from 20’s to mid 30’s and the snow is good. I am a pretty terrible skate skier, but still have put in some miles. I need serious lessons…..

Skating for 24K on this day. Whew!

Heading back to the trailer tomorrow. Will be working on the plane, getting it back in the air. Can’t wait to fly it again.

Today, while Lynn waited for her contractor to show up (it’s 4pm and no word yet), I went for an 8 mile skate ski.

Only 4 other cars in the parking lot, and the temperature 19 degrees. Perfect. The cord-d-roy grooming, pristine. The sound of my skis against the grain convinced me I was cruising. The air is clean, clear and crisp. The sky is peaking out blue. I love retirement!

I did the easy trails, which were not that easy for me. It’s been a long time since I was last on skate skis and not running for several months has really put my cardio into the “needs improvement” category.

Still, I did 8 miles and stopped wanting more. I was hugry, it was after mid-day, and I headed back to Lynn’s to grab a bite. I was hoping she would want to go out again, but she is still waiting for Brad the contractor. I sure hope he shows up. Tomorrow we are going to downhill at Loup Loup. No more waiting for Brad.

Made it to Winthrop to ski with my friend Lynn. There is a lot of snow here! I left the trailer parked, and drove Hwy 20 over several passes to reach this ski haven.

We did a quick run up “Owl”, a small peak not too far from town, on backcountry skis. The snow was wet, heavy and deep. Luckily turns were not too difficult. We only did one run due to the conditions. A good warm up for the rest of the week.

Upon return to Lynn’s house, while she was off doing some contractor stuff, I jumped into the hot tub with my book. She lives along the Methow river. While I was in the tub, I saw a hawk fly through the trees and an eagle was calling out warnings. A rather glorious top off to the day.

The plan for the rest of the week is to remain on skis as much as possible. Skate, classic, backcountry and downhill. I sure get why people live here.

Day two started with a full blue sky and not a cloud! Oh how the warmth of that sunshine fills my soul! I was heading East and then North with a windshield full of that dazzling, round, yellow orb!

I first checked out the natural history site in the park, which talks about the ice age dam that burst eons ago in Montana, carving the special natural features of the potholes area. It’s a phenominal landscape, well preserved by the Columbia Wildlife Refuge.

I found a place along the dam to pull over, and trails going into the refuge. I put on my running shoes and headed out to Soda Lake. There were a few fishers or hunters driving through, but mainly it was just me and a few birds. So beautiful. So refreshing. I feel like I can breathe.

Tomorrow, I am off to Winthrop to ski with my friend Lynn. I am not taking the trailer, will stay with her at her new home. My plan is to ski hard, and spend lots of time in her glorious hot tub on the river.

I left Seattle. It was pouring rain. A typical January day for the PNW. My car and trailer are loaded. I have everything I can think of that I might need through May. That’s too much stuff, I know, but my goal is to not have to return before then.

As I drove over the pass, my car worked way too hard to pull my trailer. Oops (as Nancy said), I think I either need a beefier car or a lighter trailer. Well, I can either beat myself up for making an uninformed decision or I can just decide to sell the trailer, learn a lesson and move forward. I choose the latter. My motto is nothing permanent.

Being this free of responsibilities makes me giddy. Not having to “be” anywhere is kind of amazing. Too soon to tell for sure, but wow. A new way of being – for me.

I am camped in a campground in Eastern Wa. near I-90 called Potholes. There is a big lake here and people were out in boats fishing yesterday. It was not raining (hooray), but was very windy and cold. It felt so good to see light and to be able to look out for miles. This morning, I hear coyotes howling.

As I was walking around the abandonded campground, I heard birds calling. I looked up and this flock of geese flew over.

Ahhh. Outside, no one around, peaceful enough that the call of birds is loud. I feel grateful to be here, on the road.