MONTANA MOUNTAIN TOUR DAY 7

Today was a low key day, shorter optional tour, R and R after yesterdays dawn to dusk run, and maintenance day for guys tinkering on their cars  hoping for better performance in the mountains.  So we made a leisurely departure down the mountain at 9 AM.

Down at the T storage lot,  Henrietta the snake has returned (turned up in our tote box in the T) and is so happy. She doesn’t want to travel for a while. Apparently, she picked up a buddy, Charlotte the spider, who scared the bejeebers out of me (Patti). I unsnapped the side curtain on the passenger side, stuck my head inside and screamed so loud that the people across  the parking lot started over because they thought I was hurt. Charlotte the spider was sitting on my seat talking to Henrietta. Charlotte is a 3 inch plastic arachnid who scares me each time she visits.

We went off to the tire store to purchase a new spare tire for our trailer. Bill also had a tire that needed repaired. Ray stayed with his T to work out some of the kinks. Beamans, Meneelys and Edwards headed off to Kalispell to shop, eat and sightsee. 

Had lunch at Moose’s Saloon, a local watering hole, some folks would say a dive,   others would say a heritage landmark. When we entered it was so dark that we had to stand by the swinging doors for a minute or so until our eyes adjusted. When was the last time you ate in a saloon with the floor covered in sawdust? The food was good but apparently we were not very good company for our president because he took a nap at the table in front of all of us, so we did the only thing we could and slipped out without him.

 

 

 

 

 

Tried to find a scenic road back to Whitefish to avoid driving back up 93 which is a main crowded 4 lane artery, amazing amount of traffic in both directions. Took one wrong turn and a friendly guy stopped to ask if we needed help. We replied no, just missed the turn. He said oh you really don’t want to travel on a gravel road all the way to town, do you? Of course not, so we turned around and found a real nice Model T paved road that paralleled the main highway. The countryside was  gorgeous with fields of queen Annes lace wildflowers. Bob sniffed out a pretty little airport with a mowed grass landing strip.

Finally, downtown Whitefish with shopping at a thrift store and general store. Found a unique basket woven with natural sheep’s wool and decorated with antlers. I really needed this!  Final activity was a stop at the local Ford dealer who was hosting a car show for all the T’s, We T types got the opportunity to walk around and inspect all the competition.  Here is  one for the books, a turbocharged T engine in a TT truck.

 

 

 

 

 

Oh no rain today and instead of  being cold we all got sunburned with the temp in the 80’s. Headed back up the mountain and tomorrow is another day.