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Michel Valley
This is a photograph from a long time ago. It was like this in the 50's, but the road was better and everything was a lot more run down. I think I travelled through every season of the year as I travelled from Cochrane to Spokane today. I came via the Crowsnest Pass, which was clear and dry two days ago but not today. As variant as the weather was, the roads were consistently clear of ice or snow and were just wet from time to time, so that was a good thing. I'm traveling in our new RAV4 so that is a change - a nice change at that.
I always reflect on the changes in the Michel Valley just east of Sparwood. When I used to drive through there with my folks in the 50's, the mining towns of Michel and Natal existed and were full of the miners and their families. All the houses were small square shaped buildings with high peaked roofs. I remember seeing kids running all over the place. The whole valley was covered in coal dust and the by products of the coal mining, so I'll bet it wasn't a healthy environment for the inhabitants. Now the valley is clear of all residences and there are only a few commercial operations to be found and those are associated with the local mining.
The other part of this trip that brings back memories is the mountainous road that is built beside Moyie Lake. Again, in the 50's, that section was always a mess with landslides and collapsing roads. My dad was alway anxious as we approach that part of the road, because you never knew what kind of delays you had in store. There was no communication of the road conditions that could be found until you reached Cranbrook. We always made it through when we were traveling, but I remember it was pretty hard on the car.
I found a new bakery/coffee place in Coleman today. The baking was top notch! I also stopped in at a favourite in Bonners Ferry, The 'Under the Sun' Cafe. Don't miss having a lunch there if you are traveling through Bonners Ferry. It is in the old part of the town, in the valley by the river. (Yes, they really do spell it BONNERS and not BONNER'S. I don't know why, and neither to any of the locals that I talked to. Oh, the Monarch Mountain Coffee Shop in Sandpoint is as good as ever. It is tucked into a side street, but it is a neat place. When I was having my afternoon latte I talked to a man and a woman that were working on a Scrabble game. Evidently there is a tournament going on. They showed me the trophy they were vying for. The woman asked me if I knew all those neat Z words that are so useful in Scrabble. I just chuckled and told her most of those were beyond me. She replied, "Yah, me to. I'm from Idaho you know." Then she broke out laughing.
That was a long day for me, but I have another long one tomorrow in order to reach Bend, Oregon. I best be off to bed so I can get up early and one the road.
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