Big Sky Montana (July 4 - 8, 2012)

My cousin Betsy McFadden and her husband Phil Fluke live in Big Sky Montana.  They graciously agreed to host us for a few days and what hosts they were.  We arrived in Big Sky Montana around 8PM on the 4^th of July and immediately proceeded to their community’s celebration.  Some great snacks, a couple of drinks, and good people made up for a great 4^th of July.

Over the next couple of days the McFluke (get it?) hotel was our home base.  Their house is beautiful and sits within view of several mountain peaks.  Waking in the morning and sitting on their deck looking at mountains was a great way to start any day.  Betsy is definitely a planner and had an itinerary planned out for us.  We had all day Thursday, Friday and Saturday at their place so we “decided” (kidding Betsy) to stay local on Thursday and Saturday and hit Yellowstone on Friday and when leaving on Sunday.  The plan worked great and offered some needed down time, local hikes, and hanging out and getting to know Betsy and Phil better.  And of course, we got to know Ellis (or L.S.) the cat.  He took to us and also made us feel at home.  We also got to hang out and get to know Janet and Tim Flynn, their neighbors. 

Overall, the stay at the McFluke hotel was amazing.  Phil and Betsy were great hosts and provided us with food, drink, cigars, a water bladder for hiking, great conversation and even food for the road.   I think sibling rivalry between Betsy and her brother Chas (remember Chicago?) totally played in our favor.  Thank you again Phil and Betsy!

Thursday July 5, 2012

Phil and Betsy took me around to their local village.  What a great place.  They have a golf course within view of their house and a very serious ski mountain within a five minute drive.  Phil weaseled some free tickets for a ride up the ski lift so we ignored the pending rain and set out on the lift.  Of course it rained harder as we were shuttled up the mountain.  By the time we got to the top I was soaked – only had a wind breaker on.  We decided to walk down to keep the blood flowing.

During this time, Aileen was back at the “hotel” catching up on some work.  She had been trying to work from the road but the wireless reception for the Verizon card was terrible or non-existent.  It was frustrating because we had solid chunks of time in the car and had hoped to get work done while on the road.  Not happening probably until we hit the west coast.  Sometime around 6PM Aileen hit a brick wall with her laptop. Her computer went crazy with the Security Shield virus.  Luckily, Aileen is savvy enough to spot the so-called virus warnings popping up as a potential virus itself.  She basically lost her whole computer. Thursday evening was definitely a low point for the trip as we tried to get her computer back to no avail.   

She shook it off as best as possible as we sat down to a lovely lamb roast prepared by our hosts.  What hosts indeed.  Only the best food and drink for their guests.  The dinner was exceptional and capped a wet and computer frustrating day!

Saturday July 7, 2012

Betsy’s itinerary had us doing a 6 mile hike within the area.  Aileen’s computer issues had us staying in for the morning.  She was able to get Dell support to restore her computer completely.  Problem is that when you do this you wipe out all your files.  She was starting with a factory issued computer.  This was not entirely unexpected if you recall the issues she had prior to leaving so Aileen had her whole system backed up on a separate portable hard drive.  With the computer restored (for the moment, at least) we set out on a shorter but still beautiful hike.  Within minutes of their place we walked along a trail leading to the Ousel Falls.  I would love to have these trails so local to where I live.

After the hike we hit their local town center for a few drinks at the Lone Peak Brewery.  I tried their sampler which consisted of 9 beers (small ones) set within skis – check out the picture.  We then walked around the town a little to check out the stores and the art on display.

On Thursday night Phil had gotten the idea that we would have Thanksgiving on Saturday.  And so we did.  We had it all; a 20 lb turkey (we still have leftovers as of Monday the 9^th), mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes (with Jack Daniels), green bean and mushroom casserole and a great angel food cake with strawberries and pineapples to cap it all off.   Their neighbors, Janet and Tim Flynn joined us for our celebration.  We finished up the night playing progressive rummy and Phil won.  Aileen and I were just learning the game and I mistakenly gave Aileen grief for misplaying a hand.  I’m pretty sure she beat me in the end. Karma.