Toward the Rising Sun - Part 1: Montana through New York

By L:  Dana had planned a full itinerary for our trip across the county - so many things to see and do but not enough time to do it all - including the time for traveling the great distances.  We started out hoping to fit in as much as possible - but realized we would want time to "stop and smell the roses" along the way.  It was a good combination of both.  We had no "destination" point in North Dakota, other than Fargo (for spending the night) - so I snapped a quick picture from the gas station in New Salem - of "Salem Sue" the World's Largest Holstein Cow standing on the hillside.

 

Next stop - St. Paul Minnesota.  We went to the LDS temple there and then did a little side trip to  River Falls before heading toward the Canadian Border.

The Fall colors were amazing!  This was just the beginning of many stops to try to capture the beauty with the camera.

We were driving past Lake Michigan as the Full Moon came up.  We were lucky to get this picture - the next few days were rainy and cloudy. We traveled north of the great lakes into Canada.

And it was raining as we came back across the border into the U.S. at Niagara Falls.

 

We spent a beautiful couple of days in Palmyra, New York, attending church, 

the temple and the sites in the area.

Hill Cumorah

Whitmer Family Home

Whitmer Farm

This was the first of many cemeteries we stopped to visit.  It was in upper New York State along highway 37.  Some of the headstones are so old - and have very interesting inscriptions on them.

The Charming Beauty of Canada

By L: Part one of the great adventure started by going North.  First stop: 

Glacier National Park!
There is nothing like fresh air and beautiful surroundings - even if the neighbors were a little rowdy.

This is on the East side of the park going up to Logan Pass.
We stopped at the visitors center and went on a day hike. 

By L:  I didn't get a picture of the Hi-Line trail that nearly gave me a heart attack.  Dana was sweet enough to coax me along through my fear of falling from heights.  This next picture was taken from the Hi-Line trail of the mountain on the other side of the valley.  Notice the vertical mountain side and clouds in the bottom of the valley.  That may give you a small sense of what I was feeling on a very similar steep vertical mountain side - walking a narrow path with cable bolted into the rock face to hang onto.

By L:  This was a common sight for me - great mountain views, with Dana taking awesome pictures.

Then we moved on North - over the border to Canada-

We spent some time in the Cardston area, including going to the LDS temple in Cardston, 

 

and the Carriage Museum - which was very interesting!

 

Here is one of the more fancy, and interesting carriages in the showroom.

 

We went into Waterton Lakes National Park and took a boat ride on Waterton lake crossing back into the US on the water. Notice below how the 49th parallel north, the border between the countries, is kept clear.

We went up to Calgary and visited another beautiful LDS temple.

We spent several days in Banff National Park, hiking trails and taking pictures of scenic lakes, mountains, glaciers, and wildlife.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We spent several nights in this lovely cabin in Jasper.

And managed to go to one more temple - in Edmonton. 

We stopped at another museum - and learned so much about the evolution of vehicles and farm equipment - from real horse power to engines measured by horse power.

We were very fortunate to have good weather during these September days. As our trip was coming to an end and we were leaving Canada it turned a little cold and the mountains got a dusting of snow. Perfect for one last great picture!

"In the Beginning"

By L:  I suppose that we could say that our Happy Trails began together when we were married this past summer - July 2013.  Our wedding, open house and special gatherings with family and friends blessed our lives as we felt the happiness and love everyone shared.

 

By L:  My only daughter, Kristen and her husband, Tyler and their three girls were not able to make it to the wedding - they had just moved to Pennsylvania.

Right to Left - Danielle, Ryan, Michael, LeAnn, Dana, David, Stephen

By L:  Ethan, Dana's only son, also was not in attendance.  He is serving an LDS mission.

Right to Left - Audryn, LeAnn, Dana, Alyssa, Candyce

Right to Left - Linda Sanderson, LeAnn, Dana, Lynn Sanderson, Lisa Hull

Right to Left - Drew Damron, LeAnn, Dana, Marisa Roberts, Spencer Damron