Chase gave his little son a simple and lovely blessing and a name: Hunter Cliff Adams-Hart. We all gathered at Morgan's folk's home afterward for a nice luncheon and visiting. Hunter, of course, was the star of that show. Here he is.
This picture was taken a different day but he looks too cute not to put it here.
Here he is with his mom and dad on his blessing day.
The drive to Blackfoot, for the blessing, was a long 4 hours. It was just as long on the way back. But being here was worth it. Plus we got to visit with our AH family. That is always a treat. They left very early on Monday morning. After they left I prepared for our good friends, Bill and Trudy Ostler, to arrive in the afternoon.
You may remember that we visit the Ostlers in St. George once a year and they visit us once a year. The Ostler visit was this past week. We always try and come up with some sort of adventure each time they come. This time we decided to take them to a local "ghost town" called Silver City. It is a two hour drive from our place and promised a "vintage western" experience. We picked up the Ostlers from the airport at 3:00 and headed there. The drive into the city turned out to be a bit "vintage" as well. It was a windy, dirt road that was slow going. We passed lots of cars coming out of Silver City. Since it was Labor Day, they were all returning from their weekend adventure there.
We arrived in Silver City just in time for dinner at the hotel. It is advertised to be in a state of restoration but, after seeing it, I would say that is quite a stretch. The hotel stands as the only commercial building still in operation in the town, except for the gift shop across the street. The hotel itself looks as if it could easily collapse with the slightest provocation. But we entered and found out way to the bar and dining room. It looked like a scene from a western movie, with very little changed since its heyday. The dinner menu offered hamburgers or hot dogs with bagged chips. $5 homemade pie was offered for dessert, but only one piece remained. The price was definitely not vintage!
Our bedrooms were upstairs. The electricity was limited to what solar panels could offer. That turned out to be a few lights in the hall and one in each of our rooms. Toilets were down the hall, as were shower rooms and basins. All were in separate spaces. We decided we could forgo showers and settled in for the night, after doing a bit of exploring. The dim lighting of the hallways gave the place an eery feel, right out of a good ghost story. Our room had just enough room for a queen bed, small dresser and chair. All were old. The bed offered a somewhat uncomfortable sleep. The doors did not lock so our stuff was stored in the car until we settled for the night.
Morning was sunny and lovely. We tumbled out of bed poorly rested but ready for a horseback riding trip and a little exploring of the town. Most of the buildings here are empty and boarded up. There are homes here and most are lived in during the summer. Everyone leaves for the winter except for one caretaker and his wife. They stay through the winter. We walked the crooked roads, looked at the empty buildings and explored the nearby cemetery. Then a rancher named Paul, brandishing a curled mustache, met us for our horseback riding experience. We signed up for two hours. Paul led us back through the town and down a path on the outskirts of town, filling us with history. Of course you had to be right behind him to hear all that he was saying. So we missed a lot of his conversation. At the end of the first hour, I was done. My bottom hurt. My knees hurt. Our last hour was a lesson in endurance. It is definitely not a good idea to ride a horse for two hours if your bottom isn't properly broken in. By the time we finally returned to the ranch we could hardly get off the horses and stand, we were all so stiff and sore. But it was an experience!
Here we are at the beginning of the ride. Bill and I are on top and Layne in the bottom picture.
We headed for home, after changing a flat tire, and arrived exhausted. Against our usual tradition of late night domino marathons, we all fell into bed early. Wednesday we floated down the Payette River. Got soaked. Very fun. Saw a movie on Thursday, "Light Between Oceans". It was a bit sad but also had some positive messages.
Here we are at the wettest spot on the Payette River.
Ostlers left on Friday. Chase and Morgan spent that night with us. Wow. Non-stop company. It has been wild, demanding, and fun.
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