The romance of Coeur d’Alene has been a long one.  I was once here for a week’s visit about 15 years ago go visit my niece Kathleen and her husband.  At that time I was shown the most beautiful pristine lake that I had ever seen up to that point.  Coeur d’Alene is located in the upper part of Idaho between a two or three hour’s car drive from the Canadian Border.  As I left the Canadian border the landscape changed dramatically.  All of a sudden I was simply out of the mountains, the trees were sparse and the kinds of trees were very different and there were a lot more people.  The beautiful mountains that I had fallen in love with were now behind me.  I think the mountains draw me back even as I sit here typing. But, I knew I was on the way to the most beautiful lake in the world.  Thus, I said goodbye to the hours and hours of winding mountain roads, climbing to spectacular vistas and verdant valleys.  But…I was going to Coeur d’Alene and its lure was calling me back.

It wasn’t the same.  What was once a little sleepy town with uninhabited beaches and shorelines was now full of houses and more houses and more houses with big beautiful grandiose mansions that hogged the shoreline for miles.  Following are some statistics from a web site in relationship to the growth of Coeur d’Alene.

“Coeur d’Alene has the second largest metropolitan area in the state of Idaho. As of the 2010 census the population of Coeur d’Alene was 44,137.^[5]The city is located about 30 mi (48 km) east of the larger Spokane, Washington. After the 2010 Census the two metropolitan areas were merged into a single Combined Statistical Area with a population of 679,989.^[6] Coeur d’Alene is the largest city in northern Idaho Panhandle. The city is situated on the north shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene, 25-mile (40 km) in length. Locally, Coeur d’Alene is known as the “Lake City,” or simply called by its initials: “CDA”.”

I was looking through older eyes that have seen a great many more places since my last visit to this area.  And I was saddened…until today.  I had a trip of a lifetime today.  Not only did I get to view the River Coeur d’Alene and the Lake Coeur d’Alene, I had the opportunity to explore them from the water.  My nephew Brian invited me to go on all day boat ride with his family, sister, niece, and father.  And of course I accepted. Yes, the houses  still crowd the shoreline as well as spilling out to the farmlands but what I didn’t know was that there were still miles and miles of undisturbed shoreline and natural habitats left in its natural state.  We road in the boat for hours and went further and further into the recesses of the lake.  The lake is large with winding turns and coves.  Oh so beautiful!  I was falling in love again, but not quite as much as I had with the mountains of Canada.  However, I again saw the beauty of what I dreamed Coeur d’Alene was like from memories of my last visit.  The lake was so beautiful and it was such fun to be in close quarters of the boat and feel the comradery of those aboard.

I was taken on a walking tour of the very place where my nephew and his wife were married.  It was beautiful. They were married on a bluff overlooking the water amidst the pines and deciduous trees.  The weather was an awesome 84 degrees, sunny with beautiful white clouds scuttling by and a breeze to cool you.  The two year old, the five year old, and the nine year old were all so full of life and joy that only young children out on a summer day’s excursion can exhibit. They behaved amazingly well, got along with each other and the sound of laughter was pleasant to hear.  The little two month old baby was content to sleep most of the day due to the constant lulling of the boat and the hum of the motor.  Because of this great escapade I was becoming reacquainted with a long lost love.

When we arrived back to Brian’s house I stayed a short while and since I had my own car there I took off and left brother and sister and dad to visit without me.  I have done some disastrous cooking, ate too much dinner, and must now finish putting food away and cleaning pots.   And I am sleepy.  Not so much tired as just sleepy.  It is now 10:45 p.m. so I’m heading to bed.

Good night!

P.S.  Wisdom from Brian’s dad, David:   “I wish I had learned more patience earlier in life”

Here is Erick’s wisdom: “It is okay to take time out for yourself whatever that may look like to you, a time of reflection, even if it is just five minutes.”