October 16, 2019

          It is a beautiful Fall in this community. Evans Hill, to our south is a swirl of red and orange from top to bottom, and if a person looks across the broad valley over to the west side their mountains tend to be a match. We have had a thorough freeze, but it is still lovely to see. An overnight snowfall has stayed in every spot untouched by the cold rays of the sun. With this last freeze the deer may miss out on some of the munchies from orchards and blackened gardens.

            Elder Samuel Seamons is back among us after serving for the last two years in the Philippines, Legazpi, Mission. He is the son of Jeff and Jennifer Seamons and his family had a great time welcoming him home when his flight landed at the Salt Lake City airport. Kathy and Joe Jarvis, grandparents, have welcomed two returning missionary grandsons this month, both from island missions, the Philippines and Sydney, Australia.

          La Ron Baird had a brief stay in the hospital in Pocatello after having a ATV vehicle rollover. He had been hunting in the Burley area and ended up with a concussion and injured shoulder.

           The Forest Service had a control burn up our way a while back that caused some excitement. Seeing smoke rising, knowing how dry the terrain was, caused some anxious moments for residents until they learned it was a planned situation.

            There has been an unusual roadside fatality. A coyote was the victim, we expect to see deer, racoons, skunks, even a turkey now and then but a coyote carcass is a rarity.

           Speaking of roadkill.. .When a skunk is the victim all vehicles do their best to avoid contact with the downed critter, and there are quite a few on the commute from Mink Creek to Preston and points south.

            There have been quite a few reports of success with the local deer hunting season in progress. Even with all the shots echoing through our valley we still have deer in our yards, on the highway. Just this time of year.

Oct 8, 2019

          It was a perfect evening, but a little on the chilly side. Mink Creek community took a Fall Foliage Ride into the mountains around Station Creek. It was a great turnout, more than 30 outfits, 4 wheelers or Side by Sides. The group split into three sections, led by Nate Olson, Jeff Olson and Lin McKay, each taking a different trail, all headed to the top. Great scenery all along the trails. Some elk were rousted out. When the goal was reached there were marvelous views of Glendale, Cub River, the whole west side of northern Cache Valley. A person could see all of Mink Creek village up to the entry of the Caribous National Forest. Once back down to the Olson farm there was huckleberry and huckleberry cheesecake ice cream to top off the activity. The local LDS missionary pair, Elders Duke and Rich, provided some vocal and guitar music along with the refreshments. It might have been cold but huckleberry ice cream is always acceptable.

         Mink Creek has four young men playing on the Preston High School football team this year. They are Andrew and Charles Iverson, sons of Kurt and Margret, Stetson Ostler, son of Stuart and Alona Ostler, and Ty Jepsen, son of Kerry and Melinda Jepsen. On the PHS volleyball team this year is Emily Longhurst, daughter of Candy Longhurst.

          We started this past week off with our first low snowfall of the season. Sept 29^th, after a couple of days of rainfall, sent some big heavy feathery flakes in the morning. However within just a couple of hours it had warmed up and looked as if it had only been a dream, unless you looked up into our surrounding mountains and the whiteness was still in place.

          The Lewis and Clark Volunteers, a Mountain Man group that headquarters in Soda Springs,ID, were here for a weekend of fall rendezvous. The group gathers on the Vernon Keller farm on the banks of Mink Creek. Vernon's daughter-in-law, Denise, came up from Alpine, UT, for this annual event.

           The time for harvesting chokecherries is past, but there are plenty left on the trees, up and down our village. Our local bird population is now doing their share of harvesting the berries. The trees shake with the activity taking place within their branches, in and out, repeatedly. Seeds must be scattered for nature's planting over many miles.

           Most of our residents that still farm are hoping for enough dry days to get that third crop into the barn, or wherever they stack it. The hay is cut, raked and waiting. Nights are frosty and bring moisture. Gardens are done for, only a few root crops still holding on. Vines of tomatoes, squash, cukes an melons are black, but it is mid October and we expect nothing else.

Day after 1stSnow, Oct 1, 2019

        The Relief Society ladies gathered at the ball park, before it got too cold, and enjoyed a Harvest Dinner. It was a pot luck affair with dishes made from the produce grown during the warm months. It was also a sharing time for anyone that had an overabundance of such things as green beans, zucchini or yellow squash, tomatoes, cucumbers. Getting a few new recipes always goes with a session of this sort.

         Jeff Olson drove to Ft. Carson, CO, just outside of Colorado Springs, to witness the ceremony of his son Andrew Lane Olson as he was installed as the Commander of 299^th Engineer Battalion of the U.S. Army. Better known as Andy, Commander Olson had been in the Army corp of Engineers and had served in Iraq for10 months supervising repairs on a large dam near the city of Mosul. He was transferred out of the Corp and into regular Army to become the commander of the unit. Andy and his family live in Colorado Springs at this time but were previously in Seattle, WA.

         Bob and Claudia Erickson drove to Kaysville, UT, to attend the funeral of her brother-in-law, Vaughn Perkins. Others of the Erickson family joined them there: Danalee and Gene Abernethy, Carla and Mark Nielsen and Laural Janke. Others attending with Franklin County roots were long time friends: Colleen Hawkes, Bishop Reed Povey and Eldean Holliday.

          Jody Rasmussen and her sisters recently took on the adventure and challenge of hiking Mt. Borah, Idaho's highest peak, part of the Lost River Range in the Challis National Forest. It proved to be grueling, not for the fainthearted, but worthwhile and each of them came away from the experience with a broadened perspective and appreciation of life.

         The passing of Richard Clair Jensen, known well as Dick, came unexpectedly to our community. He has been in the role of caregiver for several years with his wife, Ladawn. He is well known for his fun sense of humor, his teddy-bear approach to driving one of our school buses for many years and his love of his horses and his farm. This leaves an empty spot on our village roster. The Jensen brothers all grew up in Mink Creek: Lynn, Dick, Val, Ed, and Robert, sons of Leeral and Naomi Jensen.

         Geese are revisiting our ponds and fields as they make their way south with the weather changing. Their conversations can be heard while they are finding tidbits and bugs to refuel their energy for the flight.

         The first freeze has arrived. Also the first snow, although it didn't last long at the lower levels, Our mountain tops are white and the days since then have been cold enough that it hasn't receded. For some of our residents this will be their first winter where snow is the normal weather forecast. Welcome to Idaho in all seasons!

Sept. 24, 2019

           The beautiful scenery that surrounds our little valley has been various shades of green for several months. In just the last few days the dropping temperatures have started to produce some fall colors among the green, some bright yellow, red and orange. We have had some skiffs of snow on our highest reaches for a morning or two.

          Recent rainstorms have delivered a drenching. There is a good side and a bad side to that. The flowers in our gardens seem brighter than ever, full and lush as they await the freeze that is bound to come. Our farmers that are working to harvest that third crop of hay are met with the challenge of searching for a window of time when the crop can be swathed, with several days of clear, warmer weather following to dry before it can be baled.

          Claudine and LaMar McKague and their girls, Sage and Elsie, drove down from Vancouver, WA, for a Fall stay with Claudine's parents, Bob and Claudia Erickson. The visit was timed so they could pick up a returning missionary son, Elder Ethan McKague, in Pocatello, and also deliver Sage to the Idaho Falls area with her plans to attend BYU/I in Rexburg. The family of Laural and Jody Janke came up from Richfield, UT, to join in the family fun and get in some good cousin time.

          In one of those coincidences that somehow come into our lives, Elder McKague in his flight layover in Salt Lake City, briefly met Elder Jarom Olson, who also has Mink Creek roots with grandparents, Jimmie and AnnaBeth Olson. Elder McKague has been serving in Las Vegas, Elder Olson was just on his way to serve in the Las Vegas Mission. Even more interesting is that Elder Olson's first assignment is in the same location where Elder McKague last served before being released.

          With fall upon us the constant stream of summer visitors to our village is slacking off. Ken and Loren Nash were here from Sol Vang, CA to close up their family's Mink Creek residence for a month or so. Sam and Sylvia Stanger have been popping in and out over the summer at their yellow brick school.

         We are happy to announce the birth of a baby boy to Tawni and Tayson Reid. Grandparents Kristi and Bret Hall are busting their buttons with pleased smiles over the event. This makes another great-grandchild for Vernon Keller.

           The Forest Service had a controlled burn today in our area. It went fine, but caused some concerns within the community when we didn't know that was the cause of flames and smoke, and on a windy day.

            A few turkeys have been seen down in our lower regions. I am sure it is just the tip of the iceberg of what will soon be descending. Their summer absence has been very satisfying, but it is time to put on the alert for the next go around.

           There was a baby shower for Haylee Hatch Jensen, and it included her husband Bryce. It was held at the Benson Park in Preston on a day that turned out to be rather chilly. The Hatch family was prepared with warm cocoa and plenty of treats for the guests.

September 17, 2019

        The annual LOTOJA Saturday has been and gone. The weather, cloudy and cold on Friday, brightened up and was in the bikers favor for the race. No snow on the summit of our canyon this year. The riders filled the highway in the morning hours, some singly, some in pairs or small groups, and others in droves, pedaling almost synchronized as they ascend to Copenhagen and beyond.

          With the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Mink Creek ward getting a new Bishopric a couple of months ago, there was also a change in the Elders' Quorum presidency. The president is Clare Christensen, his counselors are Clifford Jensen and Brint Phillips. Miles Erickson is secretary for the organization. The former bishop, Kurt Iverson, has just been called to serve on the Preston North Stake High Council.

          Justin Longhurst was recently ordained to the office of an elder in the priesthood. Family gathered to witness this occasion. His brother Jake and Holly Longhurst and baby Alice drove up from Smithfield, sister McKinley Longhurst came from school at ISU in Pocatello. His mother Candy and sister Emily live here in Mink Creek. Grandparents, Earl and Barbara Craythorn of Firth, ID, attended. Justin's wife, Cynthia, had family visiting as well, her brother Quentin and Nikki Zilles, and her parents, Lori and Ross Zilles, all of Weston. Long standing friends, Bill and Myrna Despain cam up from Preston.

           Kaden Loyd is now stationed at a military base in Japan. His wife, Cheyenne, and baby girl flew over to join him. She is the daughter of Jody and Brett Rasmussen. Cheyenne had her hands full for the trip—besides bags she had baby necessities like a stroller and carrier, plus the babe. It was great that other passengers gave her a helping hand. Japan seems a long distance at the Rasmussen household.

            Kent and ReNae Egley are often on the road, along with other members of the Egley clan. They are following their son Matt Egley in his car racing competitions that has recently gotten underway. Matt has come in with the checkered flag a few times this season. Not to say that this racing life doesn't have some moments when big-time repair is needed. He has a great crew.

           We have had some fierce wind and rain storms this past week. The whipping trees could match up with Harry Potter's tree. Rivulets cut down through the dirt on the sides of driveways and roads as the swift water showed how much force it could produce, leaving behind small canyons. Any fruit near the stage of ripeness in our orchards was flung to the ground, not dropped, but flung, and now smushed and fodder for the wasps and bees.

          With the temperatures following a zigzag pattern lately, it is time to think about those nights which will soon be coming when we need to cover tomato plants, or anything else that might need protection from a freeze. So far I have heard no reports of garden disasters. However, snow has touched the tops of our mountains a couple of times in the last two weeks. No two ways about it, it is time to prepare. 

Sept 10, 2019

         Eric Hickman and his mother Delores Hickman were up from California to close out the Mink Creek Hickman home and get it ready for the prospect of selling. Delores lives in Long Beach. Eric built the home a few years ago for his parents, Van and Delores. Van passed away this summer.

          Richie Hurst has enjoyed having some of his friends, also from California, come by and spend a few days in Mink Creek. For some of them it is their first visit to Idaho. Rich enjoys introducing them to the pluses of life in small-town Idaho.

           The “Garlic Project” that took place on the Longhurst farm a year ago has born its harvest. Around fifty friends and neighbors, along with Longhurst family, gathered to bring in what they had helped plant. The farm was busy as a beehive, getting rid of the weeds that had grown along with the garlic and finding the bulbs.

           Ben and Marie Keller are back in town full time after being employed at Camp Bartlett for the majority of the summer. Much of their recent calendar was Sundays in Mink Cree, the rest of the week, up the canyon and over the hill to help with the upkeep of facilities at the Boy Scout camp. Bartlett is a thriving spot all summer long.

          The daughter of Lin and Sharla McKay, River McKay comes up off and on while she is settling in to her new job with Backcountry in Park City. It is to our advantage that she has a tendency to get pangs of home sickness.

           As we turn the calendar over to September it marks the end of lots of summery family visits. One might say that reality sets in and it is back to school, or jobs, or just a tighter schedule. The college age set have returned from summer employment, stopped at home long enough to eat some good meals, rearrange items in their bags and pick up a few more and head out in all directions to the college of their choice.

          We are seeing, and hearing, loads of firewood being harvested in our canyons. The sound of chainsaws in action is one familiar in this place. Trailers and pickup loads go up the highway empty and come back down loaded to overflowing.

         Members of the Larry and Lillian Hansen family have come up frequently from Utah to spend time at the Hansen place on Bear Creek. Larry's ancestor roots go way back to when this farm was first homesteaded.

          We've had a couple of gully-washer storms move through town the last few days. Wind and rain left some damage spots behind them.

September 3, 2019

            Combines are busy in the grain fields. Heavily loaded trucks are hauling the kernels to storage, whether it is on the home farm or at the grain elevators in Preston. It is a busy time of year. Just a few days ago another crop of hay was in the harvesting stage and being transported to the best vantage point, some by a hay wagon and tractor, others with sufficient quantity to require a semi truck.

             The countryside is drying, things are only green if they are being irrigated, whether that is a field or a lawn. The whir of the grasshopper wings is heard in the Fall air. The revolving of seasons is once again taking place.

             Stetson Ostler is helping his uncle Rex Sharp and his grandmother Jody Sharp with the care and training of race horses. This occupation is winding down a bit with the starting of school. The family of Stuart and Alona Ostler are also part of a catering business, Western Dutch Oven Cooking. It is a mobile business where they travel with their ovens to the event and the food is prepared close to the site where it will be served. Alona's parents, Brent and Jody Sharp of Cub River, are part of this cooking crew. They have magic with the ovens, producing yummy food.

           Phee and Robert Crosland took one last family trip before school got underway. Some of their children had the wish to retrace a trip taken when they were youngsters to the Oregon coast. Malia and Jason Kunze and their children of Rigby, ID, combined with Giovanni and Kristine Crosland and their little ones from Tremonton, UT, plus newlyweds, Angelo and Gracie Crosland, and all traveled caravan style to the northwest. They soaked up the beautiful scenery, enjoyed the beaches of the Pacific Ocean and various tourist sites while they were camping and having fun together. Good memories were both relived and made anew.

          Crystal Christensen, wife of Jeremy, and their children came up to spend a few days with his parents, Kim and Wally Christensen. Jeremy is now employed as an actuary for insurance for the Nevada State employees. The family lives in Carson City, NV.

          The village is gearing up for the annual LOTOJA bicycle race, Logan to Jackson, that passes through on our main street yearly. It will be this coming Saturday. Generally it happens without incident and residents are given a pass that enables them to use the local roads while the race is in progress. One year the weather turned cold and the bikers were caught in snow at the summit at the top of Strawberry Canyon. Those who organize and participate have to consider many different possibilities. Bikers have been making practice runs during the past months in preparation for this event.