Hard Hat Junction - Ken Swanstrom

With the promise of big money for each newsletter produced.  I agreed to try my hand at this.  Seems like offers of this sort always come along near the end of breakup when the meat and beans are getting low.

I'm typing this with a ginormous tip of the hat to Rich Tee!  He provided us with good reading material and stories for many years. He once shared with me that the income from crafting this article really helped with his fuel bills. So armed with that knowledge I agreed.  Thanks Rich!

We had a dandy MLA meeting in Butte, May 15 & 16. It was the celebration of 50 yrs as an Association providing a unified voice for the family-owned businesses that harvest and haul timber in Montana. My first day on the job and I stole that line right off the MLA website!

We had some old-timers show up - which we love. The longest standing members in attendance were Brent & Carla Anderson from Lincoln - haven't seen those folks in a while. Their outfit Conifer Logging signed up with the MLA in 1979. Then according to the official records, Smith Logging, Stoken Logging and Vaught Trucking all signed on in 1980 and all 3 of those outfits had representatives there in attendance and looking well.

Mind you there are older members than these fine folks - but just not there in Butte to celebrate with us. However, the fella that traveled the farthest to attend was Mr. Bart Cooper, MLA President 1995-1997. He flew in from Leesburg, Florida. Using my map app, that's almost 2500 miles from Butte!! Thanks for making the effort, Bart, it was nice seeing you and catching up.

Sunday morning after catching up with a few folks in the lobby over free motel coffee, I hit the road for home. I was headed for Avon MT, situated on the shores of the Little Blackfoot River. Mostly I was headed for the Avon Cafe!

            I love that simple little country cafe. I also always admire the prominent sign behind the counter that reads …

                        “We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone                         “No matter who you are - Who you think you are “                         “Or who your daddy is “

Gosh I love that!  I also firmly believe they create and sell the best Diced Ham & Scrambled eggs around. Couple that up with good coffee and it's a no brainer for me, I’m stoppin in. They have 5 seats at the counter and since it was prime time Sunday morning, only one seat left up front with the cool kids. As I grab the back of the chair to slide it out, I say to the gentlemen in the next chair, “Morning sir, I’m gonna slide in here beside you “. He had just given his meal order to the waitress and nodded and said morning. A fella probably a couple years older than me. The waitress says to me “Do you need a menu? “ I said” no mam, I know what I want “. We take care of that business, then the fella next to me says are you here often? I said 3 or 4 times a year. Then we are off and chatting away. His talk led me to believe he was driving the new Western Star outside pulling a tarp side van. I asked what's in the trailer and he said fancy steel for Boeing. I get my meal and we are conversing along and he asks what was my existence for all my years and I tell him my story. By now we are having a good conversation - In his younger days he worked at the Stoltze mill in Dillon, unloading trucks for a number of years. Plenty to talk about! He leaves and then the waitress turns around and says her husband worked for that St Onge outfit in Kalispell for a number of years. I didn't take that conversation any farther as it was getting really busy in there. Next time!

 The whole reason for that long story is - Dearest young humans, unless you want to sit at the counter and stare at your phone with your hoodie on, this was a prime example of how to start a nice and meaningful conversation. Sorry St Onge fellas, I failed to find out who used to work for you. Darn it.

Breakfast is done and I'm on the road for home. Lots of nice cattle and ranching scenes to view between the snowstorms - some wild springtime weather, but alas, nothing sticking to the highway. I get to Clearwater junction and start up Hwy 83, which I believe we should rename it to “The Blowdown Byway!”  It's very sad to see and I hope the Swan Valley loggers get a chance to get it cleaned up soon. It would be really nice to have action on that blowdown before the real tourist season kicks in. That can be a serene and beautiful drive up that stretch of road - but it sure looks rough now.

My beautiful and serene drive had a change of pace on the straight stretch of highway before the Echo Lake Cafe I was bombing along at a fuzz over 60. Sorta my Sunday no hurry looking around speed. I have XM radio in the little Jeep rig and it had been on Willies Roadhouse channel all that day. The song, Old Home Fillerup and keep on A-truckin cafe by our friend CW McCall was playing and I was singing along and enjoying myself. Right at the part in the song where CW is describing Mavis the waitress as “looking like a burlap bag full of Bobcats” I spot two very fine, young representatives of the Montana Highway Patrol sitting in the Swan River school parking lot and the one facing me just whipped his lights on and started to pull out in hot pursuit of me and my little Jeep.

Shoot!! I ease her on into the Echo Lake Cafe parking lot, it was empty as they had closed for the day. Start fetching out from the glove box, all the materials our officer is gonna need from me. He approached from the rear like they do and says, "I'm officer Cord Hege, with the Montana Highway Patrol “. Officer Hege is very young, looked 20 yrs old to me. Officer Hege asks, do you know why I stopped you? I said “well sir I think I was exceeding the 45-mph speed limit right there at the school.

Officer Hege says “I had you at 61 mph before you hit your brakes.” Dang it! I'm thinking this will be expensive. I hand over my license, registration and insurance card. He looks at the insurance card and sees my business name. He then says to me “what should I do with my Scots pine trees on my property?”.  I asked do you live near here? Are they old Christmas trees that got too big?    He said yes to all my questions and we talked about those trees and his dilemma for a little bit longer. Before I made the suggestion that they make a great bonfire. He agreed and said he had been told that before as well. He then says let me take your paperwork to my patrol car. My mind is really wondering how expensive this is going to be. He takes the standard amount of time and comes back to my window where MHP officer Cord Hege says “I'm going to give you a warning Mr. Swanstrom “but I will tell you what I say to others that I give warnings to … you know what I will do the next time we meet “.

I truly believe our conversation about trees as well as being nice and respectful earned me a warning that day. The small lesson there - MHP has a place to jot down notes!! Be nice.

That’s all for now folks - I will turn this in and see if I can draw my pay or at least get a food voucher at the MLA canteen.