We are safely back from a 300 mile, 7 day/6 night trip through Idaho, British Columbia, and Washington following the "International Selkirk Loop." The highlights:
a. Incredible scenery along the route from Sandpoint going counter clockwise to Bonner's Ferry, Creston, Crawford Bay, Nelson, Ione, Newport and finally back to Sandpoint.
b. Friendly, helpful people all along the way.
c. Wildlife spotted include bear, fox, river otter, buffalo (Indian tribal herd), and many birds.
d. Mostly good weather: a bit of rain at night and we raced a cold front to Sandpoint today.
e. Good roads with adequate shoulders and bike aware drivers EXCEPT for Idaho loggers who are a breed of their own.
We are already thinking of a bike tour route for next year!
Here is a daily summary of our ride:
Day 1. Sandpoint to Bonner's Ferry. 33 miles; 2 hrs 32 minutes riding (elapsed time greater for breaks and stops, etc). We left late morning and headed north to Bonner's Ferry. This was the worst road stretch we found; rumble strip on the highway; dirty (gravelly shoulder); and inconsiderate drivers (the bigger the rig the worse the driver). Not much time to look at the scenery as we focused on the road. The campground we found (only 1 in the area) also turned out to be the most expensive of our trip and, while an RV Resort, it was rather a run down after thought of a place stuck between the busy highway and the all night train tracks. It did have hot showers and that was a hit. I think we both wondered when the scenic loop would really start!
I did have to laugh though as this road (Idaho 95/2/1) is the Idaho Wild Horses Scenic Byway. I kept thinking I would see some horses. Not so -- the name comes from the historic river route the miners used to get to the Wild Horse Gold Mine in Canada.....
Day 2. Bonner's Ferry to Creston. 36 miles; 3 hrs riding.
We gladly left Bonner's Ferry and within 10+ miles the industrial traffic turned east and we were left pointing north and riding through a fertile farm valley (we think many Mennonites live in the area). The border crossing was easy although the Canadian official did think we were a bit crazy to be on our bikes. We rode into Creston and found the next RV park....at the top of a darn steep hill. Oh well. We set up camp and walked the town in hunt of a bakery but had to settle for ice cream cones. We stopped in the public library and used their computers. So welcoming to us.
Welcome to Canada! Sure they speak English but Canadians use funny money (loonies and toonies) and that darn metric system. Right after the border was a large thinKMetric sign. Only a few times did it trip me up.
We noted the gathering gray clouds and pesky wind. Our 10 day weather forecast when we left Sandpoint had only 1 day with a 20% chance of rain....but the reality was ominous. Gamblers at heart we had gone light on rain gear and bike fenders...would this prove to be a poor choice?
Back at the tent it was clearly time to batten down the hatches for a stormy night....and rain it did. Whether in cm or inches, it was alot of rain. Mostly we were dry but the sunrise found the tent & sleeping bags wet. The sky was blue & clearing. ON WE GO!
The joy of RV parks as we have discovered is hot showers and laundry mats on site. The bags were in the dryer, the tent hung over the table and about an hour behind schedule we pulled out of Creston. Creston is a large fruit growing and agricultural area. Absolutely lovely farm vistas with steep mountains across the valley.
Day 3. Creston to Crawford Bay. 49 miles; 4 hrs 17 riding. This was a long day -- but one that offered the stunning scenery we sought. We travelled along the east shore of Kootenay Lake looking up and across to the Selkirk Mountains. The road is famous among riders for 270+ curves and modest ups & downs. Just riding and scenery. There were almost no services along the road; we had a cold milk just north of Creston but then there was nothing until Boswell. Just riding and riding. Many creeks still running; many homes tucked between the road and the Lake. We saw one Anglican Church: St Anselms! A few old rock retaining walls. Near the end of the day we got a glimpse of Kokanee Glacier. We camped in another RV Park and while there were no other services there was a fine small grocery store for a bit of popcorn & fruit. (Dinner was always a back packer's special!)
Day 4. Crawford Bay to Nelson. 25.5 miles; 2 hrs 16 min riding. PLUS the world's longest free ferry ride from Kootenay Bay to Balfour across the Lake. The morning started with a climb up and over a hill to the ferry terminal where we discovered that we had the wrong time (day light savings had ended the night before so ....) so enjoyed a coffee and the view. After the ferry ride we had nearly level riding into Nelson. We had a delightful lunch picnic at Kokanee Creek Provincial Park at the water's edge. We also stuffed ourselves on blackberries along the road.
Mid afternoon we arrived in Nelson over the Orange Bridge and found the Municipal Campground. Turns out we were lucky to get a space as it was Friday and the classic car show: Road Kings was the weekend's festival. We unpacked, took showers, and walked into town. Nelson (think of Steve Martin and Darryl Hannah in Roxanne) clings to the hillside and has 300+ Victorian houses; a shopping street with all sorts of goodies; a local college adding a youthful element to the community. It was big city overload in a small town setting.
We did watch the opening parade of the Road Kings...everything from Model T Fords to Corvettes to hot rods of all the years in between. They also had a soap box derby and believe me there were no rules like the US soap box derby. Anythings goes and down the hill it came. It was a total hoot.
Day 5. Nelson to Ione. 65.2 miles; 5 hrs 35 min riding. This was the day I was dreading abit. All those lovely rolling hills were giving way to a few climbs up and over the ridge line and down to Washington. I used the Alisa (my sister) Insurance Policy: if you worry a bit about the situation, you guarantee it will be all right!
We got some local guidance on how to get out of town and avoid the real steep short hills -- and off we went. (Funny how the Canadians say "a bit of a hill.") We did shift some weight from my bike to Alan's as he is definitely a better climber and rider than me. And then it just was the Zen of the Road. Just keep turning the pedals. Don't look up for the top of the hill because it ain't there. The road was not so great and there was a road crew working. But the traffic control team let us through (and held further traffic) till we were across the one lane section. No one rode close or honked, etc (that is just US drivers).
Maybe 5 miles later (about an hour of riding?) Alan shouts back to me "The Creek is running the other way!!" In fact we had summited and now a narrow valley opened and became wider as we headed south. The road improved, our spirits soared and always we could see and follow the Salmo River. Down.
We stopped in Salmo for lunch. It struck me that in the middle of nowhere in Canada, there are small towns with a full ranges of services: including a deli with hot veggie paninis and cesear salads. Oh yum.
I read a local paper and discovered an interesting fact. During the previous week in Nelson a bear had been killed within the city limits. Earlier in July, a bear had been killed near the Municipal Campground. We laughed: they were more concerned that we would tell someone the bathroom code or take a shower after 10:30pm and never once said pick up your food and be bear safe! Ha.
On we rode and traffic thinned even more. It was time for yet another climb -- this to the border crossing at Nelway. I saw a sign that said: Nelway 10; Metalline 30. And I thought no f**cking way can I climb 10 miles to Nelway. Sorry...that was 10 kms.....Still it did give me a laugh and it was still a long climb.
On the road we saw a bear!!! No time for a picture before he disappeared into the forest. And then a fox. Incredible forests and creeks.
An easy border crossing by a very professional and serious guard. Was I carrying this or that or the other thing. Heck no, I'm carrying the bare minimum to get around! $10,000 in cash -- you are kidding me. We did not reveal that we had trail mix (fear that he would take our nuts & seeds and leave us starving by the roadside.)
Shortly after the border my bike computer turned over: 2,000 miles since I started riding. Yeah, miles not those pesky kilometers.
And then we rode on....up a few more hills and then down towards Metalline or Ione. Most of the blogs I had read recommended going on to Ione (another 10 miles) for better food choices. Well, since there was nothing in Metalline it was a no brainer to keep going. Alan just was flying along loving the terrain; I was no longer interested in scenery -- Zen of the Road time for me.
He got to Ione before me and found Cedar RV Park and I have to say, it was the nicest place we stayed with the most incredible hosts, Gabe and Linda. We got there about 5pm; both knew about our long day in the saddle. I made a comment about wanting a shower -- she asked me if I needed a towel. Now we normally carry a pack towel (an 8 x 10 inch self drying square) that works ok. BUT a real towel!! And how about we get you some chairs to sit in by your tent. And here, have a bag of ice because I'm sure something is hurting by now.... In the morning they made us coffee on the porch and offered us granola bars. I was totally amazed at how gracious and welcoming there were.
The food choices were pizza or pizza. So we had pizza for dinner and flopped into our bags early. And then listened to drizzle through the night. Oh yuck. Nothing like rain at night to help you dread the upcoming hours on the road.
Day 6. Ione to Newport. 55 miles. 4 hours, 30 min. We left under gray skies with a hope for clearing conditions as we headed south. At this point we left the "Selkirk Loop" road and found N LeClerc road (thanks to a blog I read) that follows the east shore of the Pend Oreille River to Newport. Wow. It was beautiful -- good road, no traffic, lush forest, river views including a few otters and belted kingfishers. And no services. We saw the buffalo herd maintained by the Kalispel Indians. Our so so tail wind became a in your face headwind. We had lunch and then crossed to Usk for a soda. The clerk told us of a rather threatening forecast....lightening, thunder, and rain with a coming cold front. Guess it was time to get moving south. After a bit the winds eased and became more of a tail wind. What a mood booster!
On and on. Finally we saw a forest service campground but the host did not have a current forecast. She described the recent weather as a "3 inch Idaho rain storm" meaning there were 3 inches between every rain drop. Ha. We felt we needed to get a few more miles to Newport, plus I wanted ice cream. Zen of the road is fine but ice cream is a whole lot better.
Finally, there was Newport; we crossed the river and found an RV resort. The winds were blowing! The local ice cream shop was closed on Sunday (I guess that huckleberry soft ice cream in a waffle cone will have to wait!); but MacDonald's does a fine dipped cone. And there was a Safeway for a roll with dinner. Simple joys.
Day 7. Newport to Sandpoint. 37.5 miles, 3 hours 8 min. It was dry through the night, but the sky was very dark and the winds a bit brisk from the west. It was cold enough that we wore legs for the first time as we rode. No time for lazy mornings in camp. We packed up and stopped in MacDonald's for a coffee.
Again, a blogger had suggested taking the scenic road that runs south of the river -- a bit more up and down but very little traffic. It was absolutely a wonderful end trip, especially when we turned from going south to east and the wind helped push us along. We crossed the river again at Priest River for another coffee & breakfast treat. What a nothing town. More pubs & bars than anything.
We kept an eye on the sky but at this point -- ride on because you will get there when you get there and the rain will come when it falls. Suddenly we were on Idaho 95 heading north to Sandpoint; there was a community bike path in average condition that we sort of used. After so many days without traffic the busy road was a novelty. But a wide shoulder (newer road) made it easy to fly downhill to Lake Pend Oreille. Suddenly there was the Lake and a 2 mile bike lane on the bridge to cross. Sweet.
Push to get to our hotel, the Meandering Moose, (where the car was parked) and we just made it. The first rain drops fell as we got our gear inside the car and smiled.
WOW. What a trip.
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