August 2007.............

Sandpoint: On the northwestern shore of Lake Pend Oreille (pond-a-ray), at the foot of the Selkirk mountains, in far Northern Idaho, Sandpoint is a neat little tourist town. The headquarters for Coldwater Creek is there, as well as many other specialty shops. It is a "walking town", as well as one of the West's greatest railroading towns. The BNSF, Montana Rail Link and Spokane International rail systems all converge to create "The Funnel", an amazing active rail crossroads with more than 40 trains a day. The train station is the oldest remaining active passenger depot of the former Northern Pacific RR. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Lake Pend Oreille is 65 miles long, and 1150 ft. deep in some areas. It is the fifth deepest US lake, and was the home of the second largest Naval Training ground in the US. during WW II, it is now Farragut State park. The South end of the lake is still used to test large scale submarine prototypes: the depth gives it acoustic properties similar to the open ocean, without the background noise. We stayed in Hope, which is near Sandpoint, I think we would try to find an RV park closer if we went back.

August 2007.............

Coeur D'Alene: Our second stop on the Idaho tour was Coeur D' Alene, in Northern Idaho. It sits on the shores of Lake Coeur D' Alene, known as one of the "world's most beautiful lakes". It is 23 miles long and has 109 miles of shoreline. The city has the "world's longest floating boardwalk" ( at the Coeur d’Alene Resort), a hiking/biking trail that runs through town, that is part of the Trail of the Coeur d'Alene bike path. It follows the Union Pacific RR right-of-way from near the Montana Border to a town near Washington, a total of 72 miles. . We stayed on Blackwell Island, just across the Spokane river at Blackwell Island RV Park. It is on the water and close enough to town to ride your bike.

August 2007.............

Route of the Hiawatha At Lookout Pass: This portion of the Olympian Trail has been called one of the most breathtaking scenic stretches of railroad in the country. The "crown jewel of rail-to-trail mountain bike trails". The trail open late May to early October is a 15 mile route through ten tunnels and crosses seven high trestles, through the Bitteroot Mountains between Idaho and Montana. As you began the ride you go through the long, dark, cold, wet, St Paul Pass that runs for 1.66 miles under the Idaho Montana state line. Going down is a 2% grade on a very rough, rocky trail. At the bottom you can take a bus back to the mouth of the long tunnel, you ride through the tunnel twice, or you can bike back up the trail. John & Nancy rode both ways, the rest of us took the bus back to the top. You must wear helmets and have approved lights on your bike. Having a light on your helmet is also helpful, plus a blinking red light on the back of your bike, so the person in back of you has something to follow. There is a charge, $9.00 to ride and $9.00 to ride the bus back up. Laurel was told there was no snakes that high up, so riding in the tunnels didn't really bother her. The thought of snakes above her head in a dark tunnel would have made a big difference. This is a trip you should take, but be ready for a rough ride.

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