Day 20 - Lewiston to Butte

We left Lewiston at 8:15am and headed East on US 12 up the Clearwater River Valley. What a wonderful ride. The first half took us up to Lolo Pass, following the river all the way with twists and turns all the way. The second half took us down to Missoula, Montana, again with twists and turns all the way. In total, the ride from Lewiston, Idaho to Missoula covered nearly 200 miles of wonderful riding road!

The scenery was great, with the crystal clear river and the Pine, Cedar and Douglas Fir forests on the West side and Pine and prairie grasses on the East side. We stopped for gas at Cougar Canonyon on the way up - a one pump station that loves bikers. We stopped for lunch on the way down at Lolo Hot Springs, where there really are hot springs that keep a spa at 103 degrees.

The whole route followed that taken by the Lewis and Clark expedition as it made its way over the Rockies down the Clearwater River to the Snake, and then to the Columbia and the Pacific.

Leaving Missoula, we headed down I-90 to Butte, one of the great mining towns in the U.S. and, coincidentally, the birthplace of my Mom! We checked into the Best Western at 5:00pm (mountain time) and headed up the hill to Walkerville to see what was left of Mom's old neighborhood. Unfortunately, not much is left, and what is, is in serious disrepair. But this is not hard to understand. My great grandfather bought the house (two or three rooms) my mother was born in from the Indians in the 1880's!

We also witnessed the beginning of Evel Knievel Days in Butte. This is an annual affair that honors Evel Knievel, who was born in Butte - and who is here for the event and staying in our very hotel! The entire "uptown" area is closed to traffic for the weekend. There are hundreds of bikes, some of which are headed to Sturgis after the event, and much music, drinking and frivolity! A good time by any standard.

Tomorrow we head for West Yellowstone and two day of touring the park. Talk to you later!

Day 19 - Wenatchee to Lewiston

We left Wenatchee at 8:15am and headed North to see Dry Falls and the Grand Coulee Dam. We stopped in Coulee City for a coffee and bought some wonderful snacks called "Wheat Dudes." They are only made in Coulee City and are simply whole wheat kernels treated with something, and they taste great. Bringing some home, and have the address to have more shipped.

From Coulee City it is about 3 miles to Dry Falls. This is a most interesting spot. The falls were created about 15,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age. The glaciers had moved down from Canada and blocked both the Columbia River and the John Clark River in Idaho. The latter, backed up into Montana and created Lake Missoula, which at its peak covered over 500 square miles and was up to 2,000 feet deep - larger than any lake in North America.

Finally, the pressure of the water broke through the ice dam and Lake Missoula drained rapidly through eastern Washington and Oregon to the Pacific. At its peak, the flow was over 500 feet deep and rushed along at over 65 miles per hour creating the largest flood the world has ever experienced. It scoured the area and was hundreds of miles wide. It carried with it pieces of the shattered glacier and deposited boulders, some weighing up to 200 toms, across thousands of square miles of Eastern Washington and Oregon. The main flow created Dry Falls, which is over 400 feet high and 3 miles wide, dwarfing Niagra, and once the largest waterfall in the world. I saw it when I was very young and was awed, I am still awed.

We then went to the Grand Coulee Dam, once the largest Dam in the world. There is enough concrete in the dam to pave a highway across America, and it generates an enormous amount of hydro electricity. While there we met a few other bikers from Utah and shared tales. We also ran across a number of antique racing cars, all of which ran and sounded like they were brand new. Amazing to see and hear.

We then turned East and headed for Spokane and then South to Lewiston. This area is the "Breadbasket of America." It is mile after mile of wheat and other grain fields. It is like a sea of grain for hundreds and hundreds of square miles.

We arrived in Lewiston at 4:30pm after the two Garmins took us on a merry chase over some side roads - can't figure out why. Ultimately, and with the help of a road worker, we found our Comfort Inn, checked in and went for drinks and dinner.

Lewiston is a nice town of 31,000 people, but it is really hot in the summer! As I dropped down from the high plateau to the Lewiston, which is located at the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers, the temperature was around 100 degrees. I was glad I had my Cool Vest on.

All is good and tomorrow we head for Butte, Montana - where my Mom was born. More from there.

Day 18 - Seattle to Wenatchee

We arrived in Seattle in the rain and, fortunately, left Seattle in brilliant sunshine. The sun came out, for the first time, on Tuesday and continued today. Of course, as we leave, the sun is expected to continue for the next week or so! I knew the sun God would get me for leaving the Northwest!

We said goodbye to Mom this morning, picked up "Goldie" at HD of Seattle, and headed over Stevens Pass to Wenatchee. The rivers flowing both West and East are beautiful - emerald green and crystal clear (photo). Exactly as I left them and fished them as a youth.

We had an easy day, not meant to cover lots of miles. We got into Wenatchee at 2:30pm and took "Goldie" to the car wash for a much needed bath. By 4:30 we were at Applewood Bar and Grill (photo). Then to the Buzz Inn for dinner and to watch the Seattle Mariners game on TV.

Wenatchee is an interesting town, with lots of folks from Seattle moving in when they retire. While Seattle gets around 40 inches of rain a year - in excruciatingly continuous doses, Wenatchee, Ellensburg and the rest of Eastern Washington get around 8 inches of rain a year. The result is semi-desert (photo), all 100 to 150 miles from Seattle.

If you don't like the rain - drive 100 miles East and bask in the sun - in the summer that is. Of course it is HOT in the Summer, and in the Winter it is COLD. Well, you can't have everything - unless you live in Florida that is!

Cheer

John and Suz

The Interlude

We did go fishing in Sekiu. I caught a small sole (which I released), but no salmon. It was good to be back on the water again after so many years, but the on-and-off rain made the experience a bit less enjoyable than it could have been!

On Friday, we headed back to Seattle in the rain, and it has been raining off and on since. We stopped at the Harley shop on the way to Mom's and said hello to "goldie." They had put on the new Metzler tires, but had not yet done the oil change. The dealership doesn't carry Mobil 1 for V-Twins, so I drove to another cycle shop and bought some and had it put in. HD of Seattle has been most helpful and accommodating in all respects.

We had dinner with my daughter, her husband and my two grandsons last night. What a great time. I will miss them when we leave. The rest of the time here is going to be busy visiting relatives and catching up with old college buddies that I haven't seen in 40 or so years.

Talk to you again from the road.

Day 12 - Sekiu and the Pacific

This morning was partially sunny and warm. I went out and talked to the morning fishermen who were cleaning a good catch of Coho (Silvers) and a few Chinook. We then drove to Neah Bay and Cape Flattery - the western most tip of the lower 48 states. Along the way, we stopped at a smoke house and bought some wonderful tasting Alder smoked salmon. Suzanne and I are supposed to go out later this afternoon for a little fishing - if it doesn't rain, which it is doing at the moment.

Tomorrow we head back to Seattle, and will be there for five days, so this is the last Blog entry for a while. We will be back online when we begin the journey back East.

Talk to you next week!

Day 11 - Yakim a to Seattle and then Sekiu

We left Yakima at 7:15am and headed West on Hwy 12. We reached White Pass (4,500 ft.) and began the descent toward HWY 123 around the East side of Mt. Ranier. Unfortunately, 123 was closed due to a mudslide, so we had to continue on Hwy 12 to Packwood, Randle and Morton. The diversion cost us 2 hours. Not only that, but as soon as we started down the mountain, it started to rain, which it did the rest of the day! The rain gear works reasonable well - something I could have gone without knowing.

We finally arrived at Mom's apartment in Seattle around 12:30pm, had lunch and departed (in the rain) to drop off the bike at the Harley dealership for an oil change and a set of new tires. In the rain, we (Suzanne) decided we would take to car to Sekiu - a wise choice as it runs out.

We caught the 3:00pm ferry from Edmonds to Kingston (a 25 minute ride) then headed West on WA 104 to Port Angeles and Sekiu. We stopped between Sequim and Port Angeles for dinner at a wonderful seafood and steak restaurant called Dupuis, which my family had stopped at for cracked Dungeness crab since the late 40's. The food was great. We had a single cracked crab and spaghetti dinner for two, and it was all we could eat. We finally arrived at Sekiu, still in the rain, at 6:30pm. the rain subsided so we walked the "street" and went out on the floats to look at boats.

Cheers. John and Suz

Day 10 - Pendelton to Yakima - Part 1

We left Pendelton at 7:15am and headed Northwest on I-84 to I-82 North and crossed the Columbia River into Washington state. We turned onto WA 14, which runs down the North shore of the Columbia for nearly 90 miles through the famous Columbia Gorge. The Columbia is one of the largest rivers in the world and drains a basin that begins just South of the Yukon in Canada. Along the way we saw an old stern wheeler heading down the river (pics).

We turned North on US 97 toward Goldendale, where we stopped in the old town for a coffee (cappuccino and a latte) at Coyote Coffee, a coffee shop run by a fellow and his wife transplanted from Tucson, Arizona. The coffee was great, and the conversation about Goldendale and things in general most interesting.

From there we were back onto 97 climbing into the Pine and Douglas Fir forests lining Satus Pass (3,146 ft.) On the descent, Suzanne was stopped by a Wapto police officer - not for speeding, but because he didn't see a front license plate, and couldn't read "Florida" on the rear plate due to the license plate bracket. Front plates are mandatory in Washington. He apologized for his error and we had a great conversation about the trip and the area.