US Northwest Idaho BDR (and then some!)

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volunteers had done a pretty good job of clearing trees, even if they did leave some places a little narrow. We were all able to get under this one

brief stop at the top of the pass

does anybody know what these are? they were quite common along the trail

 

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more scenery

like I needed you to tell me that....

one of the smallest cemeteries I've ever seen

 

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uh oh.. here he goes again with the landscape photos again. Yes, that's the trail you see there in the distance in the first two photos

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and, no-way

 

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out come the chain saws

and we're off!

kind of interesting to discover a mining claim out in the middle of the forest

 

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The Florence Cemetery is pretty interesting. Dates back to the Civil War

this is the gravesite of "BABY", referred to on the signboard in the previous photo

it's a very tranquil setting

 

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continuing on, we were in a hurry to get to the Magruder Corridor. Road construction was to start at 7:00 AM the next morning on the first 34 miles of the trail and we wanted to get past that so we wouldn't have to contend with long delays

most of the road was in pretty good condition

 

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and of course, scenic

the next available campground was at the aptly named Observation Point

 

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not only a nice campground

but a spectacular sunrise

we stopped by the Magruder Ranger Station

 

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where Oly checked out the river

then on to Hell's Half Acre Lookout

the young lady was friendly and answered many questions, but we couldn't go up into the tower

nice views though

 

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pretty soon we were on our way back down

passing a few critters along the way

then to the Lolo Trail, where road construction was to begin the next week

more great views

 

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and anoither fallen tree on the road

this one was pretty soft and didn't require a chain saw. we just broke off a couple of limbs and then threw it to the side

Steve headed up the hill

the Indian Post Office is a place where messages were left

 

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Hemlock Butte Lookout

I really wanted to climb one, but we were there on the wrong day

nice sunset

 

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this is Quince, he was riding solo and we played hopscotch for several days. we would pass him, he would pass us, we would pass him, etc.

camped at Dworshak Reservoir and Dam

a nice German couple had camped overnight at the Blue Hut

 

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cool tunnel

and on to Avery

the old train depot is now a museum and visitor center

this old dining car is open to walk through

 

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on the way out of town, the old train tunnels have been converted to trails as part of a Rails-to-Trails project

is that a train coming out of there with 2 headlights?

no, it's just Larry

I think there were only 2 tunnels on the official trail, which turned left after the second tunnel

 

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but John knew that you could proceed straight and run parallel to the official tracks and pass through more tunnels. the road would intersect the official trail again shortly. Thanks John!

this was a short one

that's the official track down there

 

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and you hit a "Peed Bump" going into Wallace, where we stopped for lunch

one of only a few campfires we were able to have, due to fire restrictions

not that I don't appreciate the volunteers clearing downed trees, but they could trim back just a little more...

another fire lookout

with a great view

that you couldn't visit

 

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here's the gang

that's sage advice, now just how do I do that?

getting near the border and it's back to farmland

and ranches

hey Oly!

 

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a prestigious address if I ever saw one

Canada, eh?

we stopped near the border for photos at the Welcome to Idaho sign

then we proceeded to Bonners Ferry for a farewell lunch where we said goodbye to Oly, who was headed home from there. Paul and Steve were headed to Emmett to run the Pacific Ocean Spur at a faster pace to keep a prearranged appointment. Larry and I were also headed to Emmett to spend a full day getting oil changed, laundry done, and a little grocery shopping done before heading out on "The Spur" at a slightly slower pace.



Stay tuned for "The Spur"

 

[armyRN]

Thanks for the photos! It was a great trip.

I'm looking forward to hearing your take on the Spur.