Greetings from Arco, Idaho
At 10:47 A.M. (MDT) on Friday, June 8 I put on my sunglasses as we had stopped to stretch and have a snack at Givens Hot Springs, Idaho. Normally taking off my regular glasses and putting on sunglasses would be a trivial event. But the last time I had any inclination I might need sunglasses was approaching Lacey, Washington on Saturday, May 19. Since then we have ridden to Hyder, Alaska; back to Washington, east and west and east again over the North Cascades Highway, and are now not in Montana by way of Lolo Pass as planned but are instead in southeast Idaho.
We have been having some trouble making progress leaving the Northwest. A series of weather systems has kept the entire area a bit unpleasant for more than a week. It hasn't rained all the time, and there have been small patches of blue sky, and moments where a groundhog could see its shadow instead of puddles. We have had a few good days of riding wonderful roads, interspersed with a few days holed up here and there for various weather related reasons.
We stopped at a fascinating location near Coulee City, Washington. Known as "Dry Falls", According to the literature, and of course the Internet, "Dry Falls is a 3.5 mile long scalloped precipice in central Washington, on the opposite side of the Upper Grand Coulee from the Columbia River, and at the head of the Lower Grand Coulee. Ten times the size of Niagara, Dry Falls is thought to be the greatest known waterfall that ever existed. According to the current geological model, catastrophic flooding channeled water at 65 miles per hour through the Upper Grand Coulee and over this 400-foot (120 m) rock face at the end of the last ice age. At this time, it is estimated that the flow of the falls was ten times the current flow of all the rivers in the world combined."
We camped at Sun Lakes State Park near Coulee City, Washington just south of Dry Falls. It was a beautiful evening and didn't rain until later during the night. We next camped at one of our favorite campgrounds in Hells Gate State Park, on the banks of the Snake River just south of Lewiston, Idaho. Again it didn't rain until bed time but was a bit soggy in the morning. We crossed the river to Clarkston, Washington to get a new front tire for Paul's bike at Mac's Cycles, an excellent BMW and multi-brand dealership. Since significant rain and cold was in the forecast we hunkered down in the downtown Econolodge for a couple of nights. Lewiston has done a remarkable job in keeping its downtown healthy. There are many nice small shops and eateries. Public amenities have been nicely done, and the walk along the Snake River is an urban delight. This, despite the fact that the lumber economy has taken some hits - even the Lewiston Walmart has closed and the building is for sale.
From Lewiston we followed the new plan - south instead of east because there was snow in the forecast for the mountains of central Idaho. We had a wonderful day for riding south on US 95, intending to camp at Farewell Bend State Park in Oregon. There were patches of blue sky and the ride along the Little Salmon River was delightful. Apparently some of the counties in western Idaho believe they can solve their budget woes with traffic ticket revenue. We saw more Deputy Sheriff cars running radar on US 95 that the entire rest of our trip since April, combined. Once we crossed the river and were aimed to Farewell Bend we ran directly into the path of a thunderstorm and gusty winds. We backtracked a few miles to a nice commercial campground near Weiser, Idaho. We met a GS rider, Don Siems from Sandpoint, who shared his Blue Moon beer and our love for riding. We got sprinkled on but avoided the heavy weather. It was even dry when we packed up in the morning.
Another of our favorite stopping places is Craters of the Moon National Monument just outside Arco, Idaho. Paul's first stop here was in 1981. In what has turned into significant irony, Arco and Craters of the Moon has always been hot when we were here and we were expecting at least warm if not hot. We arrived to find a forecast for an overnight low of 43 and high winds, so rather than camping at 5,900 feet elevation we rode down hill and camped at the Mountain View Campground in Arco. $15 to camp which included free eggs, pancakes, and coffee for breakfast. The weather forecasters were all over the place. NOAA said a low of 43. Accuweather said 37. Weather Underground said 32. Whoops! We survived that chill, but Weather Underground won the contest as it dropped to 33 overnight. There were storms around but none found us.
Saturday morning dawned sunny, and the inside of the tent warmed quickly. But our route is southeast through Pocatello and into northwest Utah. The forecasts, to which we are now paying a lot of attention, included a high wind warning for the area. Winds of 39 with gusts to 59, with possible road closures due to blowing dust. And a low of 32, and the possibility of snow.
Right now it is partly cloudy, breezy, chilly, but dry. Nonetheless, we are typing this inside the warm shelter of the DK Motel in Arco, Idaho. We thought it would be a bit foolish to head off into high winds, cold, and possible road closures with few bits of civilization between here and there, wherever there is. And we have the luxury of time!
We have been doing long distance motorcycle travel for 35 years. Some of our inability to make progress away from the gloomy Northwest this year is due to state-of-mind. In years past we were often on a tight schedule: here today, there the next, and then to another there the next. We might have ridden 500, or even 700 or 800 miles in a day and been out and ahead of whatever weather system was around. But we now don't have such a schedule so enjoy stopping wherever we have a mind to.
Pictures here:
http://s320.photobucket.com/albums/...roject/2012 Summer Wander 5 WA to ID/?start=0
V and P
At 10:47 A.M. (MDT) on Friday, June 8 I put on my sunglasses as we had stopped to stretch and have a snack at Givens Hot Springs, Idaho. Normally taking off my regular glasses and putting on sunglasses would be a trivial event. But the last time I had any inclination I might need sunglasses was approaching Lacey, Washington on Saturday, May 19. Since then we have ridden to Hyder, Alaska; back to Washington, east and west and east again over the North Cascades Highway, and are now not in Montana by way of Lolo Pass as planned but are instead in southeast Idaho.
We have been having some trouble making progress leaving the Northwest. A series of weather systems has kept the entire area a bit unpleasant for more than a week. It hasn't rained all the time, and there have been small patches of blue sky, and moments where a groundhog could see its shadow instead of puddles. We have had a few good days of riding wonderful roads, interspersed with a few days holed up here and there for various weather related reasons.
We stopped at a fascinating location near Coulee City, Washington. Known as "Dry Falls", According to the literature, and of course the Internet, "Dry Falls is a 3.5 mile long scalloped precipice in central Washington, on the opposite side of the Upper Grand Coulee from the Columbia River, and at the head of the Lower Grand Coulee. Ten times the size of Niagara, Dry Falls is thought to be the greatest known waterfall that ever existed. According to the current geological model, catastrophic flooding channeled water at 65 miles per hour through the Upper Grand Coulee and over this 400-foot (120 m) rock face at the end of the last ice age. At this time, it is estimated that the flow of the falls was ten times the current flow of all the rivers in the world combined."
We camped at Sun Lakes State Park near Coulee City, Washington just south of Dry Falls. It was a beautiful evening and didn't rain until later during the night. We next camped at one of our favorite campgrounds in Hells Gate State Park, on the banks of the Snake River just south of Lewiston, Idaho. Again it didn't rain until bed time but was a bit soggy in the morning. We crossed the river to Clarkston, Washington to get a new front tire for Paul's bike at Mac's Cycles, an excellent BMW and multi-brand dealership. Since significant rain and cold was in the forecast we hunkered down in the downtown Econolodge for a couple of nights. Lewiston has done a remarkable job in keeping its downtown healthy. There are many nice small shops and eateries. Public amenities have been nicely done, and the walk along the Snake River is an urban delight. This, despite the fact that the lumber economy has taken some hits - even the Lewiston Walmart has closed and the building is for sale.
From Lewiston we followed the new plan - south instead of east because there was snow in the forecast for the mountains of central Idaho. We had a wonderful day for riding south on US 95, intending to camp at Farewell Bend State Park in Oregon. There were patches of blue sky and the ride along the Little Salmon River was delightful. Apparently some of the counties in western Idaho believe they can solve their budget woes with traffic ticket revenue. We saw more Deputy Sheriff cars running radar on US 95 that the entire rest of our trip since April, combined. Once we crossed the river and were aimed to Farewell Bend we ran directly into the path of a thunderstorm and gusty winds. We backtracked a few miles to a nice commercial campground near Weiser, Idaho. We met a GS rider, Don Siems from Sandpoint, who shared his Blue Moon beer and our love for riding. We got sprinkled on but avoided the heavy weather. It was even dry when we packed up in the morning.
Another of our favorite stopping places is Craters of the Moon National Monument just outside Arco, Idaho. Paul's first stop here was in 1981. In what has turned into significant irony, Arco and Craters of the Moon has always been hot when we were here and we were expecting at least warm if not hot. We arrived to find a forecast for an overnight low of 43 and high winds, so rather than camping at 5,900 feet elevation we rode down hill and camped at the Mountain View Campground in Arco. $15 to camp which included free eggs, pancakes, and coffee for breakfast. The weather forecasters were all over the place. NOAA said a low of 43. Accuweather said 37. Weather Underground said 32. Whoops! We survived that chill, but Weather Underground won the contest as it dropped to 33 overnight. There were storms around but none found us.
Saturday morning dawned sunny, and the inside of the tent warmed quickly. But our route is southeast through Pocatello and into northwest Utah. The forecasts, to which we are now paying a lot of attention, included a high wind warning for the area. Winds of 39 with gusts to 59, with possible road closures due to blowing dust. And a low of 32, and the possibility of snow.
Right now it is partly cloudy, breezy, chilly, but dry. Nonetheless, we are typing this inside the warm shelter of the DK Motel in Arco, Idaho. We thought it would be a bit foolish to head off into high winds, cold, and possible road closures with few bits of civilization between here and there, wherever there is. And we have the luxury of time!
We have been doing long distance motorcycle travel for 35 years. Some of our inability to make progress away from the gloomy Northwest this year is due to state-of-mind. In years past we were often on a tight schedule: here today, there the next, and then to another there the next. We might have ridden 500, or even 700 or 800 miles in a day and been out and ahead of whatever weather system was around. But we now don't have such a schedule so enjoy stopping wherever we have a mind to.
Pictures here:
http://s320.photobucket.com/albums/...roject/2012 Summer Wander 5 WA to ID/?start=0
V and P