I spent most of the day today on fabled highway 95 that links the northern part of Idaho with the southern region. This highway, which dates from 1927, with major upgrades in 1977 and the early 2000’s, is a marvel of civil engineering, traversing several valleys, following important rivers and climbing one serious mountain. The highway also goes through the Couer d’Alene and the Nez Perce reservations
The most memorable mountain on the route White Bird Hill. At 4,245 feet, this mountain is bisected by Rte. 95, which features which features a 7% grade and numerous turnouts for runaway trucks.
The road also passed by, or over the Snake, the Clearwater and the Salmon Rivers, among others.
The day started and ended near resort areas featuring mountain lakes. C’ouer d’Alene, Idaho is a well known vacation spot a half hour’s drive from Spokane, Washington. There are several motels and even a golf course for the well-heeled, and numerous restaurants, bars, gift shops and motels for people who wanted to spend less. A lakeside biking/ walking path extends several miles to the east side of town. Boat tours, a zip line, and other outdoor recreation opportunities are available to all. Incidentally, “Couer” means “heart” in French, and “Alene” means awl (a pointed instrument for working leather). The Native Americans coined the phrase, which basically means “cheapskate,” when describing the early Hudson’s Bay Company’s fur traders.
On to Native American Smoke Shops. I stopped at one of the larger shops just to see what was going on. It turns out that since these shops are on a reservation, the tax burden is less. People come from distant places to stock up on smokes (a carton of off-brand Seneca cigarettes was going for about $21), but there is a fifty carton maximum. I didn’t buy any smokes but I did pick up a few trinkets in the gift shop.
Onward to Lewiston. The next surprise on Rte. 95 was a scenic overlook that offered a hawk’s view of the city of Lewiston, which was named for Capt. Meriwether Lewis. Lewis and William Clark came through Idaho in 1805 and spent six weeks with the Nez Perce tribe in Kamiah in 1806. From the vantage point several hundred feet above Lewiston, the confluence of the Clearwater and the Snake rivers could be seen clearly. You can see the smoky haze caused by numerous wildfires to the west.
After a trip of about 280 miles from Couer d’Alene, I came to Donnelly, near McCall, where I spent the night at the very nice Boulder Creek Inn. A segment of a 270-year-old Ponderosa Pine was exhibited across the road.
Quicktrips 