| Campground: | Canyon Pines RV Resort, 159 Barn Rd, Pollock, ID 83547 |
| Total Distance: | 9242 Miles. |
| Traveled Today: | 305 Miles. |
| Key Highlights: | Lake Couer D’Alene Scenin byway. White Pine Scenic Byway. Elk river Scenic Byway. Salmon River |
Yesterday – we lost our pace a bit as we pulled our excursion plan by one day, and we really did not want to ride the same road twice (the Hiawatha trail we biked yesterday is located almost halfway to our planned destination today). It was time for plan B. Yet, we did not really have one. As we did not really do our homework for Idaho properly, we counted on getting some good advice from the local tourist information offices. Yet – ALL the tourist information offices we visited were either closed or useless: some did not have staff, some did not work over the weekend (when do they think people travel?), and some were just clueless on everything other than the 10 Km radius around them. So we plugged “Stanly” as the destination into the GPS ( the place we will plan to sleep tomorrow), and we tried to hit as many scenic byways as we could using some booklet we had. Idaho is a fascinating state; the drive across Lake Couer D’Alene was terrific. Harrison, on the bank of the lake, was a good stop for a big (and not very tasty) ice cream. Next, we drove the White Pine way – that was less interesting. Finally, as we were hitting Elk River byway – the excitement went up, and so did the temperature. By the time we got to the Salmon River, just where it connects with the Snake River in Hells Canyon- the temperature was hitting 109F (42C)- an excellent opportunity to stop the car and jump into the Salmon River for a cool swim. Evening time came, and we found a great campsite, just by the river for an enjoyable evening by the running water, and got some interesting tips from other campers for our day trip tomorrow.