June 22, 2017. Pacific Northwest Scenic Highway

CAMPGROUND:  Dent Acres Army Corps of Engineers Campground.  5 stars out of 5.  Situated on a lake.  Large woodsy sites with full hook-ups, shaded picnic tables, fire grills.  Decent bathrooms. $10 with senior pass.  

 

LOCATION:  Southwest Idaho near Oregon and Washington borders

 

WEATHER:  Beautiful.  Highs about 75.  Cool at night.  Cool in the mountains.

 

Since there was nothing to do in the microbrewery parking lot where we had camped overnight, we had a quick coffee and hit the road.  We stopped in a McDonald's to use another coupon, their toilets, and their wifi.  Then, we got on the  Northwest Passage Scenic Byway, something recommended in my book "1000 Places to See Before You Die".  It was a 203-mile highway crossing Idaho from west to east.  It is very rugged with beautiful scenery.  

 

We stopped at a visitor center in Lolo Pass, one of the first summits.  This highway is also the Lewis and Clark Trail, so we learned about their hardships trying to cross these mountains.  Prairie dogs were scampering through the parking area.  

 

Next to the visitor center was a beautiful meadow in full bloom of the flower called camas.  The Indians ate their roots, but they made Lewis and Clark sick.  

 

Then, up and down through the mountains.  We followed the Clearwater River for most of the journey.  

 

Once we were back in the valley, there were vacation homes and more civilization.  We saw this train that had bounced off its tracks.

 

Then, we went in search of a campground.  I had seen this one in a brochure, and thought we should try it as Army Corps of Engineers parks are always top-notch.  We had to drive 20 miles off the highway though hairpin curves.  We just hoped that there would be a vacancy as we didn't want to turn around and drive 20 miles back to the highway! Fortunately, there were openings for tonight, although the weekend is totally booked starting tomorrow.  We have a beautiful site overlooking the 54-mile long lake.  

 

This suspension bridge that we drove over to get to the park is one of the longest in the USA.

 

We walked down to the lake where a lot of people were boating and fishing.  It is monarch butterfly season and there were thousands near the lake.  They are very tame! 

 

 

DINNER:  Tonight is our last night of cooking before the housesit so we used up a lot of leftovers.  We had the leftover ribs and baked potato from our restaurant dinner the other night, combined with leftover corned beef, and a side of sautéed vegetables.