Back to my road trip report.
11 July, 2014
I was up early, before the city streets blared or anyone even noticed I was camping out on a main street. I drove around the still-sleeping town but didn't see anything open, not even a coffee shop. I had to drive outside of town on US12 before I could hit any fast-food places. I also stopped to put air in my tires. My low-pressure light had been on since leaving Hereford. Kevin inflated all the tires the night before my departure, but the light never went out. I was low by four psi in my front left tire only.
I enjoyed my stay in Walla Walla. It certainly is worth stopping in here again sometime. I now was on US12, driving the golden hills toward Lewiston-Clarkston on the Snake River 100 miles away.
This was a very pretty drive, but my maps did not have this as a scenic route. I drove through small grainary towns, ranch towns. Red barns and cattle dotted the landscape, with more green crop circles on either side of me. The towns were dotted with mature trees, a sign of underground water available.
Several historical markers were along this road, honoring the L&C team. The original route was higher up on the ridge line further north, but at times the team descended into the valley for water breaks. At one point one can see the old Indian route as it descends one hill and ascends another. I stood at that historical marker for a while, trying to imagine what it must have been like in 1806 to be traversing this land.
Almost three hours later I was approaching the Clarkston-Lewiston area, where the Snake river meets the Clearwater River and takes a bend to the south. The river flows through high canyon walls here, and one can imagine why the L&C team opted to take the higher route on their return because there was no place to dock for the night.
I wanted to catch a view of this from a higher perspective, but that meant driving around trying to find a place for this.That would mean wasting time driving around unknown neighborhoods and not even being guaranteed to find a nice vista. I liked what I saw, though. The two towns appeared very calm and friendly, and despite the river industry, looked well-maintained. It's a nice place to pull over and rest, after driving from whatever direction since there are so few cities in any one direction.
It was a nice place to stop and get some walking in. I opted to take Sadie on a three-mile walk along the river on a paved bike path on the Idaho side. I parked just outside a small state park and walked south, past a ranger's housing division. Wild cherry trees along the river banks were laden with sun-ripened fruit. The cherries were beyond ripe, but still sweet and tasty.
MORE TO COME
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