Day Seven - On the Road with Dominique

We stopped at the wonderful market in the little town of Stevensville to load up our picnic cooler and also purchase dinner to share with our Affordable Travel Club host that night.
Highway 12 West out of Montana and across Idaho is Lewis and Clark country. Stop at the Traveler's Rest on the east side of Lolo Pass. At this time, it is the only site where it is unequivocally proven as a L&C campground. Mercury was used as a treatment for many ailments at the time. Mercury traces were found in the privy spot at this campground as it was described in their journals. They also reported dosing the men with mercury at this site.

On the Trail with Lewis and Clark

As soon as you cross the state line into Idaho,

Welcome to Idaho

Straddling the State Line

there is a visitor center with even more information about L&C and the original tribes of the area.

A Successful Hunt

You can also have a nice picnic lunch and, if the snow is melted, take a little stroll.

The Never Empty Picnic Bag

Dominique Adds a Sticker

And Another Sticker

Highway 12 curves its way along the Lochsa and Selway Rivers.
Although this drive was spectacular, both Dominique and I became a little overwhelmed. The canyon seems never ending with the sides reaching up to the sky filled to the inch with towering pine trees, I learned later that this is the largest area of forest in the United States outside of Alaska.

Finally the Canyon Walls End

Population Decline

Eventually the canyon opens up to the Middle Fork of the Clearwater River where were spending the night in Kamiah. This is a delightful little town with 2 bars (more churches than bars a woman smoking outside one of the bars reported), a great ACE hardware, a rather nice ladies' boutique. Of course there is the library where you can get free internet and all sorts of friendly assistance.

Kamiah Welcome

We drove up to the mountainside to stay with Lloyd. His wife had to go to Seattle for annual training related to her nursing profession. Although she is the usual hostess, they decided Lloyd could handle us on his own. We prepared a nice dinner and Lloyd handled setting the table and the clean-up chores.

Another Nice Resting Place

This was another fine night to sleep in the van. It was warm and I could touch the stars from the window by my head. Dominique had another night in the guestroom.

Lloyd had a special treat for our breakfast. He taught us a camping recipe to mix raw eggs and omelet ingredients in a freezer-weight plastic bag. Squish this up and then squeeze all the air out of the bag. Seal the seam tightly. Place in a pot of boiling water for at least 10 minutes.

Boil in a Bag Omelets

They're Done

Then, wonderful omelets slid out of the bag and on to your plate!

Try it, you'll like it.