Over the Mountain & Through the Woods: Whitefish, MT to Spokane, WA
US 93 S to US 2 W to Hwy 56 S to US 200 W back to US 2 W
Leaving Whitefish in heavy fog, had breakfast and headed toward US 2. I refused to put on rain gear in spite of the dreary nature of the sky. Only a t-shirt and my protective jacket, within 2 miles the sky was clear. Wow - I know what Moses must have felt at the parting of the Red Sea (err: Reed Sea - look it up). It was now warm and I was dressed appropriately.
I stopped in Libby, MT for gas. I looked across the street and there was this nice little coffee/gift shop. There I met the 78 year old owners: Bill and Carol Cady. Bill is a retired Highway Patrol officer who informed me to take Hwy 56 down to US 200 for the views. "But watch out for the deer. Don't drive over 55 just in case you hit one." Encouraging, right! Carol plays the mandolin with a small music group. So, I whipped out my album on iTunes - Bill wants me to send him the songs since they are not up on the streaming thing.
Had lunch at this quaint shop at the junction, sat outside on a wooden table and discussed the lives of John and Mary. John is a retired school teacher. He said that he could not teach nowadays since they would throw his ass in jail. Teachers have lost control of the classroom because of all the laws restraining discipline. John and Mary have spent the last 5 years traveling in their RV going from place to place. Mary beamed at this life decision. "If we don't like the neighbors, we move on." We all had a soft serve cup of ice cream and then parted ways.
Picked up US 2 again and drove through Sandpoint, ID. Needed gas and stopped at an Exxon station. It proved fateful: I first met a guy named Brennan who came around to check out my bike. He said that he can no longer ride one since he had head issues. Brennan had suffered permanent head injuries from rolling his truck. Then I met a man, whose name I did not get, who also came up and admired my bike. He said that he stopped riding when his riding partner died in an auto accident.
A Spring shower started - as I left the station. It was over soon.
An hour and a half later I was in Spokane, WA. Had a good dinner at Wiley's.
Tomorrow my challenge technically ends in Seattle. However, my final destination is now Portland, OR due to the fact that the dealer there can store my bike until the shipper picks it up and sends it back to me in Florida. I will be going through Astoria, OR - where they filmed Kindergarten Cop and The Goonies. I have wanted to see that place ever since I saw Cop.
Leaving Whitefish in heavy fog, had breakfast and headed toward US 2. I refused to put on rain gear in spite of the dreary nature of the sky. Only a t-shirt and my protective jacket, within 2 miles the sky was clear. Wow - I know what Moses must have felt at the parting of the Red Sea (err: Reed Sea - look it up). It was now warm and I was dressed appropriately.
I stopped in Libby, MT for gas. I looked across the street and there was this nice little coffee/gift shop. There I met the 78 year old owners: Bill and Carol Cady. Bill is a retired Highway Patrol officer who informed me to take Hwy 56 down to US 200 for the views. "But watch out for the deer. Don't drive over 55 just in case you hit one." Encouraging, right! Carol plays the mandolin with a small music group. So, I whipped out my album on iTunes - Bill wants me to send him the songs since they are not up on the streaming thing.
Had lunch at this quaint shop at the junction, sat outside on a wooden table and discussed the lives of John and Mary. John is a retired school teacher. He said that he could not teach nowadays since they would throw his ass in jail. Teachers have lost control of the classroom because of all the laws restraining discipline. John and Mary have spent the last 5 years traveling in their RV going from place to place. Mary beamed at this life decision. "If we don't like the neighbors, we move on." We all had a soft serve cup of ice cream and then parted ways.
Picked up US 2 again and drove through Sandpoint, ID. Needed gas and stopped at an Exxon station. It proved fateful: I first met a guy named Brennan who came around to check out my bike. He said that he can no longer ride one since he had head issues. Brennan had suffered permanent head injuries from rolling his truck. Then I met a man, whose name I did not get, who also came up and admired my bike. He said that he stopped riding when his riding partner died in an auto accident.
A Spring shower started - as I left the station. It was over soon.
An hour and a half later I was in Spokane, WA. Had a good dinner at Wiley's.
Tomorrow my challenge technically ends in Seattle. However, my final destination is now Portland, OR due to the fact that the dealer there can store my bike until the shipper picks it up and sends it back to me in Florida. I will be going through Astoria, OR - where they filmed Kindergarten Cop and The Goonies. I have wanted to see that place ever since I saw Cop.
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