Revelstoke to Home

The drive to home in Longmont, CO, started in Revelstoke, BC, with layovers in Red Mountain Resort, BC, Sandpoint, ID, West Yellowstone, MT, and Jackson, WY to ski.

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Voyage returning from Revelstoke back to Longmont in 2023

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I loaded up the car, gave a hug to Bobby, and then Theone and I enjoyed a delicious breakfast in the window table of the the Main Street Cafe in Revelstoke. The drive from Revelstoke to Shelter Bay to catch the ferry was on a snow packed road. The snow was much deeper than when we did this trip to visit Halcyon Hot Springs. Crossing on the ferry, there were small icebergs floating on the Columbia River and the surrounding mountains were covered in white. I took a brief stop in Nakusp to check out the dock and main street. This was the last bit of serious civilization until Castlegar. That didn't keep me from stopping in New Denver, Silverton, and Slocan on lake Slocan Lake. I almost entered Trail, BC, turning off toward Rossland on the outskirts of town.

The town of Trail sitting on the banks of the Columbia River grabbed my attention. It has a massive smelter that started back in the 1880's to process the silver from the mine at Rossland. The mine shut down in the 1930's leaving me ignorant about the source the raw material now. The smelter extracted many minerals including lead. The lack of environmental controls for almost a hundred years left the surround area with severe lead contamination. Even today, the current company is required to remediate topsoil around homes if contamination is present.

The road up from Trail is a suprising climb from the river to reach Rossland. I stopped seeking a mid afternoon lunch with limited success. Most of the restaurants don't open until after 4PM. Fortuitously the Rossland Beer Company was serving some fine beverages! I enjoyed a pint of their standard brew pale ale with a pleasant hoppy taste. The bartender pointed me toward Farraro Foods saying they had good deli sandwiches. The grocery store on main street is definitely worth the stop for a snack or to stock your pantry.

I arrived in the Red Mountain Resort just outside of Rossland, BC, at 4PM for the earliest possible check-in at the Nowhere Special Hostel located in the resort village. The procedure alluded me so I asked a mother and daughter from Australia what to do as there was no attendant. My check-in package was housed in a coded lock box in the entry way. After that it was straightforward to read the through instructions. The suite on the second floor was one of a couple that share a common bathroom behind the locking hallway door. The bedroom I'm in has two bunk beds for a total of four people. I have not yet met my roommates, but I suspect that they are young adolescent males - the room was sweltering with the thermostat set to 26+C and the window was open (A sign that there is no hope to contain global warming!). I dropped by boot bag and small suitcase heading down to the common kitchen.

The next few hours found me in the common area as I was avoiding the bunk room. I ate food I'd purchased in Rossland before I arrived for dinner. I worked on the blog editing pictures from the camera and iphone. It just takes time to do what looks like a simple task. There are the early diners who eat 5ish and the late diners eating toward 9PM. I watched the Bahrain Formula 1 car race qualifying burning through the 2GB high speed daily allowance of the cell phone plane. Fortunately it just throttles the speed after that and doesn't terminate data!

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Spent the day skiing at Red Mountain Resort.

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Breakfast and coffee today was found at the Alpine Grind Coffeehouse & Eatery in Rossland. The breakfast bagel was simple and enjoyable. The coffee tasted bland.

The Canadian to US border crossing arrived 10km from Rossland. The US customs officer asked me to open the rear hatch for him to peek around. He was an emigrant from some African country. I thought that a bit humorous to being questioned by a new citizen of the US. I wondered how life was for him because eastern Washington struck me as perhaps a little racist. Anyway, he brought his African smile and good nature to the job!

I was glad I had chains. Apple maps took me on a route that I would have questioned in the summer let alone the winter. I pressed on 'cause I figured I could self-rescue, but... you'll have to see the picture of the snow covered single track road. It was 11 miles at 20 mph of 2 inches of fresh snow with a few recent vehicle tracks. I caught up with a plow on the east side near Ione, WA. The plow had down a couple miles west of Ione, but the road was still snow packed. The entire stretch of road would have been dirt in the summer. I am still amazed Apple took me on that route!! With no cell reception, I was wishing I had maps in the car.

The drive from Ione to Sandpoint, ID went without incident. I kicked through the snow of the Lakeview Park and the downtown area Sandpoint. The key attraction are the Cedar Street Bridge Public Market and the Sandpoint City Beach on Lake Bend Oreille. Originally a bridge across Sand Creek to the train station, it was saved from dismantling with the vision of mimicking the bridge market in Florence Italy. I wandered into the bridge finding a few shops open mostly with touristy merchandise. One can't actually cross the Sand Creek because the door on the east end of the bridge can only be opened by setting off the fire alarm!

I took dinner at the Utara Brewing Company. A beer brewery with a twist of serving non-spicy Indian style food. The tofu twirls are something you won't find anywhere else.

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I skied Schweitzer Mountain Resort today.

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Laying in bed starting to drift off the previous night, the realization that Helena lies in a different time zone than Sandpoint entered my thoughts. So I adjusted the alarm from 5:30AM to 4:30AM to insure arriving at the Jade Garden restaurant in Helena on time. My mind raced ahead of the alarm and I turned it off at 4:29AM. Being too early to eat I shaved, gathered up my things, scrapped the window frost from the car, and aimed the car eastward on the dark quiet streets of Sandpoint. I'm increasingly suspicious of Apple maps so pulled over to confirm it had me on the correct route. The full moon set to the west reflecting off Lake Pend Oreille in the cold darkness. Some marina boat berths decorated the lake with small white lights. Very few cars traveled in my direction. My travels in the past have taken me along I-90 so this route paralleling the Clark Fork river upstream from lake Pend Oreille was both new and familiar. New because I have not set foot or rolled a tire over this part of the world, yet familiar because of the shape of the mountains, valleys, geology, vegetation, and the river mimicked that I'd grown familiar with between Fish Creek and Missoula when I lived here. I passed several drive up coffee sheds in the few small towns I passed through desiring to reach Missoula instead. A deer darted across the road and abundant signs warning of Big Horn Sheep kept me on vigilant watch for wildlife. Several school buses slowed by travels with their flashing red lights and the process of finding safe places to pass them.

I pulled into downtown Missoula but the coffee shop attended in the past wasn't there. A search on Google revealed it had moved to the opposite side of the street and had grown exponentially in size. The place was packed with students, instructors and locals studying or conversing. The break from driving and a little java in a college atmosphere buoyed me.

The speed limit on I-90 east of Missoula is 80mph. As my slow sipping of coffee risked a late arrival in Helena, I set the cruise at 80 and marveled at how quickly miles peel back at this speed while constantly calculating the deteriorating fuel consumption. A stop for more gas would make me late so I pressed on arriving at the Jade Garden restaurant with the fuel calculator reporting 5 miles of range left in the tank - a new record!

Cheryl was surprised I had arrived on time. They drove down from their home to meet me. I loved hearing stories of their river adventures with a focus on their Grand Canyon trips. I could learn much from them about packing boats and reading running water. I visited their home and got to meet CJay and Carmen, their grandchildren, briefly before the kids had places to be.

With the visit over, my last leg was to West Yellowstone. Staying there is significantly less costly than in Big Sky even though it's over an hour drive between the two places. I took US287 south from I-90 to West Yellowstone. I passed a couple of large elk herds and scattered deer. The low clouds and fresh snow on the ground gave a feeling of moonscape desolation. I took several photos along this section of the drive. As the sun set, the weather turned until the last 30 miles were in a driving snowstorm. In the time it took me to check into my room, an inch of snow piled up on the car. The Stage Coach Inn in West Yellowstone has underground parking - yes! I won't have to clear snow from the car in the morning!

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I spent the night in West Yellowstone to save significant amounts on accommodations. But this meant I had over an hour drive to Big Sky Resort north of town. The roads were snow packed. Northbound traffic only included me and about five other cars. The southbound traffic had many large trucks which sent a blinding plume of snow powder into the air obstructing vision. Closer to Big Sky the creek had vapor rising off the water. My first inclination was perhaps there is a thermal spring here. I considered another option; that it's very cold out. Sure enough, the car temperature read -7F! Brrrr! The ski area turned out to be much warmer thankfully!

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Expecting the arrival of spring, winter rears a stormy head. The area from West Yellowstone to Jackson, WY, has a winter storm warning. A couple of folks suggested I hunker down. A rational person might do that, but there are reservations made and Jackson Hole to ski! Highway departments are scrapping the snow from the roads almost as fast as it falls. West of West Yellowstone the snow packed road had been plowed from shoulder to shoulder, the lack of traffic, and reasonable visibility in the morning light made for simply cautious driving. The snow turned to freeze rain and then rain in Idaho. Teton Pass only 15 miles west of Jackson presented the worst leg. The all season tires on the car were in their sweet spot - the sweet spot where they perform the worst! - 28F with a snowy, snow packed, and icy road. I pulled off several times to let male drivers with abundant testosterone or female drivers that know women are superior to men pass me. I could see vehicle tracks where folks experienced some pee-in-your-trousers moments.

I arrived into Jackson too early to check into the motel, so I paid my $18 and enjoyed the National Museum of Wildlife Art. I've wanted to visit and am glad I finally did. Two scopes set up allowed my to zoom in on the massive elk herds far across the Flat Creek meadow basin. Easily the number exceeded 1000 elk souls.

I enjoyed a delicious late lunch at Healthy Being Cafe. I drank a tea they called Ajna. I might switch to tea drinking knowing such fragrant and sweet teas exist. The lady taking orders and serving brightened my day with her gracious and thoughtful manner.

Libraries off hidden refuges when traveling. The Teton County Library offers a quiet comfortable place to catch one's breath, read, and catch up on the blogging. I stopped at the one in Rossland, BC, only because the car come to a stop in front and I needed a bathroom. I'll be watching for them in my future travels.

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Today I skied Jackson Hole. Being my last night before the long drive back to Longmont tomorrow, I went to the Stillwest Brewery located across the street from the Snow King Mountain ski area. The ski area reminds me of Aspen Mountain in Aspen as they both have lifts that start right in town. I enjoyed a couple of local beers and a plate of fries while chatting with a visitor from Sacramento and a local. By the time I pushed back from the bar, a long line of people waiting to sit down for dinner had formed. I'd planned on going for Thai food though knowing how crowded it is in town decided just to head back to my motel room for the day and not wrestle with trying to be seated for dinner.

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I mustered my energies, poured myself a cup of coffee in the motel lobby, had a quick light snack of granola and started the trek to Longmont. Both Apple and Google maps wanted to send me north out of town rather than south toward I-80. Apparently there were still partial closures. Not wanting to repeat my experience with the road on the outbound trip, I turned north. This route took me past the airport and, most spectacularly, the Teton Range as the sun rose. Wow!! Those peaks freshly dusted in snow lit by the morning sun on a cold (-16F) morning are breathtaking! Do check out the pictures.

The road east, hwy 26/287, to Dubois goes over a small pass that crosses the Continental Divide. It was snow packed, but something about the cold temperatures allows the tires to grip better. I drove just under the posed speed limit. I came upon only one car on this stretch with a Texas license plate going about 25mph. I sympathized and promptly passed to make my way into Dubois, WY, about 10:30AM. Putting gas in the car I secured advice on the best place in town for breakfast (I suspect it was the ONLY place in town.). The Cowboy Cafe was the place to be as it was mostly locals in for Sunday brunch. A boy that looked about ten year old order a blueberry pancake; that cake must have been 12 inches in diameter! He finished it!

Boringly, the drive the rest of the way home was uneventful. Nothing but dry roads, blue skies, and the occasional pickup truck and Colorado plated cars with skis passing me doing 10+mph over the speed limit.

Epilogue

Reed asked me upon my return what my take-aways are for the trip. He often invokes reflection in his questions. What follows incompletely captures my response.

• Confined spaces with 100 other people and hard rock blaring stresses me (Jackson Hole Tram!).

• Chairlift conversations liken to opening a new book full of stories.

• Canada felt more cosmopolitan than the U.S..

• Staying in so many different places didn't leave me disoriented for the wee hour of the morning stumbling bathroom calls or left me pining for home as I expected.

• The all-weather tires did remarkable well winter driving - the tire chains weren't required,

• My knees are asking me to be kind to them - use us but in an increasingly gentle fashion.

• Home lies in a state of being not a place.