Enroute to Pullman, WA!

Brrrrr. Its cold. 
On the Idaho-Washington border.
Frost on the seat... Water bottles froze solid, dipped a bit below freezing.
Beautiful and sunny Coeur d'alene, Idaho. 

The past few evening have been freezing, been waking up and pedaling just to stay warm. Spent two wonderful afternoons in Sandpoint and then in Coeur d'alene. Both are towns on a lake surrounded by mountians, gorgeous. Its has been fun but now I am in Pullman, WA enjoying some Ashzen time... Been great so far!

Continued...

The ridiculous night at the home-bar in troy, MT. The palace was a the definition of a biker bar. I was the only one not in leather and all they had on tap was pabst, millerlight, and coorslight. The place was filled with the chatter of who needs what for their bike, and how bad sturges was this year. They had kareokee and I was blessed to hear everybody's take on skynyrd. A fight broke out between a canadian and some smushfaced man from idaho. I wa disappointed to see that there were no pool cues involved. That night I ate food under a tent made by a ladie in a top hat who calls herself the 'madhatter'. The burger was overcooked. :( The night involved too much jose' and too little foosball. I nevertheless ended up sleeping near the train tracks. 


The next day I just had to get out of there and worked my way through to moyie springs Idaho. The place was along this very deep set river, spectacular views... My camera could pick up because of the lowlight and clouds. Continued on to Bonner's Ferry which is just a 'darling of a city' along the river. It had cute little shops. 


The next day I made it for lunch at Sandpoint. Had a few locally brewed beers and enjoyed the lake as much as I could (it was very windy). The town is nestled on a point and the lake is surrounded by snow-capped mountains, very picturesque! Headed down further camped about 20 miles north of Coeur d'alene which I am in right now enjoying lunch. It is sunny and the city park is right on the lake. Again, picturesque scenery all around (except for the strip-mall corridor that leads in). Eating kippers and bread, with a little bit of peanut butter, but can't stay for long, have to keep heading south. Getting close to Pullman!

Homeless shelter-Happy's inn-Troy's homebar-Bonner's Ferry

Well it has been a bit since I have posted last. Well my time in Kalispell, MT was extended due to rain. It was cold and relentless, so tobs and I decided to make an adventure of it and stay in a homeless shelter. Upon entering the 'ray of hope' I was greeted by a slackjawed woman with two lazy eyes in sweatpants. She asked if I was hungry then took a gulp of her coffee, letting some slip from her mouth and spill into the carrots she was stirring. I declined. The common room walls and book shelves were filled with christian mantras and self-help books. The lady who checked me in looked as if she had not moved out of her swiveling desk chair in about a decade. She was missing the three front teeth on her left side and joked about writing a book about being humble, in which all 1500 pages would be blank. ?? Force laughed and joined the others, ex boozers and users (and a family who got foreclosed upon)  in the all night affair of drinking coffee and staring at the tv. Nobody moved unless it was to go smoke or get a refill. It was quite an experience. One of my temp roommates got kicked out for being drunk. He bagged all his clothes in a sheet and headed out into the rain. 
The next day it was cold but fun. The next 80 miles were extremely desolate. Up and between slopes I went till I reached thompson river which seemed to be a forgotten gem. No one was around me for miles. Then I got into Happy's Inn which was a gas station and a saloon across the street. Had dinner and a few beers there. The owner's son paid for it... I am still grateful. 

Idaho rocks!

Windy in beautiful sandpoint.

Trains! Where I camped after the biker bar.

Toby soaking wet and wondering why we are out here.

The snowcapped mountians of northern Idaho.

Its October! Cold and rain in the mountians.

Toby triplets at the christian homeless shelter, 'a ray of hope' whose motto is "a hand up, not a hand out". 


Lake Thompson, lunch break. Beautiful, even though it was overcast.


brrrrrr. Its cold. What I look like while riding.


The perpetual view: trees to the sides, a road leading to mountain tops in the clouded distance. 


Right now toby and I are having lunch at libby, mt. The weather says it is going to rain, so we are waiting it out for a bit, checking the radar before we head out to troy.