Northwest Passage Scenic Byway. Day 5

As morning came, I couldn't get out of Coeur d'Alane fast enough. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a hater, there were just too many cars and too much traffic and people for me;simply put, it was just time to move on. I must admit that the countryside, south of Coeur d'Alane was beautiful. I enjoyed the trip all the way down to Lewiston. Plummer to Moscow is a great ride complete with rolling hills and ranches.

As the rolling scenery begins to change, it comes to an end overlooking Lewiston, ID and Clarkston,WA. The photo below doesn't do the sight justice. To get down below, there is a series of fast elbow turns on a steep grade. You need to fight the urge to gawk at the scenery and stay focused on the road.

From Lewiston, we were headed to the Lolo Pass. The sign below is an actual sign. It lets you know exactly what you are in for. The next reminder signs are at 77, 55, and 33 mile increments.

I led the charge for the following 99 miles. It didn't exactly go by at light speed. Traffic was almost non-existent as we twisted our throttles and laid our bikes from side to side, steadily uphill all the way. I must admit, by mile 77 I was looking forward to seeing it end. Kind of like eating a whole big bag of chips all by yourself. They're great, but too much of a good thing all at once......... well, you know.

When we reached the summit, it definitely wasn't the highest, but it did indicate we were going to be headed down. As we made our way up, all the water we passed was headed out to the Pacific Ocean; on our decent, we would be following all the water on it's way to the Atlantic.

We stayed in small cabins across the road from Lolo Hot Springs. http://www.lolohotsprings.com/

Steeped in history, the springs are a welcome resting spot for tired and sore muscles. The natural, hot mineral water runs in at about 106 degrees. After a challenging meal, we soaked until we resembled prunes and then we spent the evening relaxing outside the lounge enjoying ice cold Moose Drool.

Everyone knows: heat, then ice, heat, then ice... repeat as necessary until pain subsides.

The guys gave me my own cabin. It was the handicap one with a ramp, facing the bathrooms. They couldn't comprehend that I actually wanted to sleep outside under the stars. (City Slickers!)

I can't think of a better way to celebrate the end of a long day in the saddle.