To start out I have found a setting that shut off comments so it should be possible now to send me comments.


Yesterday after warming up, drying out and cleaning up we walked the town.  Turns out this weekend is the BBQ give away where the local stores give free bbq to residents to thank for supporting their business.  This has been a tradition for more than 50 years. 


Today was just chilly with some periods of down right cold but much improved from yesterday.  We fooled by the weather forecast and started out without a coat.  I made it only 1/2 a mile and realized that was not going to work.  Dianne being tougher made it 15 miles and then gave up.


Today was the last day for us on Hwy 12 I believe and all 141 mile from Kamiah to Lolo was on it.  The scenery was fantastic the road followed right on the bank of the Clearwater River then up two creeks up to the Lolo pass. The run down from the top of the pass to the town of Lolo was 32 and all of it was down hill.  We are currently in Montana.


There is not a lot of stuff to see other than the mountains, trees and river.  The distance between gas stops is 88 mile from where we started to Powell a long run for our tanks.  When we stopped another 8 motorcycles were filling there too.  


Other things of note:

  • In the 50 as almost complete mastodon fossil was found in the area.  The beast would have been 11 feet at the shoulder.  
  • Mastodons and mammoths are related and found is different areas of the country.  The Mastodon is the larger of the two species.  The one found in Kamaih was Mastodon Columbia apparently there are different breeds in each species.
  • Hwy 12 from Lewiston to Lolo is consider the “best” motocycle road in the country for scenery, and roads.  
  • Given the above fact it should not be a surprise we saw more motorcycles than cars or trucks today.
  • RVs were the second most common vehicles followed by pick up trucks and then transports.
  • We did see 2 petroleum transport trucks on the road today. This surprised me given the lack of gas stations
  • At the top of the Lolo pass there is wet lands that drain in both directions and small creeks flow down hill on both sides of the pass.
  • Lewis and Clark had to hire Native American guides to get over the pass plus they borrowed horses to ride over.
  • The left the coast early and missed a boat that could have taken them home or at least given them some supplies.
  • Because they left early they had to wait for month for the snows on the mountain to melt so they could get over.
  • There are hot springs and salt licks though out the Bitter Root mountains.
  • In 1877 the Nez Peirce tribe was chased out of the area and some made it to Canada.  Most of the others were jailed and shipped east.  Those in the east were returned to their home much later and given the small reservation that rode though today.












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