It is time for another adventure. This time we are heading west.

I started out going west on MT 28 off of US 93; the same road I took last week but instead of turning off I took it all the way to Paradise, took a left then eventually headed south to catch I-90 at St. Regis, Montana – where the famous huckleberry shake place is. They are good but I cannot have them anymore, and last time I had one it was so sweet I couldn’t drink the whole thing.

With plenty of construction on a major east-west route full of trucks & trailers of all sizes slowing the procession, I finally got to today’s destination:

My reasons for this trip are twofold. I wanted to drop off a few things for trading at the Apple Store. I also have wanted to explore Spokane but never got to until now.

The Apple Store is downtown near Riverfront Park. I have been through downtown but was just passing through and did not have the time to stop and walk around. Unfortunately, I had to do some things and got a late start so it did not happen yesterday.

It did today though!

I got up early, had breakfast, got a shower, looked at the map a little to figure out today. I decided to go back downtown and check out Riverfront Park. I am so glad I did.

I will say that there are some cool old buildings in Spokane’s city center. I wanted to spend more time walking around looking up but I wanted to see this park.

It started out with the Red Wagon sculpture:

I don’t know much about the history of this park, but I know some – if not all – was part of the 1974 World Expo. It is a beautiful park with lots of paths to walk and you can see Spokane Falls up close. I walked 2.34 around the park and a few blocks close by.

If you pass through Spokane this is a great stop to get out and walk. When you’re done, you can get a burger at Dick’s Hamburgers (not affiliated with Dick’s Drive-In in Seattle). Or, you can stop at our next destination.

I headed across the border to get fuel. Then it was south to downtown Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. I have written about this place before, but it’s been a while and it was on my radar.

Hudson’s Hamburgers.

Seriously old-school flat-top burgers that are just so damn good. No fries and limited toppings, but a great burger and worth the detour.

The place was filled with people who were mostly locals. As you can see, they sell a lot of burgers in a day.

I got a double cheeseburger and it came with mustard, onions, and pickles.

I left there and wandered back to my truck. I happened to see a bakery that caught my eye when walking toward a burger . I fully knew that I was going to stop on the return trip.

The bakery was called Woops! and it was really good. I ended up with a double espresso, two red berry beignets, and a triple chocolate chocolate chip cookie.

Yeah…it was just as you can imagine.

I left there and checked out a record store going out of business. Pretty well picked over so left empty-handed. I wasn’t sure what to do but Meghan called and we chatted about it and she mentioned some places.

I ended up taking US 95 north toward Bonner’s Ferry., Idaho. I then went west back into Montana then north to Yaak. It was a long, winding trip but it was a beautiful one. Then, I went south out of Yaak toward Libby, Montana.

Libby is bed for the night. I had planned for two nights out but considered only doing one but it has been a pretty good adventure so far. There has been good food, lots to see while doing some good exercising, and there was the scenery along the way:

The backroads I traveled today were incredibly beautiful, with so many trees everywhere it was reminiscent of Alaska. I remember cresting a hill and pulled the RV over as we literally stared at every tree we had ever seen to that point in our lives. They were as far as you could see in every direction. An amazing feeling to see that.

These are the things that are so important and also so rewarding. You just really get a sense of the vastness of everything – a constant reminder we are but a speck of dust in it all…if we’re lucky.

I stopped for another night out, and tonight I am in Libby, Montana. It is a smaller town and the people here seem friendly. My hotel was one of the cheaper ones and it was still expensive. It’s an older hotel that is dated but the staff is friendly, the place is clean and it is comfortable. I used my AARP discount so I got a break but still pricey. It’s just the market and what it will bear.

Last night I stayed in Spokane Falls and used my Capital One travel credit to cover that night. I paid cash tonight and wanted to save the rest of the travel credit for another time.

I have to say that I have considered selling my trailer at times but man…the total of these two nights was more than my payment! my trailer can save a lot of money. Granted there is fuel costs, but there’s plenty of places close by to camp at and my federal pass gets me half off camping on federal land. Plus I prefer boon-docking most of the time since it’s free and away from crowds usually.

But the hotel prices are crazy and then I gotta eat too. Cannot cook so it’s eating out for meals. It has all gotten so expensive. I really fear for some of these small travel-related businesses and I always try to buy local when I can.

Well, that is it for now. Hope you are enjoying the trip. See you tomorrow; I have been looking for some things to stop and see so it will surprise us both.

Shawn