Forum Discussion
IdahoRenegade
Apr 02, 2013Explorer
I thoroughly enjoyed your adventure, great job of writing and storytelling! North Idaho is my adopted home, and I am familiar with most of the spots you have written about. We are active with the ATV scene locally. The Country Lane Resort that you stayed at is one of our sponsors and we regularly camp there. A few years ago we were having one of our major events there. I happened to be into motorcycle adventure touring and was camping in a tent, from my bike on that trip. Well, we were there in mid-May...nice warm day and the water level in the river was pretty high...down about 2 feet from the top of the bank. I woke up around 5:00 am to the sounds of the RV campers banging around...what the heck? Rolled over...and put my arm down in water...a bunch of water (tent, remember?). Turns out the warm weather brought down a lot of snowmelt and the river rose rather dramatically during the night. It was well over the bank, flooding the RV sites and covering the only access road with ~ a foot of rapidly flowing water. Quite the mad scramble to get everyone packed and out of the park. Peggy (the owner) was great, she had the kitchen open early and coffee and breakfast out by about 6:00. An adventure we still talk about to this day! Don't let this scare you off, doesn't happen regularly!
If you happen to be on the N. Fork again, you might continue up the river to the town of Pritchard, then head East to Murray. There is a quirky little tavern/resturant there called the Sprague Pole Inn. They have good food (basic pub grub) and a little museum. You'll pass the Settler's Gove Cedars on the way, a pretty amazing place to stop and go for a short hike.
You mentioned Enaville Resort (Snakepit). The owners (Joe and Rose (IIRC) Peak) were both diagnosed terminal a few years ago. The various local ATV clubs put on a benefit there a few years back for them. People in the neighborhood were great and contributed a lot. Sadly both have now passed. I understand the Resort is now open Saturdays, but am not aware who is running it.
Wallce is a great little town. They have a little local RV park just outside of town (Down by the Depot). It's not remote by any means, but the facilities are very nice, and they have a rather nice resturant/tavern right on site. Wallace is also very ATV friendly and has a number of great riding trails. The Red Light Garage (resturant) is kinda neat (not every place has a flying saucer). The largest wildfire ever to hit North America went through here in 1910. There is a good bit of history and sights to see, try the visitor's center on the West end of town.
If you get back in the area, you might look at the drive South of town down to Avery on the St. Joe River. (fuel up first, there aren't many places for gas). It's a gravel road, but a nice one. Much of it follows the Milwaukee Trail (railroad grade) and passes through some more tunnels and over a tall trestle. Avery is right on the St. Joe River, and is worth a quick visit. There are a couple neat little stores/shops, a fly shop that serves Huckleberry ice cream on the river side, and a nicely populated trout pond on the other.
The drive along the river upstream (East) of Avery is just spectacular (though twisty for big RVs, should be fine with your P/U rig). It runs about 30 miles (IIRC) to Red Ives. The drive back downstream is also very nice. I recommend the "Calder Store" at mile 24 for lunch. The interperative center at Marble Creek (~mile 30) tells a lot about logging history in the area, it's worth a stop.
At the western end of St. Joe River road, a turn to the north will take you to Hwy 97, which runs along Lake CDA. It'll be a slow ride with a bigger RV, but the views are spectacular.
Another great little campground is Lost Moose, south of Cataldo. The owners are good people.
If you happen to be on the N. Fork again, you might continue up the river to the town of Pritchard, then head East to Murray. There is a quirky little tavern/resturant there called the Sprague Pole Inn. They have good food (basic pub grub) and a little museum. You'll pass the Settler's Gove Cedars on the way, a pretty amazing place to stop and go for a short hike.
You mentioned Enaville Resort (Snakepit). The owners (Joe and Rose (IIRC) Peak) were both diagnosed terminal a few years ago. The various local ATV clubs put on a benefit there a few years back for them. People in the neighborhood were great and contributed a lot. Sadly both have now passed. I understand the Resort is now open Saturdays, but am not aware who is running it.
Wallce is a great little town. They have a little local RV park just outside of town (Down by the Depot). It's not remote by any means, but the facilities are very nice, and they have a rather nice resturant/tavern right on site. Wallace is also very ATV friendly and has a number of great riding trails. The Red Light Garage (resturant) is kinda neat (not every place has a flying saucer). The largest wildfire ever to hit North America went through here in 1910. There is a good bit of history and sights to see, try the visitor's center on the West end of town.
If you get back in the area, you might look at the drive South of town down to Avery on the St. Joe River. (fuel up first, there aren't many places for gas). It's a gravel road, but a nice one. Much of it follows the Milwaukee Trail (railroad grade) and passes through some more tunnels and over a tall trestle. Avery is right on the St. Joe River, and is worth a quick visit. There are a couple neat little stores/shops, a fly shop that serves Huckleberry ice cream on the river side, and a nicely populated trout pond on the other.
The drive along the river upstream (East) of Avery is just spectacular (though twisty for big RVs, should be fine with your P/U rig). It runs about 30 miles (IIRC) to Red Ives. The drive back downstream is also very nice. I recommend the "Calder Store" at mile 24 for lunch. The interperative center at Marble Creek (~mile 30) tells a lot about logging history in the area, it's worth a stop.
At the western end of St. Joe River road, a turn to the north will take you to Hwy 97, which runs along Lake CDA. It'll be a slow ride with a bigger RV, but the views are spectacular.
Another great little campground is Lost Moose, south of Cataldo. The owners are good people.
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