To Heyburn State Park

June 18, 2023

On our last full day on the Trail of the Couer D’Alenes we are halfway through our Northwest Trails tour. I’m celebrating this milepost early with a run to the laundromat in Kellogg. Party on. There’s time for that since the ride today is 47 miles. We have enjoyed the string of 40-ish mile days lately. Keeping it under 50 leaves us with more energy at the end of the day and is more conducive to domestic harmony in all ways.

We have a colder start today, in the 50s now, and forecasted to be in the low 40s tonight at the campground. That’s pushing my limits for camping. We’ll see how that goes.

All smiles now after a wardrobe adjustment to add some layers.

Retracing our path to ride back west on the trail, the next stop is at Walmart in Smelterville for supplies. It’s cloudy out on the trail. A little sun would be nice.

Sawmill in Smelterville- there’s an evocative name

A few peepholes through the clouds - promising?

The clouds are starting to break up as we pass a couple of cycle tourists going east

There’s a wind coming at us from the southwest, the first headwind we’ve really dealt with on the trip. It’s not terrible but does slow me down. I try drafting behind Barry for awhile It’s tricky because my handlebar bag obscures my view of his wheel so I keep falling back to avoid contact. Ultimately we decide to meet in Harrison and he takes off. Everybody’s happier now. I can plug in my tunes and we both get to cruise at our own pace.

Near the Medimont trailhead there’s a small group stopped on the trail, all staring ahead at a dark thing in the grass. It’s a cow moose! Once again I am kicking myself for not bringing the zoom camera on the trip but I manage to capture a fuzzy image with my phone. We stand there for awhile as she snacks away at the grass. Nobody wants to pass her and draw a charge. Eventually a few of us ride together slowly, talking to the moose in soothing tones as we get closer, and she bolts back into the water.

In Harrison I find Barry sporting a brand-new jacket. He found a waterproof model at the CycleHaus bike shop here. His old windbreaker soaked up water and was pretty ratty, it’s in the trash now. I remember him shivering after our rainy ride to Sandpoint a week ago and am very glad he found an upgrade.

Barry is ready for the next rainy day. It cuts the wind better than the old jacket too.

What’s more awesome than a well-stocked bike shop in a town of 267 people? A bike shop that’s also a cafe with craft brews and WiFi. We settle in for lunch while I finish yesterday’s journal post.

The grocery store next door is well-stocked as well. We still have some grilled pork that I froze last night and find an onion, pepper, pack of Fajita seasoning, a little cheddar cheese and a box of Spanish rice to go with it. Now we have just 8 miles to get to the campground and fix dinner.

It’s happy hour at the Cycle Haus - $5 drafts and snacks.

Sunshine on the sailboat in Harrison Slough

The final approach to Chatcolet Campground in Heyburn SP takes us across the lake on the Couer d’Alene River Bridge that stretches 3/4 of a mile to the park on the other side. We have lots of company on the bridge with other families biking and people running across the water.

Closer to the truss bridge the pavement goes up in gradual steps that level off. I’ve never seen that kind of approach on a bridge.

On the other side there’s extra fun - a ridiculously steep hill up to the campground on a pine-needle surface. RidewithGPS does not know about these things. We push the bikes up and lift them over a tree across the path.

The forecast has deteriorated. Now the overnight low is expected to be 39F. Barry pitches the tent and makes a couple of firewood runs while I work on dinner.

Third pork night in a row. Just as good as the last two.

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Today's ride: 47 miles (76 km)
Total: 692 miles (1,114 km)

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