Headed for the Evergreen State

September 16, 2021

Hells Gate state park to Asotin, WA loop

It was another sunny, clear day here and Don was up for a ride on Garfield although my legs were a little tight from dancing last night. He put together a suggested route to Asotin which was a small town in Washington located on the other side of the Snake.

At first we rode north along the campground trail. He wanted to see this area, even though I had warned him that it was rough! At least he took it slow.

At the Southway Bridge, we exited the trail and followed the on-ramp on a separated pedestrian/bike lane that took us over the river into Washington. Once on that side we looped back down a steep, winding trail to the water level where we startled a small buck deer grazing next to us.

It jumped and totally fell over, rolling around and around downhill! I laughed and laughed, until Don noticed that it had a broken leg. Oh, so sorry, poor deer.

At this point, Don wanted to get onto Highway 129 and follow it south. It wasn't a particularly quiet road as there was steady traffic. But at least we had a decent shoulder and newer pavement.

We took this road for several miles, enjoying the views of the river and rocky basalt cliffs towering above us. There were also plenty of expensive looking custom homes along this section.

Eventually the road took us to Asotin where we stopped at a park to use the facilities. Don wanted to ride a little further south, so we continued through town, past many nice older homes.

In one yard we saw what looked like a Crepe Myrtle tree. It was in full bloom and sure surpised us! The last place we had seen these was on a tour in Mississippi and other states in the deep south. I know that they refer to this valley we're in as the "Banana Belt" but I thought that was more for the orchards and vineyards in the region. Huh...

Once we got to the other side of town, our traffic died to nothing. Ahhhh, this was more like it, although we couldn't figure out why!

We rode a couple more miles, then turned around. This time taking the bike trail. We did notice in town that Highway 129 veered off to the west which was why our road had no traffic. Maybe we'll explore it further on another trip.

The trail was pleasant enough as it was closer to the water. We spotted a potential kayaking area that we might take advantage of tomorrow if it's not windy. It was a quiet lagoon of water that was protected from the river by some islands.

When we reached the bridge, we crossed back over to Idaho and returned to camp, this time taking the road. We were home by 1ish and ready to take it easy for the rest of the afternoon.

As we were unloading the bike, the RV service guy pulled up to our site. He had our bill - $175 cash - which really wasn't bad considering the job and time spent after 5 pm repairing our leak. It does appear to be fixed so when we get home we'll figure out how to get reimbursed by the Airstream warranty group.

It had been a great ride and maybe we'll get in another one tomorrow, or kayak depending on how we feel. So many options!

Now this was a first! A fake goose on top of a phone pole! Maybe to keep osprey from nesting on it?

This was the Lewiston Elks lodge that we were at yesterday. It's a huge facility and you can see the large viewing windows on one side overlooking the river valley.

Now THAT'S what I call a retaining wall!!! Don commented that the house should have been built like a castle since this looks like a castle wall. Can't you just picture that Monty Python movie where the guy is saying to the castle wall - "Throw out your dead, throw out your dead"!?

A nice looking Victorian home in Asotin. I liked the turret with witch's cap.

South of Asotin our road became this quiet 2-lane country road. Worth exploring another time.

A poor picture of what we think was a Crepe Myrtle tree. It has pretty pink fluffy flowers. Oops, Bill just identified this as a Mimosa tree! Still pretty.

Today's ride: 23 miles (37 km)
Total: 848 miles (1,365 km)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	2
Comment on this entry	Comment	0