2025 PNW Trip 1 - Day 8

May 27, 2025

The wind that blew so heavily yesterday and last night calmed down to a very light breeze by morning.  I slept pretty well as is usually the case after a motorcycle ride.  I was up about 5:30 and got dressed to go out on a hike. 

I first wanted see the bridge from above so I walked up a rise on the other side of the parking lot. The view was great.

Just up the river in the other direction I spied a pelican looking for breakfast.

From up on top of that rocky outcropping I had a good view of the road, the river, and the whole camping area.

I crossed the bridge and took a few shots on the railroad.

Then I hiked to the sign I’d passed last night.

Instead of following the trail along the creek, I went to left and slowly gained some altitude.  There were lots of flowers in bloom.

I continued on this trail and it got steeper and steeper but I kept going so I could get some photos of the canyons.

On the way back I grabbed a shot of the train trestle as it goes over the creek.

I went through the morning proceedings of packing while I also put some breakfast together.  It was oatmeal and cocoa today.

I was troubled as my phone did not charge overnight.  I’ve known there is something fiddle about its charging port and so I put it on the charger hooked up to the bike’s battery and hoped it would charge.  Without the phone I don’t have a map. This will soon be remedied as I’ve orders a dashcam system that comes with GPS and a few other features.

I rode south out of Yakima Canyon and knew that I would eventually encounter Hwy 12 which would take be all the way to Lolo and, sure enough, there it was.  I got on it and headed eat, mostly, as it shared the road with another highway number and, instead of being just a 2-lane, it was a 4-lane and pretty much a freeway.

I rode this to Richland  and then to Walla Walla where it shrank to the 2-lane road I prefer to ride on.  I did stop for gas in Walla Walla before heading to Lewiston.  The ride through that eastern Washington is quite pleasant with hills and large, sweeping curves past miles and miles of farmland. 

I stopped for lunch in Pomeroy at their city park, the same place I’d stopped on the way west.  I’d fiddled with the charging cable on my phone and discovered that I have to press in the right side of the plug for it to make good contact.  I’ll sort this out at some point but I think I’m going to pick up one of those magnetic, wireless chargers as a backup.  I can rig that up in my tank back and then not worry about charging.

My lunch consisted of the other half of yesterday’s apple and the remains of a blueberry muffin from my mom’s place.  It was just right.  While in Pomeroy I set up a hot spot with my phone and got yesterday’s blog posted.  Now I am all up to date.

I headed back on the highway and did some climbing before reaching the summit.  It was time for a photo.

At the Slaterville rest area I stopped to shed some layers.  I still had the rain and thermal liners in my jacket and at 80° it was time for a change.

I scooted along the Clearwater River and stopped at my usual spot, a Sinclair station, in Kamiah and topped up the gas.  They have a market so I picked up a beer and some snacks to have once I get camp set up and sit down to write this.  The beer is a tall Imperial IPA and was on sale of $1.69.  What’s not to like?  And junk food?  You bet.  I’m on vacation.

I stopped at a couple campgrounds along Hwy 12 just to see the situation compared to when I came through last week.  Agar Campground was empty and I was tempted to stop there as it’s pretty nice, nestled in tall trees right along the Lochsa River but I wanted to get in some more miles today rather than do them tomorrow so I pressed on.

Of course, a photo or two is necessary.

I toured the Wilderness Gateway campground where I stayed last week and it was almost empty, a big difference from what I found there before.  On I went and I pulled into my destination campground, Jerry Johnson.  I stayed here last year in the pouring rain and a zillion years ago with my kids.  I did the loop and saw that there were only about 5 other campers here.  

The problem with this campground is that it’s really best for RV.  All the sites are back-in and most don’t really have a place to pitch a tent.  I did the loop and the stopped at site #2 to check it out.  The picnic table and fire ring are located above the parking area, like most sites, but at least this one has enough space for a tent next to the picnic table.  

I got the bike unloaded, set up the tent, got my riding gear off, and sat down to write this.  I suppose that I’ll be posting it tomorrow from somewhere along the road.

It was a 411 mile day.