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Day 233 - Tue 9-3-02 - mileage today 76.0 – MILEAGE TO DATE=9,709.25
From Idaho/Montana Stateline to Newport, Washington

QUICK TRIP THRU IDAHO

We only spent one day in Idaho. Myron and I spent the night in the woods about 5 miles into Idaho. We thought it was property of a logging company. We were wrong, it was private property. The owner (Scooter) came by, he was kind enough to let us stay there. We were right in that Scooter and his family log the land themselves. By the next morning we met most of Scooters family. They all were nice people.  Chuck and Shiangold couldn’t find us so; they spent the night at the Stateline of Idaho/ Montana. Shiangold is the only one of us who didn't sleep in Idaho. He rode right thru it in one day. Chuck decided to stay in Sandpoint, Idaho. He will meet us tomorrow. Chuck is really coming alive. He is very much in tune with the environment. He thoroughly enjoys the mountains. I can see him change as we entered the mountains. It is a very spiritual experience for him. He is really happy to be here. I call Chuck Owte {One With The Earth}. He is a white medicine man. The last few days of riding have been spectacular. The Kootenai River is a rugged fast moving river flowing north. It is the river in the movie,(THE RIVER WILD). It is in a deep rocky gorge. It is truly wild. We passed thru a nice little town of Bonners Ferry, Id. I had an uncle who once lived there. It is not far from the Canadian border. I wish we could have spent more time in Idaho. It is a beautiful rugged state. I did have an unexpected experience today. I was passed by a motor home towing a car and it had Florida plates. That in it self is not special. What is unexpected though, is that it swung wide for safety as it passed me. I spent several hours cursing Florida drivers and trashing them in the journal for their lack of safety and courtesy. I must admit that I was more than surprised and pleased at the courtesy of my new friend from Florida. I have to admit that the thought crossed my mind, that he may have Florida plate but that he most likely is a resent retiree from Iowa. Thus, explaining the courtesy.

Day 234 - wed 9-4-02– MILEAGE TO DATE=9,709.25
Mileage today 0

REST DAY IN NEWPORT, WASHINGTON

We are resting today before we make a run for the Pacific Ocean. We are happy to announce the addition of one more friend to our rolling party. Gary is joining us today. He is also a friend from the TRANS-AM 2000.  On Friday, Dave will join us. Dave was our fearless leader two years ago. Dave is the one who coined the phrase "CUTTERS". With the addition of Dave, we will have 6 of the 11 Trans Am riders who rode to the Pacific.  I only wish that all of our group could join us as we cycled to the Pacific. We are a very special group of people, friends that bonded by depending so much on each other to cycle across the states.

Day 235 - thurs. 9-5-02 - mileage today 54.3 – MILEAGE TO DATE=9,763.55
From Newport to Ione

GOOD COFFEE

Finally we are in the west. I love my coffee bold and full flavored.
Up until recently the coffee and the beer has been weak. We now have micro brews and gourmet coffees available almost everywhere. We are in a beautiful section of Washington. Right now I'm in a cafe overlooking the Pend Oreille River. It is nestled between to mountain ridges. The river flows into Canada. We cycled along it all day. The sights were wonderful, as was the road. There was very little traffic. The mountains are heavily wooded and rolling. Unlike the rough rugged Rockies. The river is like glass right now. I'm sitting at a window about 40 feet above the river and I can watch as fish jump and make the ring like waves. We are in the nice little town of Ione. It has maybe 200 people living in it. It has an old working town feel to it. In other words, it's not a tourist trap. We are staying in the city park, which has a nice shelter and plenty of grass. Tomorrow we will finally meet Dave.