My Summer Dream Journey

Here is our latest sibling assignment that I posed to my siblings.

Write about a journey, trip, or place you would like to visit this summer, and why.

A trip I have always wanted to take, at least in the last eight or nine years or so, is a boat ride from the Cataldo Mission landing to Harrison.

The problem is, I don’t have a boat, and have no way of even knowing how to get someone to take me on this ride. Can you rent a boat? I have no idea.

Part of the reason I want to take this trip along the main fork of the Coeur d’Alene River is to catch a small glimpse of what it was like traveling along this river in the late 1800’s, when the boat would travel from Coeur d’Alene Lake to the Cataldo Mission landing and drop off passengers. This happens in the book I am writing, and I would like to get a good visual about what this may have been like.

Another reason is to enjoy the beauty of the scenery. From the parts of this journey I have seen either from the road or from the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes bike trail, it is very beautiful, and I want to experience it close up.

A few years ago, PKR and I took a cruise from Harrison a ways up the river. It was before the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes had officially opened, but they were doing a little promotion for that part of the trail close to Harrison, and I went and covered it for the newspaper. It was a beautiful trip.

So, someday, maybe this summer, I hope to fulfill this dream trip. Some people’s dream trip are traveling Hawaii, or Mexico, or a Caribbean cruise. Not me. All I want is a boat ride on the river.

"Up The River" Beauty

This week's sibling assignment given by Inland Empire Girl has to do with going "Up the River". RP's post is here, and Inland Empire Girl's post is here.

For those of us who grew up in the Silver Valley, going "up the river" means traveling to the North Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River. This isn't to be confused with the South Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River that runs through the towns of Mullan, Wallace, Osburn, Kellogg, Smelterville and Pinehurst.

At Kingston, the two forks merge into the main fork of the Coeur d'Alene River, and travels west through the Chain Lakes to the town of Harrison, where it flows in Lake Coeur d'Alene.

For my assignment, I would like to share with you some pictures showing the beauty up the river, and the areas surrounding it.


I love this river.

If you know where to go, other treasures await you off the beaten path, like Fern Falls...
and Shadow Falls.

Right before you arrive in Murray, Idaho, there is a road that takes you to the Settler's Grove of Ancient Cedars.
Ancient Cedars tower above you providing a cool retreat on a hot summer's day.

If you head past Murray, you go east over Thompson Pass toward Montana. Here is a view at the top, looking back over the Silver Valley.

So, do you wonder why I love living here?