Day Trips from Rally Site?

[RTRANDY]

My poor man's GPS system: ( I'm serious )

I go to Mapquest and Zoom in on the area or route of interest. I print out one section and then move the map to the next area along the way and then print that section out. I trim the sections and use clear scotch tape to piece them together.
It takes a little time, but you end up with a real nice custom map piecing all the sections together. They will align perfectly. You can make an 11 x 17 color copy of the pieced together map even with highlighter marks on them at a place like Kinko's for about a buck and hand them to friends as well.

Fold them once or twice and you can have them set in the tank bag window ready for easy reference. I have maps with good detail that will cover sections of my trip to Spokane. You should be able to make a pretty good map covering Spokane and the northern parts of Idaho so anyone in the know of good roads in that area can help you mark your enlarged map.

[BRADFORDBENN]

If there are tracks and rides posted, I will also convert them to "ride sheets" for everyone's use. (What did I just volunteer for?)

Basically I will take the gps info and make an Adobe Acrobat PDF out of it so everyone can share.

[JetDoc]

Originally posted by BradfordBenn
If there are tracks and rides posted, I will also convert them to "ride sheets" for everyone's use. (What did I just volunteer for?)

Basically I will take the gps info and make an Adobe Acrobat PDF out of it so everyone can share.

I have several routes on my MapSource GPS file, but I'm not sure how I can download the info to this forum. In the meantime, here's one of my favorite loops... If you start in Spokane you can ride through three states and cross Idaho from border to border twice! If there's any interest, I might be persuaded to lead a group ride on this route.

Thompson Pass Loop: A few low-speed turns; some moderate grades; One steep climb at Montana border; 280 miles; Riding time = 5 hours.

From Spokane, East on I-90 past the old Cataldo Mission to mile 43 and the Kingston exit. Turn eastbound on the Coeur dÔÇÖAlene River Road. Stop and visit the Enaville Snake Pit if you dare. Continue on the old river road to Prichard then the Prichard Creek Road past Murray and up over the pass into Montana. You may still see some snow on the north sides of the high peaks as you pass under them.

From the top of Thompson pass, continue down the Montana side on Hwy 471. At the stop sign your route leads westbound on Hwy 200 but you can detour a mile or two east to visit the town of Thompson Falls. Fuel is cheaper in Montana, and maybe you can find some fresh home-made huckleberry ice cream!

Westbound Hwy 200 will take you to Sandpoint, ID where you can hook up to Hwy 2 back to Spokane, or Hwy 95 to Coeur dÔÇÖAlene. Either route, how many times can you say youÔÇÖve crossed a whole state from border to border twice in one afternoonÔÇÖs ride?

[BRADFORDBENN]

JetDoc-

If you zip/compress the file you should be able to post it. KBasa is going to make it so that people can upload tracks and maps but for the moment a zip file (pkzip, winzip, Windows XP compressed folder... etc.) is the easier way to go.

If you want, you can e-mail it to me and I can convert it to a PDF.

[montana]

Just a few comments on JetDoc's route.

There is a fun paved road, not shown, that goes past Bull Lake to Troy MT and then you can come back to Sandpoint on Hwy 2, if you have a little more time than just riding 200.

When you get to the west side of Newport, stop at the coffee shack in the Subway parking lot for a great smoothie.

If you are short of time, then check the route to Lakeside and Bayview, go to Farragut State Park, where they test submarine technology.

[kbasa]

Yep. We can attach .zip files, so if you want to zip up the GPS route and attach it, go right ahead. If you're not sure how to do that, send it to me at teamkbasaATcomcastDOTnet and I'll put it up for you.

dave

[JetDoc]

Originally posted by KBasa
Yep. We can attach .zip files, so if you want to zip up the GPS route and attach it, go right ahead. If you're not sure how to do that, send it to me at teamkbasaATcomcastDOTnet and I'll put it up for you.

dave

The zip program on my computer isn't working properly, so I sent a copy of my route file to BradfordBenn this morning. I can shoot one to you also.

[kbasa]

Ah heck, then let's get Brad to do it.

[kbasa]

From JetDoc:

My Rally Maps: (Riding times & distances estimated. Yours may vary.)

Heres three of my favorite Washington & Idaho loops

1. Lake Coeur dÔÇÖAlene loop: Some low speed turns and moderate grades. 150 miles, Est. riding time = 2.5 hours

From Spokane take I-90 East to Idaho mile marker 22 exit to Hwy 97.
Hwy 97 bends and twists southbound around the eastern shore of Lake Coeur dÔÇÖAlene, offering some fantastic views of the lake and surrounding forests to the little lakeside town of Harrison. At Harrison, continue South on Hwy 97, 7.5 miles to the intersection of Hwy 3. South on Hwy 3 to St Maries.

At the stop sign in St Maries, turn Right onto Hwy 5, Westbound to Plumber. You will pass through Hayburn State Park, and more beautiful lake views as you ride through the Coeur dÔÇÖAlene Indian Reservation. At Plumber, turn northbound onto US Hwy 95. Just North of the Coeur dÔÇÖAlene tribal Casino/Resort, you may continue on US 95 to Coeur dÔÇÖAlene, or bear left onto Hwy 58 which will lead you back to Spokane. Hwy 95 is a little faster, but 58 is a more interesting ride.

Either way, this loop will give you some great photo ops of one of the most beautiful lakes in the country, and a nice ride in the country.

2. Kettle Falls Loop: Some sweeping curves; Mostly level to moderate grades; 275 miles; Riding time = 5 hours.

From Spokane, take I-90 to Hwy 2 westbound. At Davenport, turn north on Hwy 25, past old Fort Spokane. Your route will take you from the Spokane River along Lake Roosevelt to Kettle Falls, WA. At Kettle Falls, turn East onto Hwy 395/20 to Colville. At Colville, follow Hwy 20 to Tiger and follow the Pend Oreille River on to Newport.

At Newport, you can take US Hwy 2 west back to Spokane. If you have more time, continue to follow the river East on Hwy 2 to Sandpoint, Idaho and take US 95 South to Coeur dÔÇÖAlene where you can return to Spokane via I-90.

3. Thompson Pass Loop: A few low-speed turns; some moderate grades; One steep climb at Montana border; 280 miles; Riding time = 5 hours.

From Spokane, East on I-90 past the old Cataldo Mission to mile 43 and the Kingston exit. Turn eastbound on the Coeur dÔÇÖAlene River Road. Stop and visit the Enaville Snake Pit if you dare. Continue on the old river road to Prichard then the Prichard Creek Road past Murray and up over the pass into Montana. You may still see some snow on the north sides of the high peaks as you pass under them.

From the top of Thompson pass, continue down the Montana side on Hwy 471. At the stop sign your route leads westbound on Hwy 200 but you can detour a mile or two east to visit the town of Thompson Falls. Fuel is cheaper in Montana, and maybe you can find some fresh home-made huckleberry ice cream!

Westbound Hwy 200 will take you to Sandpoint, ID where you can hook up to Hwy 2 back to Spokane, or Hwy 95 to Coeur dÔÇÖAlene. Either route, how many times can you say youÔÇÖve crossed a whole state from border to border twice in one afternoonÔÇÖs ride?

[JetDoc]

Thanks, Dave

[gwb36]

"3. Thompson Pass Loop: A few low-speed turns; some moderate grades; One steep climb at Montana border; 280 miles; Riding time = 5 hours."
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Are all roads paved on this ride?

[BRADFORDBENN]

Originally posted by JetDoc
Thanks, Dave

Really I was gonna do it. Stand by for the ride sheets....

[BRADFORDBENN]

Here is the Kettle Falls Loop:

• Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format
• Graphic View
• Microsoft Word XP

Here is the Lake Coeur d'Alene Loop:

• Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format
• Graphic View
• Microsoft Word XP

Here is the Thompson Pass Loop:

• Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format
• Graphic View
• Microsoft Word XP

Should work for any and all...

[JetDoc]

Originally posted by gwb36
"3. Thompson Pass Loop: A few low-speed turns; some moderate grades; One steep climb at Montana border; 280 miles; Riding time = 5 hours."
----------
Are all roads paved on this ride?

Yes, all roads are paved and in good condition. We did this loop about two weeks ago.

[JetDoc]

Here's another great Northern Idaho ride from the Spokane Fairgrounds. I've always done it as a two-day ride with an overnight stop in Missoula, but there's no reason it can't be done in one (long) day.

The route is just over 500 miles, with 200 of that being Interstate between Spokane and Missoula. The balance is mostly high-speed highways and includes US Hwy 12 between Lewiston, ID and Lolo, MT. This is the famous (or infamous) "winding road next 77 miles" highway you've all seen in your friends' photo albums.

I've attached my Garmin MapSource route file in a zipped folder.

Ride Safe and Enjoy!