Idaho Panhandle

Leaving Washington state, I continued my journey eastward across the Idaho panhandle and into Montana. Followed US-2 and US-93 mostly, with a couple of side routes included in order to camp at beautiful places.

Pend O’rielle River

(Nordman ID)
I arrived on Thursday at Priest Lake in the far northern panhandle of Idaho. And, just in time to get the last campsite at Idaho Panhandle NF-Reeder Bay Campground. A non-reservable site with a view of the lake and a short path to the beach. Plus 4G internet.

Priest Lake

(nr Troy MT)
After going though Bonners Ferry, I was soon into Montana. The next camp was at Kootenai NF-Yaak River Campground. That campground was right where the Yaak River empties into the Kootenai River. My site backed up to the Yaak, with a path that took me to the confluence.

Yaak River

Kootenai River

A few miles further along brought me to Kootenai Falls scenic trail. I stopped and took the short hike. Wow! It was a spectacular set of waterfalls with several great viewpoints. I took lots of photos, but chose just two to share.

Kootenai Falls – left side

Kootenai Falls – right side

(Libby to Eureka MT)
Next stop was in Libby to fill up on gas, post to the blog, and to re-check my planned route. A side trip north on MT-37 was taken to see Lake Koocanusa, a 90 mile long reservoir that goes all the way into Canada.

Lake Koocanusa

An overnight boondock spot was found at McGuire Creek that was adjacent to the lake, and had great views of both. The wide paved pullout was easy to get level and was within the Kootenai NF. Road noise was minimal late at night.

McGuire Creek

(nr Hungry Horse MT)
Spent a couple of nights at Flathead NF-Lid Creek Campground on the Hungry Horse Reservoir. A decent site with a view of the water through the trees. The scenery coming in was impressive, and I was welcomed by deer in the campground.

Hungry Horse Reservoir

Warnings about bears are common on the bulletin board. However, this one said ‘Grizzly bears are active in this campground’. Whoa, and just what are they actively doing? After a couple of days, I moved on.

(nr Essex MT)
Stopped at several spots along US-2 in the Flathead NF to take photos, and spent a few nights boondocking in that area. I really enjoyed Bear Creek.

Bear Creek

View from Skyland Road

It was an enjoyable time along US-2 while working my way toward the next big thing.

Camps: Idaho Panhandle NF, Kootenai NF, Flathead NF
Scene: Lakes, rivers, creeks, waterfalls, mountains