Our next stop was the stunningly beautiful state of Idaho, another new destination for us. We camped for a few nights at Powell Campground, located within the Clearwater National Forest, before arriving for a visit with Steve’s cousin Karl, his wife Coco and their charming little girl Stella in Lewiston, Idaho. The best description for Powell would be “Fairy Forest” with lush green flora, moss covered evergreens, beautiful flowering bear grass, and a misty roaring river right behind us.
Powell Campground, Clearwater National Forest, Idaho
Karl and Coco own and operate a local vineyard and winery, Clearwater Canyon Cellars, producing amazing wines earning numerous awards and honors for their hard work. We spent our days tasting, touring the vineyard, hiking, catching up, sharing stories…and dealing with continuing Scamp repairs. I enjoyed meeting more of Steve’s family and lucky for us he delighted Stella with his guitar playing! Thanks a million to Karl and Coco for such an enjoyable stay. We look forward to visiting again and assisting during a fall harvest!
The Scamp photo bombed my picture, LOL!
We had a few different people along the way recommend that the trailer axle be replaced so after numerous calls with Scamp and working with a local fabricator we had the 38 year old axle replaced in Lewiston. We were so thankful again for everyone that helped us with the complicated repair and somehow managing to replace the axle (involving cutting, welding, updating to 5 lug rims) within four days so that we could continue on our way to Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada.
Jasper National Park, surrounded by snow covered mountains, was breathtaking and reminded me of long ago family skiing in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. We camped five nights at Whistler Campground and explored as much as we could: wildlife, mountains, lakes, rivers, waterfalls, and trails. Wood was included with our site so Steve started a fire each evening…….finally the weather was in our favor to sit outside and relax!
On our way to Jasper we had our second overnight parking lot camping experience, viewed some amazing mountain scenery, saw female bighorn sheep, our first mountain goats, and since there are very tall fences along the roadway (to prevent accidents) animal bridges were created!
We have learned quite a bit about bear safety throughout our travels so far through Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and Canada. Of course carrying bear spray, being aware of our surroundings, and keeping an eye open for fresh bear evidence is very important for safety. However, we have learned a few other signs that bears are in the vicinity such as: brake lights flashing ahead of you; lines of cars stopped on the roadsides to get a bear view; police pulled over looking over the landscape carrying shotguns . . . and paintball guns in search of a bear; camp neighbors kindly stopping at your site to let you know there is a bear two sites down as you are cooking dinner outside; hearing a man’s voice yell “Bear!” near your campsite and then hollering “Don’t Run!” then seeing another man running and finally hearing someone shout “The bear is running!”
Campsite bear causing all of the commotion? We caught site of this bear when driving out to go hiking.
Valley of the Five Lakes Trail, Jasper National Park
Jasper Sky Tram Whistlers Mountain with strenuous hiking but a view that can’t be beat!
Maligne Canyon Loop Trail, Jasper National Park
Our final two days in Jasper National Park were spent exploring the town of Jasper, finding WiFi to work, and relaxing around the campfire. We will now continue to explore our way up to Alaska, taking about about a week, and just stopping for overnight camping along the way. We have traveled many miles from Buffalo, NY and are excited to see what’s next!
Coddiwompling “To Travel in a Purposeful Manner Towards a Vague Destination”
“In a world of constant change and streaming technology, I find solace in the forest where a tree remains a tree.” - Angie Weiland-Crosby
“That’s how hunters spot bears…..you look for the dark tree stump that moves.” - Paul Cotten