amberwavestour: Lakes and Rivers and Mountains, Oh My

As I write the final entry of the Idaho/Montana chapter of our amber waves tour, I reflect on the observation I made about a week ago. I told Dana that while the ocean is dramatic and gorgeous, I actually find myself more drawn to the way lakes and rivers interact with the communities that surround them. We did a tour of towns up and down the Mississippi last spring break and fell in love with Michigan and all of its lakes when we visited there in the summer of 2015.

Throw in a couple of mountains, and I'm done for. Glacier National Park, therefore, easily became one of my favorite National Parks, as Idaho and Montana have become top contenders for favorite state. Our early morning horseback ride was beautiful, taking us through a forest before we came upon McDonald Creek. We crossed a bridge on our horses (Star for Maddie, Cooper for Dana, Dapples for Daniel, and Bandit for me) before riding alongside the other side of the creek. It was a peaceful and lovely way to end our time in the park and in Montana.

Sunrise on the way to horseback riding

Lake McDonalds in Glacier NP

We're spending our last two nights in Spokane, Washington, though we spent most of today in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. Sister cities, the two are just 30 minutes apart. We've explored the northeastern part of Washington in the past, but we were eager to see another part of the state, while deepening our Idaho exploration. This morning, we woke up when we felt like it, initially headed down to breakfast in Spokane and then decided to call an audible and head to Coeur D'Alene for the day. I jokingly called it the City of the Lake before deciding to research how the city's name truly originated. Apparently, when French fur traders arrived in the mid 1800's, they found the Native Americans there to be quite shrewd when it came to trading. They referred to them as having hearts (coeur) at sharp as an awl (alene), a tool used to sew leather. The name stuck, though residents and tourists here also freely use CDA and the 208 area code as nicknames.

If pride of state can be determined by having stickers and magnets in the shape of your state, I'm pretty sure that Montana and Idaho are going to win.

The indigenous tribes that lived on these lakes and rivers centuries ago are still here today, though, of course, they have been relegated to reservations. Still, the reservations in this part of the country are like nothing I've encountered before. They abut lakes and mountains and go on for thousands of acres. Since these people were the original and likely best stewards of the land, this has been gratifying to discover. Still, they are reservations, with all those inherent challenges. Sherman Alexie, an author I love who is Spokane, Coeur d'Alene and American, has written honestly, humorously and searingly about his childhood on a reservation in Wellpinit, Washington, which was created in 1881, when the tribe was removed from its over 3 million acres to three separate reservations, including the Flathead reservation we visited on our way from Missoula to Whitefish. I've tried to find a decent map to show where these reservations are, and how many indigenous people still live in this part of the country, but I haven't had much success. Still, here are two that give a little sense of the area. There is no doubt that spending time in the Northwest region of our country provides ample time to reflect on those who were here long before we "discovered" America. I'm hoping the recent election of the first two Native Americans to Congress is just the start of greater representation for the various tribal members in the larger American conversation.

Of course, we did more than reflect on the history and culture of the various Indian tribes who lived here. We also had brunch! :) The Garnet Cafe is a darling gem I had read about when we were heading to the area the day before. When our waitress at dinner also mentioned it, specifically the pesto breakfast spaghetti ?!, we were even more intrigued. It was even better than we anticipated. When you're sitting in a charming little restaurant cottage in CDA with signs all over pronouncing this place the winner of the best breakfast in Spokane, you know you made the right call to drive 30 minutes for a meal. We spent the rest of the day walking the downtown shopping area, the lake, and the beautiful memorial for a local police officer who was killed in the line of duty, the first (and thus far only) one ever in this city. The memorial is for him, but also for all officers killed in the line of duty, and apparently stickers with his call number - K27 - can be found all over, with people visiting CDA or knowing someone here and going back with the bumper sticker on their car. In an age where there are so many stories of police brutality, this small town story really grabbed my attention.

Sculptures pop up around the lake at the center of Coeur D'Alene

The CDA sun dial; you must add an hour during daylight saving's time. :)

The houses along the lake have a front yard, the road, and then this area directly on the lake. This house did it up.

After several hours in Idaho, we headed back to explore some of the historic neighborhoods in Spokane before settling in for The Lion King, a film we had hoped to be able to see together as a family, before Maddie heads back to L.A. tomorrow, and we head home to Florida. In our final hours in Spokane, we will enjoy the riverfront park and then head to the airport and back to our respective coasts.