Idaho Vacation–Returning Home

Since we missed seeing a train last night, we had to make one more attempt to video a train at the nearby park. Andrew and I planned to leave the condo before dawn and get back quickly to eat and pack. Before we left, we heard the defect detector report a train to the East of us. A few minutes later, it went by the condo. Excited, we hurried to the park. Andrew set up the drone and we heard another defect detector report from a train to the West of us. This was what we had been hoping for. Andrew got the drone in the sky and got into position. Ten minutes passed with no train sighting. Then we realized that the report was for the previous westbound train, not an eastbound train. Oh well, no train video from this location. Before landing, Andrew thought he heard something and I pointed to the East. A truck was coming our way on the tracks! At least we got something. Then it was back to the condo to pack.

Being leaving, we had to leave the condo as we found it. Specifically, we had to eat all of the food that we bought, or throw it out. Susan made us scrambled eggs with onions, spinach, arugula, broccoli, carrots, ham, salami, and cheese. I drank as much milk and juice as I could, then put what was left in some empty bottles. Susan made sandwiches with as much lunch meat and mayonnaise as possible. We managed to only throw away a few items before saying good-bye to Pend Orielle Shores Resort. As far as I can tell, we left the condo with ALL of our belongings.

The drive back to Spokane International Airport was a race against time and fuel economy. We had to make it in time to catch our flight, but we wanted to minimize our fuel consumption. This was not a case of me trying to save the planet or anything like that. When we rented the SUV, I pre-paid for the gas, so I was trying to return it with as little fuel in the tank as possible. So, why try to drive efficiently? Because the fuel remaining gauge said X miles and the GPS said X + 20 miles. I did not want to have to stop and buy gas, and I certainly did not want to run out of gas and miss the flight.

As we got closer to our destination, the difference between the fuel remaining and the distance remaining dropped to less than 10 miles. I was so tempted to go for it. But instead, with the fuel gauge on E and 36 miles remaining, we stopped at a gas station and put in 2.003 gallons, which would give us another 40 miles. We tried to keep it under 2, but went a touch too far.

Along the way, we saw one more noteworthy train. Near Post Falls, we saw a local BNSF train being led by an engine with the green Burlington Northern paint scheme. Nice.

BNSF engine in the green BN paint scheme

After dropping off the car, which now was showing 1/8 tank of gas ( I really wanted it to be on E), we had to go through our remaining food and drinks before entering security. We ate our sandwiches and I finished the milk, but the juice and several other items met their final fate down the drain or in the trash can. Susan was able to give away a few unopened water bottles, so that was a small victory.

Our first flight was to Denver. We were hoping to see the Grand Tetons, but it was too cloudy near Jackson, Wyoming. We did, however, see the railroad tracks along Interstate 80. This is special to us because we chased the Union Pacific “Big Boy” along those tracks as part of our Utah Vacation in the Spring of 2019.

In Denver, our flight to Orlando was delayed. It was also 100% full. And when I say 100%, I’m not talking about 100% with the center seats empty. Southwest Airlines is now selling all the seats on the flight, so it was entirely full. I had the joy of sitting beside a couple that spent two hours discussing the lack of sanity of his ex-wife and his desire to do right for his kids. I tried to distract myself by beating up the computer AI on Backgammon.

Back in Orlando, we gathered our luggage, caught the bus to our parking lot, and drove home. It was a very long day, and looking back, a very quick vacation. We had two great days of skiing, an unexpected waterfall hike, and plenty of train sightings.

Click the photo below to see the photo album.

Idaho Vacation–Around Town

When we were not skiing, we were hanging around town, shopping, and chasing trains.

Monday

After skiing, we drove down to Sandpoint. Our first stop was the Sandpoint City Beach Park. While there, we got a text from Susan with a shopping list, so we went to Safeway next. Then, on the way back to the condo, we saw a train stopped at a signal, so we waited for the oncoming train to pass, then for the stopped train to continue. Dinner that night was my favorite ski vacation meal: chili in a sourdough bread bowl. I was torn between watching the trains and racing home to eat.

Tuesday

On the way to the mountain today, we were greeted by high temperatures and rain. At the intersection to head up to Schweitzer, I decided to delay skiing and instead continued straight towards Sandpoint. I’m so glad that I did because I was treated to two surprises: A BNSF engine with the executive paint scheme and an aircraft on a train.

We first saw the train carrying the airplane fuselage stopped at a signal. We hurried to the Amtrak station to see it go by. While we waited, a different train came by with the special second engine.

BNSF Executive paint scheme

After the train passed, the train carrying the fuselage was cleared past the signal.

Airplane fuselage on a train

After watching trains for awhile, we decided to drive up to Schweitzer Mountain Resort and see how bad the weather really was. On the way back down, we were surprised to see the crossing gates for the BNSF mainline dropping. We ended up being first in line as a BNSF train went by. Then, while driving back towards town, I saw a Union Pacific train in the distance. Andrew routed us to a good viewing spot and I parked near a grade crossing. To our surprise, the train was led by a Canadian Pacific engine and had a UP engine in the second position. In typical CP fashion, there was a mid-train engine as well.

CP train on the UP tracks

After a rather miserable looking day with rain and slushy snow, the sun finally broke through and we had a very nice sunset.

Gorgeous sunset at the end of an ugly day

Wednesday

After a rather ugly day on Tuesday, I was hoping for a better day today. Instead, we woke up to a brief snow flurry that covered the area in a blanket of white.

Early morning snow flurry

After breakfast, Andrew and I headed for the mountain for a full day of skiing.

Feeling hungry after a long day of skiing, Andrew and I went searching for food. My search uncovered a local gem off the beaten path, but it was a little too far to go at the time. We ended up going to Mr. Subs and ordered a foot long to go. We drove over to the Amtrak station, parked, and waited for trains while eating.

Thursday

Being our last full day, we planned to do and see everything else on our list, which included things like parks, National Forests, and shopping centers.

Our first stop was the park near Trestle Creek. This park is on Lake Pend Orielle and has a good view of the railroad tracks.

A short drive down the road is Trestle Creek. We drove four miles up the slush and snow covered dirt road to the snowmobiler parking lot. Along the way, we saw at least a dozen deer. Or maybe it was just six that we saw on the way up and then again on the way back? Can’t really be sure.

Then, while heading to Sandpoint, we saw a BNSF train with a Norfolk Southern engine in the second position. That seemed really out of place in Idaho. We continued to the trailhead near the Amtrak station and waited for it to pass.

Odd NS engine in a BNSF train

Then we crossed the bridge into downtown and went to the Cedar Street Bridge Public Market. It is an historic shopping center built on top of an old walking bridge.

Cedar Street Bridge History

Later, we drove to the Pack River Store, which had great reviews. We discovered it while searching for pizza after skiing. The store was nice enough, but the clerk informed us that they haven’t sold pizza in over two years. I bought a pint of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream instead.

Back at the condo, we faced a dilemma: what to do with all of the remaining food? Apparently, we made one too many stops at Safeway over the past five days.

After eating, Andrew and I went back to the lakeside park to fly the drone. We were encouraged because we saw a green signal in the direction of the park. Andrew prepared and flew the drone, but no train arrived. While there, we met a local who lived nearby and he commented that there’s always trains going by. Well, not this time. We decided to give it another try in the morning.

Drone shot of the Montana Rail Link line near Lake Pend Orielle

Although not mentioned elsewhere, I wanted to mention that we also saw a couple BNSF rail cars with Fallen Flags heritage paint schemes. First was a hopper with the Northern Pacific logo and second was a hopper with the Great Northern logo. Unfortunately, we were unable to get pictures of these.

Click the photo below to see the photo album.

Idaho Vacation–Schweitzer Mountain

Monday

Today started off beautifully. We could see the resort, lit up in the morning light, from the condo. The first ski day was off to a fabulous start. The sun was shining brightly on the Schweitzer Mountain Resort sign. 

Welcome to Schweitzer Mountain Resort

We parked and walked into the village. Since we were there Saturday, we knew the drill. First, we traded our printed out tickets that were purchased from home for genuine ski tickets, which we attached to our jackets. Then we walked across the plaza to the rental shop and were sized for boots, skis, poles, and helmets. All geared up, Andrew and I headed for the slopes. We started off on the easiest run – Happy Trails - to let our legs remember the feeling of skis attached to our feet. After a slow ride back up to the plaza on the Musical Chairs lift, Andrew took a bunch of pictures, including the panorama below that shows the Basin Express lift on the left and the Great Escape lift in the center.

Panorama from the village

After a couple hours of skiing, we needed a break, so we stopped at the Outback Inn, which is at the bottom of the Outback Bowl on the back side of the mountain. We clumsily walked in and grabbed an ice tea, bag of chips, and a chocolate chip cookie. Then we headed back out to the patio, which was made of processed planks. It was mostly covered with carpets, but where it wasn’t, it was like ice. We both nearly fell before reaching a table.

Refreshed, we headed back out to the slopes. On one run, we watched a group of people head off in one direction. We decided to go a different direction, which appeared to be easier. Turns out we ended up doing the bottom part of Downhill Run, which is a Black Diamond. Andrew got his first Diamond experience today.

By 2:00, we were both getting tired and decided to save some energy for the next two days. We turned in our skis and poles at gear check, then headed back down the mountain.

Tuesday

Today didn’t start off very well for those of us who were planning to ski. There were low clouds, the temperature was well above freezing, and it was raining. Regardless, we got ourselves ready and headed to the mountain. On the way, I changed my mind about skiing and headed to Sandpoint instead.

After watching trains for awhile, we decided to drive up to the ski resort to see how bad it really was. On the drive up the mountain, I was dismayed to see rivers of water flowing across the road from all the rain and melting snow. But then something magical happened. We came around a switchback turn and the water was replaced with snow. From this point onward, snow was falling instead of rain. At the top, we parked and walked around the village. The temperature was colder than expected, but the snow was very wet, heavy, and sticky.

Snowing and blowing conditions on the mountain

We considered getting our skis from gear check, but decided to get a first hand view of conditions at the top first. We used our lift tickets to ride the Great Escape lift to the top to see how bad the conditions were. The ride up was windy with snow blowing everywhere. For the first time, our goggles were starting to lose their advantage and spots started to appear before my eyes. At the top, we had seen enough. The lift operator stepped out of the booth to help us off the chair, but we decided to stay on the chair and ride it back down. 

Back in the village, we walked around and checked out all the various buildings: the Lakeview Lodge, the Selkirk Lodge, and the Chimney Rock restaurant.

Wednesday

As usual, I was up before dawn. As I puttered around the condo, working on my blog, I pulled open the curtains to try to slowly wake Andrew. Andrew gradually started to stir and come to life. I happened to look out the window again and it was snowing like crazy. It didn’t last long, but it was enough to cover everything in a thin white blanket.

Even though the day started off mostly cloudy and snowing, I had a good feeling that things would be beautiful today. On the way up the mountain, I predicted that the sun would be shining on the resort by the time we reached the top. I was not wrong.

Andrew and I gathered our skis and poles from the gear house, put on our layers, and were on the mountain by 9:30 am. At the top of The Great Divide, Andrew took some pictures. I was clearly excited to be standing in the sunlight. It was the perfect ski day combination: powdery soft snow, partial overcast, just below freezing, and no crowd.

David is happy to be on the mountain today

Further down The Great Divide, Andrew stopped for another picture. This picture shows the clouds and partial blue sky over Lake Pend Oreille.

Panorama showing Lake Pend Oreille in the distance

Once on the Outback Bowl side of the mountain, we explored all the Blue runs. The most challenging was Stella’s Run. I’m pretty sure that it hadn’t been groomed in awhile. Up to this point, all the runs were expertly groomed with only a light covering of fresh snow. It was nearly effortless to ski down, requiring very little concentration. But Stella’s Run was covered by about 8 inches of new snow and took extra effort and concentration to get through.

As the day progressed, the sky continued to clear. Only the top of the mountain was still in the clouds. Although sunny, there were specific areas where the wind was picking up snow and blowing it across the runs. On Kaniksu, the blowing powder was covering the tracks made from earlier skiers.

As the time got closer to closing, we decided to finish our day on the Schweitzer Bowl side. We took the Colburn lift up into the clouds. We stopped at the Sky House to check it out, then continued on Gypsy to the Lakeview lift. The view from the top was amazing.

David at the top of the Lakeview lift

After a few more round trips up and down the mountain, our bodies were starting to tell us to call it a day, but this was our last day, so we had to make the most of it. We decided to try the snow cross course. Andrew went first and I followed closely. The course was steep and had high banking curves. At one point, Andrew slowed down and I had to swerve sharply to miss him, I hit the thicker powder along the edge and had my first crash of the week, losing both skis and sliding about 10 feet beyond the point of impact. It must have looked bad because a teenage girl stopped to ask me if I was alright.

On our last ride up, the battery in the bar code scanner that is used to scan lift tickets apparently died. The ticket checker pointed the scanner at our tickets and then said “beep” for each of us. We returned to the village at 3:28. The skiing portion of our trip was now officially over.

Click the photo below to see the photo album.