Route of the Hiawatha Rail-Trail
Here's a thought for your personal newsletter. This is an article I wrote for my newsletter that had good comments from prospects who decided to come here to take this little bike ride. I'm trying to feature more things having to do with local activities from a personal point of view.
Trail of the Hiawatha
Let's see...where could I take the grandkids that would get us outdoors to see some amazing scenery, experience history's legacy, get exercise (but not too much), stop to picnic and talk to one another....all while creating treasured memories?
Three years ago, I found just that in the Route of the Hiawatha bike ride about 2 1/2 hours southeast of Sandpoint near Wallace, Idaho. We rented bikes at Lookout Pass for 3 adults and 3 children and then drove to the top of the East Portal for the easy 3-4 hour ride down the mountain.
We passed through 10 cavernous tunnels, including the 1.66 mile long Taft tunnel, and over 7 sky high trestles while taking in the wonders of the railroad building days gone by. We did the 15-mile journey at our own pace as we stopped to take in a waterfall, awe at the vastness of the Bitterroot Mountain range and read interpretive signs while munching on pieces of watermelon. At the bottom of the trail, we took the shuttle back to the car at the top of the mountain. How easy can that be?
Bankruptcy of the Milwaukee railroad in 1977 and abandonment of the railroad tracks, lead to a collaborate effort of private and government funds to create the rail to rail bike route between Montana and Idaho. It's a definite must do. For more info, go to http://www.skilookout.com/hiawatha/
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