AMERICAN EMPRESS STEAMBOAT
from, Vancouver Washington, Clarkston Washington,
Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, and Glacier Park.
Our one week cruise exceeded our expectations. Since
we have been on over 15 River Cruises throughout the Eastern US and most rivers
in Europe, you could say we are true River Rovers, as there is always something
to see out your window except when you are in a lock! This “Lewis and Clark”
Themed Cruise was full of the most spectacular scenery, along the Columbia
Gorge, full of waterfalls on the excursions, Wine Tastings in Washington’s Red
Mt Wine area; the Hop On and Hop Off Buses travel right along with the boat,
meeting us at every port and taking us to absolutely excellent museums like Ft
Clatsop where Lewis and Clark spend their winter overlooking the Pacific, the
Reach in Richland, Wa. which not only gave us all the history and Indian Lore
but also the story of nearby Hanford which hosted the MANHATTAN PROJECT. The
Federal Gov. built a town of about 25,000 occupants in one year to house
its employees who were producing the plutonium for the first Atom Bomb
which was dropped on Japan in Aug. of ’45 to end WW2; 99% of the
employees had no idea what they were working on!
The food was as good as any 5 star cruise line and the
nightly entertainment, was off the charts, with only 2 couples who had more
talent than 10 people combined. The Riverlorian- lecturer Mary is from
Cincinnati and lives in Madeira of all places (where our kids and grandkids
live). She was a wealth of interesting information. Some of the
passengers took the HELLS CANYON Jetboat excursion down the deepest gorge in
the USA and said it was the highlight of their week. We’d already been on the
Rogue River Jet-boat trip and opted for the Nez Perce Indian Monument trip.
Most of the cabins on the Empress had verandas and I’d recommend the E category
if you want to keep the price down, because it also has a balcony, it’s cozy
but very comfortable. The B and A Category are very spacious and opulent. Aug.
23-31.
I JUST RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM AMERICAN QUEEN
STEAMBOAT WITH THEIR LAST MINUTE FALL HALF PRICE CRUISES, A BUY ONE AND GET THE
SECOND PERSON FREE!! I wish I had gotten that deal on our cruise! I’ll be
sending a second email with the dates and itineraries in an email to follow.
We headed north out of Lewiston and arrived in several hours at the absolutely pristine lakeside town of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho passing hundreds of miles of bright yellow White Wheat Fields, which had just been harvested and bound for China and Asia to make Asian Noodles. Our luxurious hotel that night was the Coeur D’Alene Spa and Golf Resort, and it topped my expectations again. It sits like a crown jewel on the Lake by the same name, surrounded by a huge Marina, where they will take you for a complimentary boat ride on a vintage Cris Craft Woodie, across the lake to visit the gorgeous Championship Golf Course with its floating 14th hole. You have to drive over (I’d say at least 150 yds) and then take a boat over to put the green if you were lucky enough to reach it! We opted for a lunch/dinner extravaganza buffet and walked off this feast by a hike along the side of the lake and swim in the indoor pool. Oh the life! Aug 31
We departed early for our next stop BIG FORK, MONTANA
passing some pretty great mountain scenery. This just got us warmed up for the
main event, GLACIER NATIONAL PARK. We booked into the Bridge Street Cottage in
the Historic Town, which has a well known Theatre which operates all season.
It’s located very close to Flat Head Lake, the largest freshwater lake west of
the Mississippi, I am told.
Sept.
1
I have been trying to get to GLACIER NATIONAL PARK
ever since I worked as a waitress back in ’63 at the Old Faithful Inn where I
had the time of my life, or at least one of the best times of my life! Dick and
I have been trying to visit all of the big National Parks and nothing has
exceeded Yellowstone for me, (although I loved Bryce and Zion especially, when
we took a Tauck Canyonlands Tour two years ago). GLACIER NATIONAL PARK TOPS
THEM ALL FOR PURE MAJESTIC MOUNTAIN SCENERY!!! AWSOME AND HUNDREDS OF W O
W S don’t do it justice! We drove the 50 mile ROAD TO THE SUN, a National and
World Heritage Site which every Red Blooded American should experience. I
jumped out of our car at least 20 times to take pictures that are
good enough to frame and put on our walls, they are so spectacular! We
stayed at MANY GLACIERS LODGE, soon to celebrate its 100th
Anniversary. It’s kept its historic atmosphere. One of the highlights of our
stay was a Cinnamon Bear and her two black cubs crossing the creek right in
front of us! Ask me to show you my pictures, priceless! I strongly recommend
visiting this International Peace Park which is connected to WATERTON LAKES
NATIONAL PARK in Alberta Canada the next few years as they predict that the
glaciers will be all melted in the next decade or so. We were planning on
driving over the Canadian Border to visit Waterton and taking the lake cruise,
but the first rain in 21 days squashed that. We headed west out of the park and
stayed in WHITEFISH, MONTANA, home of BIG MOUNTAIN SKI RESORT, and a true gem
of a resort town. The mountain looked extremely challenging, past my 2 double
hip replacements capabilities!
Sept.
5
OVERALL DICK AND I FEEL THIS EXPLORATION OF THE
PACIFIC NORTHWEST IS ONE OF THE TOP TRIPS OF OUR LIVES, AND WE HAVE TAKEN QUITE
A FEW!
I HOPE THIS REPORT WILL HELP MOST OF YOU TO BE ABLE TO
EXPERIENCE “GODS COUNTRY’ SOMETIME IN YOUR FUTURE!
