At dinner a retired federal meteorologist told me about the snow that had fallen that day on Sherman Pass. He said arriving there later would be better so snow has time to melt, On the other hand, I had a long day planned, to reach Beaver Lodge Resort, about 80 miles with Sherman Pass in the middle. I got up early and left the little town of Republic before folks were opening stores and restaurants. I found a small restaurant open early at the base of the climb and watched as families trooped in to celebrate Father's Day. Several had more than 4 young children and clearly the Dad qualified for the day. The climb to Sherman Pass—highest paved pass in Washington at 5,575'—began right outside the restaurant. It was a steady, sometimes fairly steep grade and I settled in to a routine stopping at pullouts for slow traffic. That certainly fit my speed. The weather was progressively colder until the summit where the pavement was wet but not icy and there was no snow. There was some snow falling and some at the side of the road. It had taken me about 4 hours to reach the summit, the last of the 5 Washington passes. Ahead of me was a cold descent for over 10 miles at 6% grade and I bundled up for the drop.

I reached Kettle Falls and didn't do it justice because I had reservations at the Beaver Lodge in a cabin, a long way away. I bought a dinner sandwich in Safeway and kept riding east. I was a hard day and too long. (I should have spent the night in Colville I know now), The cabin I stayed in was very basic—wood stove for heat—but sadly there was no breakfast this morning, with the closest restaurant in Ione, 18 miles away! No cell service and not much internet via Starlink. So I'll pack up and head down the hill. Pictures to follow when bandwidth is better.

I'm now stopped for lunch at the Ruby Creek Resort and can add pictures and post. One observation i've made is that there is a tradeoff between making reservations for a place to stay versus adjusting mileage based on how I'm feeling but run the risk that there won't be a room available. Motels book up, especially on weekends, so I've been in the habit of booking ahead. I'm not sure what I'll end up doing in the future.

Father's Day breakfast

A hard earned summit. Last of the 5 in Washington, and the highest

My rustic cabin for the night. Wood heat. I arrived late and didn't take advantage of its charms.

Beaver Lake from the cabin