Moscow, Idaho July 30-31, 2004
An event loosely organized by:
HMarc and
Warchild
Elk City
315 miles, approximately 6.5 hours
Don't confuse this with the much shorter
Elk River ride.
The last bit of this ride, ID-14, is the whole point of going to Elk City.
It's a bit hard to get to, but a very memorable motorcycle road.
I documented
a similar ride I did in '99 leaving from, and returning to Spokane.
That page has a few photos to help you decide if this ride is for you.
- Head east out of Moscow on ID-8 towards Troy.
- At Troy, turn right on ID-99 and head toward Kendrick.
This is
a great bit of road that you can let your bike stretch its legs on.
- At Kendrick, turn north on ID-3 and go through town. At the
north end of town, the road has a few turns and then heads up
a long grade. Just before the grade starts, turn right along the
Potlatch river on County Road P1. After about 1/8th of a mile, turn
right over the river and head up a narrow, twisty (and kinda bumpy)
canyon.
- This is one of HMarc's favorite roads, and it offers a little
bit of everything, including a few "surprise" turns. Awhile after
passing through Cavendish (look quick or you'll miss it) you'll come
to the top of the Ahsahka Grade, with its spectacular view up the
Clearwater canyon leading to Lolo Pass. Unfortunately, there isn't
really anywhere good to stop to take in the view.
- Local FJR rider David Tucker recommends the Woodlot for lunch, along
side the road in Ahsahka.
- At the town of Orofino, at the stop sign, the burger place
across the street isn't bad, if you're hungry. You might want to
fuel up here, or not.
- Turn right (south) at the burger place and cross the Clearwater
river, then turn left on US-12 (aka the Lolo Pass Highway). Head
towards Kamiah, ID.
- About 3-4 miles past Kamiah, turn south at Kooskia onto ID-13
and follow it to Harpster.
- A couple miles or less past Harpster, you'll come to ID-14 which
branches off to the left. Take it.
-
Stay on 14 all the way to Elk City, where you can refuel and grab
some lunch. Not much traffic on this road, and nada for cell phone
coverage, so be extra careful as
you are a long way from mechanical and medical assistance.
-
You might want to retrace your route on the return trip, which will
make this a 300 mile ride. But it probably won't get you back to
Moscow any quicker.
-
Or you could follow the route on the map above,
and head west when you get back to ID-13 and turn at Grangeville onto
US-95 north. Then follow US-95 back to Moscow.
- For a twisty little side road, take the left into the tiny
village of Winchester
and stop somewhere and ask how to get to the
"old Winchester grade".
It's the old road, from the 20's, but with modern pavement.
It will put you back on US-95 near the town of Culdesac.
- For another twisty little side road, try the
"Spiral
Highway" just north of Lewiston on Hwy 128.
On this route
reliable fuel may be found at Orofino, Kamiah, Grangeville and Lewiston.
There will probably be fuel at other places as well, but this is rural
country, and a lot of small towns don't have fuel at all, particularly at
night and on Sundays.
Copyright © 2004, by H. Marc Lewis. All rights reserved.