It was a glorious bluebird sky in Central Oregon when K and I pulled into Smith Rock. We’d seen the weather report, called in sick at work, loaded the car with quick draws and kale chips, and headed south for a long weekend. K and I have the luxury of being healthy, rather extreme in […]
It’s easy to get caught up in the idea of a long road trip: the open highway, the sense of freedom and adventure, and the anticipation of exploring new and unfamiliar places. But there is a downside, too: the road-rage-inducing traffic on those highways, the sense of claustrophobia and numbness from hours in the cramped
Quick-Fix Car Camping: Overnighters that Won’t Burn a Bunch of Gas Read More »
Cover photo courtesy of Rex Schultz By Jon Jonckers Across Spokane County, so many regional parks and trailheads underwent dramatic upgrades and improvements that it’s impossible to pick a favorite in 2025. Beginning last May, Liberty Lake Regional Park received an expanded and paved parking lot with 88 regular and three accessible parking spaces, new
How federal layoffs and budget cuts are reshaping wildfire season on public lands Cover photo courtesy of Washington DNR By Bri Loveall Think of a big fire. Pull it up in your mind. I can picture the Carlton Complex fire of 2014 in the Methow Valley, when the sun was a constant circle of fiery
Smoke Signals from the Fireline Read More »
Mt. Spokane’s 2025 Kids’ Day Camps Cover photo courtesy of Mt Spokane This summer, Mt. Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park invites young adventurers to trade ski boots for hiking shoes and bike helmets. The 2025 camps emphasize outdoor fun, skill-building and environmental learning all at Spokane’s namesake mountain playground. What sets Mt. Spokane’s day camps
Summer on the Summit Read More »
Join guided group outings to Spokane-area natural areas where you’ll learn about and engage with local history, native plant and wildlife identification, outdoor survival, art and more. Some events are adults only and may require pre-registration. Sign up at scld.org/events Learn about Nature at Bear Lake June 7: Learn the names of the plants and
6 Ways to Get Outside this Summer with the Spokane County Library District Read More »
Come springtime, the mountains, valleys, and waterways around Sandpoint, Idaho, come alive with wildflowers and wildlife, making it one of the top spring hiking destinations in the Pacific Northwest. Wildflowers burst into bloom in profuse displays, and a wide variety of wildlife is busy rearing their young. The area offers incomparably wild experiences in spring,
Best Spring Hikes Near Sandpoint, Idaho for Wildflowers and Wildlife Viewing Read More »
By Derrick Knowles Cover photo courtesy of Tele Colo Over the years skiing on telemark gear, I’ve encountered a few slogans from tele skiing’s zenith, some of them on faded stickers plastered to Subarus and others repeated by lifties with a Jeff Spicoli-esque cackle in the lift line as I approached: “Free your heel, ski
Tele Ain’t Dead in the Inland Northwest Read More »
Cover photo courtesy Bri Loveall By Karie Lee Knoke During a recent course at Sacred Cedars Wilderness School, called Survival Sisterhood, I dove in deep about the concept of creating an ongoing community of women centered around the subject of survival. In the circle of women who attended the course, we discussed what ‘survival’ really
Survival Sisterhood Read More »
Lessons from a Classic Adventure Parenting Memoir Cover photo courtesy of Olivia Dugenet By Olivia Dugenet “Caprice” was a 25-foot boat with a cockpit, engine room and just enough space to sleep Muriel Wylie Blanchet and her five children. They spent entire summers on “Caprice” back in the 1920s and ‘30s, exploring the waters and
