It’s early February in Calgary, very snowy and cold with an average daily temperature of -20 degrees C (-4 F). My friend and I are together one afternoon wishing for warm weather and come up with an idea to visit the Oregon coast this coming summer. I had seen photos of incredible coast lines and amazing national forests but the thing I wanted to do the most was visit the sand dunes and drive on the beach. There aren’t many places in the US or Canada that allow someone to drive their vehicle on an open beach these days. Later that evening, I get to work on a basic route plan that will bring us to the coast and back.

Flash forward a few months to July, we have a solid route planned and 10 days to complete it. Our departure is set to July 21st. A few maintenance items need completing on the 4runner before we go. Transmission fluid, transfer case fluid and an oil change are the first items to be changed followed by lower ball joints, new front CV axles, front wheel bearings, front pads and rotors and a rear diff lock actuator. I think we should be ready to hit the trails!

Day 1

The morning of the 21st comes sooner than anticipated and before we knew it, it was time to put ice in the cooler, gas in the tank and hit the road. I collect my friend from his house and we’re off. Our first stop on the trip is Lake Koocanusa in British Columbia close to the US border crossing into Idaho, about four hours from Calgary. Once in Fernie, we hop on a forestry road that will take us the rest of the way to Koocanusa.

The road is rough, windy and full of potholes, a reduced tire pressure is required for a safer, more comfortable ride. We knock out the pressure to 20 psi and continue through the BC back roads. Its not long before the massive lake comes into view. Boats of all makes and sizes line the shores and cruise the waters. Our first objective is to find a camp spot, our second is to find the beach and go for a swim. The temperature is about 30 degrees C (86 F) without a cloud in the sky. Hot! (For Canada). Luckily, there is a large amount of wild camping in this area and if you’re familiar with the area, you can find a spot right by the water.

We find ourselves migrating towards the water with a chair and a beer in hand, life’s good! Pasta with onion, pepper, cheese and tomato sauce was for dinner. A quick tasty meal that’s awesome for camp. We sat around the camp fire telling stories until about 11:00pm then decided to call it a night. Tomorrow has the potential of being a stressful day in regards to our international border crossing into Idaho.

Day 2

The next morning, after being well caffeinated and filled with breakfast, we break camp and jump on another forest service road outside of Koocanusa heading towards the US border.

Foothills and vast mountain ranges grace our presence as we work our way through the Kootenays.

Once back to the main highway, the trusty Smittybilt compressor is put into action to bring all four tires back up to 40 psi. Another 40 kilometres and we’ll be in Idaho.

Welcome to Idaho! A land so much more than just potatoes. The border crossing goes smoother than expected so we stop for a celebratory picture by the sign. Our destination for tonight is Coeur d’Alene with a stop in Sand Point for lunch.

Sand Point, an hour north of Coeur d’Alene, is a cool little town posted up by Lake Pend Oreille. It is fed by the Clark Fork river and is the largest lake in the state of Idaho.

We stop in a cozy local cafe for lunch. The food was great, but unfortunately the service was not. When my friend asked what was on tap for beer, the waiter let out a loud “Pff” and sarcastically said that they do not serve anyone under age (we’re 23). We informed him that we are legal age and handed him our drivers licenses. He took a look at our ID’s, shaking his head and implied that they were illegitimate and fake. He then rudely reminded us that we were in the US and said that we needed a valid drivers license. We informed him that the cards we provided were in fact drivers licenses from Alberta. After taking a second puzzling look, he brought my friend his beer. Quite the hassle, eh?

That night at camp in Coeur d’Alene, I tried my hand at long exposure shots. If it’s dark and you turn the shutter speed down so the shutter is open for multiple seconds instead of milliseconds, the camera will capture and display any moving light as a streak. I took this opportunity to create a few messages. Of course, one of them had to be a Toyota shot!

Day 3

Unfortunately, I awoke to the sound of the highway which actually also lulled me to sleep the night before. When traveling through an unfamiliar area, there isn’t always the time or resources to find a stunning camp site, so you have to work with what you got and accept a campground/RV park. I always struggle with this because I want to be away from the crowds in a beautiful area but I have to remind myself that it’s all part of the journey, and that its not every day I get to sleep in a new environment hundreds of miles from home! Besides, it’s not all bad, we got to stock up on ice and fill our water jugs, that’s a win in my books!

We skipped on breakfast at the camp site, saving our appetites for Spokane. It took about 45 minuets to get from Coeur d’Alene to Spokane. We found a nice coffee shop in the suburbs which used to be an old automotive shop that someone had the idea of selling coffee and sandwiches out of. I guess that’s why they call it The Shop? Friendly and delicious!

Back on the road, we had the chance to drive through downtown Spokane. Nice city, but smaller than expected. Onwards and south to Oregon!

South Eastern Washington is not the most interesting drive in my personal opinion. Farm land of green and gold quickly turned to very hot, very dry, and very dead landscape for hundreds of miles.

Very gradually, the landscape started to turn. The Oregon border is only miles away and the heat is wild. It makes just sitting in the car driving down the highway exhausting. I wanted to check the temperature on my phone but it was disabled due to overheating from sitting in the centre console! My guess, is that it was close to 40 degrees C in the sun (104 F). Being from Calgary, we’re not used to these temps!

We come around the bend and there it is, the Washington/Oregon boarder! Camp that night was in a state park called Minam, part of Wallowa County in North Western Oregon.

A river runs by our camp tonight; much better than the highway! Around 7:30pm, the sky becomes very black and we can see flashes of lighting getting closer and closer. Feels like were in for a big thunderstorm.

Just as fast as it rolled in, the storm seemed to stop dead in its tracks turn right around and run for the hills. The whole experience lasted only minuets. That night, we were presented with one of the clearest nights I have ever seen in my life. I gave the long exposure shots another go, this time not on the 4Runner.

Stay tuned for Part 2/3 (Days 4, 5, 6) that will be posted in the next article!