8 replies to this topic

[yttrailman]

Mark Mowbray, the Executive Director of the Yellowstone Trail Association, is traveling the Trail again! Follow him at yellowstonetrail.tumblr.com

He is "specializing" in Idaho and Washington during the first part of his lengthy trip and then will follow it back to the east through Montana, the Dakotas and Minnesota to Wisconsin.

[Keep the Show on the Road!]

As a member of the Yellowstone Trail Association I have been privileged to follow the travels and adventures of the Executive Director, Mark Mowbray in the Association's publication, The Arrow. As John (Yellowstone Trail Association President) notes, Mark is on a Yellowstone Trail trip, this time to my home state of Washington.

I feel a bit remiss in not greeting Mark at the border. He entered Washington yesterday via Spokane and we have already collaborated via computer to locate a hitherto unrecognized Yellowstone Trail roadside artifact which will be of considerable interest to YT fans. I will refrain from letting the cat out of the bag to give Mark and John opportunity to share with you and others first, but I hope one or the other will tell the story here soon.

Mark probably traveled along the Apple Way (and Sprague Ave) into downtown Spokane. If he did, he spotted several vintage motels. The Trail would have taken him within a few hundred yards of the famed falls for which “Spokan Falls” was named. He could not have missed the Davenport Hotel, once the gem of Spokane, and now refurbished to vintage grandeur, a gem once again.

Heading south toward Colfax and Walla Walla, he would have viewed the 1911 High Bridge, and if he got my message in time, he may have explored the huge old auto camp on the north side of the bridge. He will cross the High Bridge on his way back east as he follows the post 1925 route of the Yellowstone on his return.

In the meantime, I am going to post a 1922 map that shows the route of the YT locally.



Dave

Keep the Show on the Road!

[DennyG]

I recall following Mark's 2011 trip and I'm now hooked up to follow this one via RSS. I just have several days of catching up to do.

[DennyG]

I've been following Mark's blog and truly enjoying it. I'd like to give him a little feedback, if only to let him know it's being read and appreciated, but it doesn't appear as if the blog supports comments. If that is intentional, then maybe you can pass along my attaboy.

It's possible, however, that blocking comments is not intentional and that should also be passed along.

[mobilene]

I've been following too, and a time or two I would have liked to leave a comment. Sure hope he opens them up.

[DennyG]

The inability to comment is even more frustrating now. It seems that yesterday Mark was traveling with a mysterious stranger who answers to the name of Dave and who may or may not be wearing earmuffs.

[Keep the Show on the Road!]

Denny,

Ouch! Earmuffs! I was trying to let my hair grow out so that it emulated your flowing mane. Sadly my locks resemble a dandelion gone to seed.

Tuesday Mark and I drove over the old Blewett Pass on the Yellowstone Trail and the National Parks Highway. Mark proved to be a knowledgeable, enthusiastic, enjoyable companion, on a worthy mission......to confirm drivable sections of the old trail.

We never reached 30 mph, and enjoyed spectacular vistas and frequent stops the whole way. It took us perhaps an hour to travel the same distance we could cover in 15 minutes on the modern road. The quantity (miles per hour) was reduced, but the quality (enjoyment) much increased!!

He has discovered, confirmed, and documented several of the old segments of the Yellowstone Trail to help fully field test the forthcoming John and Alice Ridge map of the trail.



The photo is taken of Mark at Top O the Hill. The famous tavern and stop on the NPH and YT was, as far as I can determine, located directly behind Mark.

Dave

Keep the Show on the Road!

[DennyG]

No insult intended. In fact, I think it looks good. But I did have the impression of earmuffs when I first saw the picture and didn't yet recognize you or realize that the mane was behind the ears. My own mane just keeps getting thinner and shorter. Now that Grey kid; That's a different story.

It sounds like you and Mark both contributed to the exploration and had a good time to boot.

[Keep the Show on the Road!]

Denny,

Trust me, no insult taken! I was flattered that my mug was recognized! I told Sheila when I first saw the photo that I should have gotten a haircut before I met Mark.

The old Blewett Pass is a must take. It has old pavement all the way, so there is never a problem with dust. The many old post card photo sites are easy to spot, and I would have included them had the low clouds not obscured the vistas. I will certainly do it again, and I am very glad Mark got me out to do it Tuesday.

The National Parks Highway (NPH) used the pass before the Yellowstone Trail did. I am now in the process of “discovering” what I can about an early transcontinental truck run over the NPH. A husband and wife team set off July 9, 1916 from Seattle (another source says July 12) and went all the way to New York City. The GMC 1 ½ ton truck carried a load of canned Carnation Milk. They went over Blewett Pass, which at the time was a trail more than a road. It took a week to get from Seattle to Coeur d'Alene a bit east of Spokane, an easy one day drive today.

The driver and his wife made the full Seattle to New York trip in 31 days (another source says 69 days) to prove that the National Parks Highway was more than a paper tiger. It was a project of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce, but GMC made a big deal of it after the fact.



Dave

Keep the Show on the Road!