While there, we also went to Ainsworth Hot Springs, which was very built up and should definitely not be visited by those looking for quiet or relaxation. It was basically a warm swimming pool.
The mountains were definitely worth making the trip. Spring snow still lingered on these interior Rockies tempting us with distant chutes and bald tops just waiting to be skied. Someday! As we drove back to the border that evening, the faint outline of the massive mountains rising beside the highway dominated the view. Even though we didn't make it out into the woods on this trip, the drive was beautiful.
The lowest point of the trip was crossing back into the U.S.. Being a small border town, I think the border patrol was either bored or meeting a quota of searches they have to perform when we arrived. They kept us for over 2 hours tearing apart my car and continuously asking us ridiculous questions before letting us cross. At one point they even separated us and interviewed us independently looking for a glitch in one of our stories. In the end, all they found was a sandwich bag of orange peels, which they proudly threw down on the table as it was was a kilo of cocaine. With that, we were on our way back to Sandpoint!
Craig next to Kootenay Lake
Interior Rockies next to Kootenay Lake
More time looking out at the lake
A chute snaking down the mountain
