Author Linwood Laughy is testifying this morning at the Highway 12 megaloads hearing; he's a longtime resident and property owner along the scenic river corridor who's led more than 5,000 people on historical tours in the area. "We visit six original Lewis and Clark sites, read the journals," Laughy said. "The magic is when you can get people on the ground, where these events occurred."

Among his works are "Clearwater Country," a book he published with his wife, Karen "Borg" Hendrickson, that's now in its sixth printing and offers a mile-by-mile guide to U.S. Highway 12 from Lewiston to Missoula, Mont. "We have every significant thing along the highway, with a little story about it and descriptions," he said, along with photos, drawings and side trips. "That area is so rich in so many ways," Laughy told hearing officer Duff McKee, a retired district judge.

Laughy, who is among the lead intervenors in the case challenging permits for more than 200 giant megaloads proposed to travel the highway by Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil en route to the Alberta oil sands project, also testified that his driveway is right off Highway 12, the only route in or out of the area. He said he once had to rush his wife to the hospital in the middle of the night along the route, and said, "My wife almost died." The contested-case hearing on the megaload permits enters its second week today.