The Loop is a drive filled with wonder

The charms of that most American of pastimes – the road trip – have generally eluded me. As a child, I traveled innumerable times with my parents to visit relatives in Tacoma, and there’s nary a mile along that route where I did not vomit.

Even today, when I visit my cousin in New York, every cab ride is a study in Eastern mind-body harmony. His wife and I grip the back seat, ashen-faced, while we practice our breath control and seek tranquility in an effort to keep our lunch down.

But if I were able to enjoy a long sentence in a car, I would definitely spend it traveling the International Selkirk Loop, recently named an “All-American Road.”

It’s a pretty big deal. Only 27 roadways have received that designation from the Department of Transportation’s National Scenic Byways program. The Secretary of Transportation can just name any old scenic byway, but an All-American Road meets a higher standard.

It must possess not one, but multiple, nationally significant intrinsic qualities and features you won’t find anywhere else. And it should be a destination unto itself, its own reason for being.

That’s a fairly lofty goal, but apparently the 280 miles around the Selkirk Mountains made the grade.

According to Carol Graham, operations director for the International Selkirk Loop, there’s plenty unique about it.

“In the loop region, no species has gone extinct in the last 10,000 years,” she says. “We have North America’s longest free ferry ride – across Kootenay Lake – and one of the country’s few coniferous wildlife refuges. It may even be the only one.”

Nearly the entire drive through northeastern Washington, North Idaho and southeastern British Columbia follows river and lake shores.

Should you need a break from the car – to throw up or just have a look around – the mountains themselves are accessible from the Salmo Basin, Sullivan Lake, Priest Lake, Pack River, Roman Nose, Kootenay Pass and Kokanee Glacier recreation areas.

The loop’s corridor boasts the largest diversity of wildlife in the lower 48, and since much of the land is National Forest, National Wildlife Refuge, Wildlife Management Area or Provincial Park, you’ll have lots of opportunities to get a glimpse of the more than 50 mammal and 265 bird species that call the area home.

Hundreds of miles of trails accommodate hiking, horseback riding, biking, skiing and snowmobiling.

Plenty of towns and cities along the way will fulfill your need for road trip chow – and provide a number of indoor attractions, as well.

On its 10-building, 10-acre spread in Castlegar, B.C., the Doukhobor Village Museum shows off more than 1,000 artifacts representing the arts, crafts, customs and faith of the Doukhobors, a group of Russian religious dissidents.

Museums in Sandpoint, Oldtown and Colville will give you a further education on the region’s history.

In British Columbia’s Crawford Bay, stop by the straw bale house to see how barefoot hand-weaving is done, learn about traditional blacksmithing next door in the Kootenay Forge or watch antique broom-making equipment in action at North Woven Broom. Owners Janet and Rob Schwieger made the brooms for “Bewitched.” (By all accounts, it was a horrible movie, but I’m sure it wasn’t the brooms’ fault.)

You’ll find more crafts at Backwoods Basketry in Ione, Wash., and for a truly weird experience, visit The Glass House in Boswell, B.C., built from more than a half million used embalming fluid bottles.

I’d give anything to have been at the meeting where that idea was pitched.

There are all kinds of tours along the loop, too – of wineries, on bikes, through dams and more.

All in all, it seems worth the gastric risks.

There’s a map and a wealth of detail at www.selkirkloop.org. You can also request a free 64-page travel guide online, or call (888) 823-2626.

Powder brokers

Have you forgotten about the misery that was last year’s ski season?

Area resorts would like to help you suppress those memories with the promise of better things.

Idaho’s Tamarack has seen its first snowfall and is predicting a Nov. 23 opening day, with 10 new runs, two new lifts and 140 acres of new terrain.

At Red Resort in Rossland, B.C., construction continues on a 67-unit ski-in, ski-out condominium, slated for completion in the fall of 2006. They’ve made improvements to their terrain park, as well, and scheduled a number of spectator activities for the season, including the BC Winter Games, Feb. 23-26; the Trans Global Winter Adventure Race, March 17-19; and the Slush Cup and Dummy Downhill on April 2.

In August, Montana’s Big Sky Resort broke ground on Village Center One, a four-story building with 49 units. The center’s pedestrian plaza will include about 10,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space; it should be ready for the 2006-07 season.

Several area resorts are still offering discounted season passes as well, including 49 Degrees North, Mount Spokane and Silver Mountain.

Regional events

•Art’s Alive, Nov. 5-7, La Conner, Wash. Music, artists and more than 70 displays populate this annual festival and invitational art show. (www.laconner.net/888-642-9284)

•City of Trees Marathon, Nov. 6, Boise. Run a full or half marathon through Idaho’s capital. (www.visitidaho.org/208-888-2122)

•Downtown Helena Fall Art Walk, Nov. 11, Helena. Enjoy artwork, horse-drawn carriage rides, refreshments and demonstrations from 6 to 10 p.m. (www.visitmt.com/206-447-1535)