Keep the Show on the Road! Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 It has been a great day but I still don’t know where the Spencer Hotel is! But back to that in a minute. I am sitting on the porch of the Waterville Hotel, opened in 1907. It was a favorite stop along the National Parks Highway, and I am reminded that it was also a favorite on the Yellowstone Trail. John and Alice have some of their Yellowstone Highway post cards in the lobby!! With the exception that the road is paved and the cars are modern, and I have wi fi, I can almost go back to 1916 as I sit her. The Waterville Garage is just across the street. It looks like it must have looked in 1916. The city park, with its horseshoe pits and picnic tables is across the street as well, but I don’t know that it was there in the “old days.” A couple of kids are pulling a wagon down the sidewalk and their faithful dog is close behind. There is a little girl spinning the merry go round then jumping on until it stops. Small town USA! I doubt there are many places in America where you can really step back in time like you can here. It is a very rare experience, almost like being in a story book of 100 years ago! I was able to trace the original route of the National Parks Highway for several miles west and east of Waterville. West, the original road from Waterville down Pine Canyon is very much there and you can follow it from both ends, with the exception of a center section which is wisely closed off by berms. Even that section appears accessible perhaps on a bike or scooter, or shanks mare if you are in good shape for a steep climb. My photos were overexposed, so I’ll have to take others in the morning or on my return trip. East of Waterville, the old road runs along a dirt road which is for the most part 2 miles north of modern US2. The old route runs straight 16 miles east to the edge of Moses Coulee and then drops down into the Coulee along an old paved alignment that was in use at least through the 1950’s. Eric and I have driven it. I also have identified what I believe is an older alignment, which I want to check on the ground in the morning. I explored the Moses Coulee on the old paved alignment, looking for signs of the Hotel at Spencer, but found only remnants of whet appeared to be a place where automotive or farm equipment was repaired….judging by the artifacts on the ground. Sadly the Douglas general Store on US2 was closed, but I got a fair photo of Douglas. It was on the National Parks Highway and the Yellowstone Trail after the road was realigned through the town, sometime after 1916 and before 1919, based on the ABBs. I’ll post shots of Moses Coulee, and Pine Canyon as soon as possible. Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mga707 Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 Really nice shots, Dave! The Hotel Waterville remind me of the lovely old Hotel Vendome in Prescott (AZ), although the Waterville looks substantially larger and is a decade older than the Vendome. They both have the same 'look' though, and similar neon signs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 Righteous! Totally dig the hotel, and like the composition of your shot of the building. Wasn't sure what you meant by "center section closed off by berms." Can you elaborate? jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Reese Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 Great photos Dave...looks like a wonderful area for visiting, and for photography. Thanks for the report. I look forward to more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennyG Posted May 18, 2009 Report Share Posted May 18, 2009 The hotel looks delightful. And the porch, with a view of an active park, sounds perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sit properly Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 I'm really jealous. And curious about that other alignment. I'm thinking there isn't one and that you're looking for a mythical northwest passage. Also, I really, really hope I'm wrong. I think what he means by the center section is blocked by berms is that you can drive east on the western end of the road... and drive west on the eastern end of the road, but right in the middle, it is blocked. I hope you get some pictures of the blockage. I'd like to give it a try on the Vespa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted May 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 I'm really jealous. And curious about that other alignment. I'm thinking there isn't one and that you're looking for a mythical northwest passage. Also, I really, really hope I'm wrong. I think what he means by the center section is blocked by berms is that you can drive east on the western end of the road... and drive west on the eastern end of the road, but right in the middle, it is blocked. I hope you get some pictures of the blockage. I'd like to give it a try on the Vespa. Eric, I posted a map of the "other" alignment. It is visable on Google Earth and on the ground for quite a ways, but not at the point it would naturally intersect the green route at the base of the draw. I took some photos to prove it existed at least well into the draw. And it had no logical purpose if it didn't go all the way down the draw. I'll produce the "evidence when I get home! When I get time, I will post my shots of the cuts along the paved alignment. They exceed what I would expect from the methods and equipment of 1916, and would have been quite a feat for the time. They might have been cut later, but cars would have had a very difficult time following the green route without the cuts. But, I can't be certain.....yet. I think you could have rolled a scooter over the berms if it wasn't too heavy! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sit properly Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 Dave, I am very happily defeated here! I was imagining the older road being a mile or so north and that just didn't make sense. But where you placed it makes perfect sense. Now where is that hotel?! -Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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