6/30: Coeur d'Alene's Boardwalks & Spokane's Historic Davenport Hotel

 Steven and I had spent the morning at the fabulous Seven Stars Alpaca Ranch north of Coeur d'Alene in northern Idaho. We hadn't seen much of the 'big city' the day before so decided to return to play tourist in the resort town. We enjoyed walking down Sherman St., the main drag, where there were several sculptures that caught our eye if not our pocketbook!

I loved seeing the local utility boxes all decorated in interesting designs and colors rather than the customary industrial gray paint. 

I know this photo of the town's McEuen Park looks like it was photoshopped but I assure you it really was as stunning as this!

This was Statue 2 of five statues on the Mudgy Moose Trail created by Coeur d'Alene artist Terry Lee! The trail followed Mudgy Moose's search for his friend Millie Mouse in Coeur d'Alene as described in the children's storybook Mudgy & Millie written by local writer, Susan Nipp. After Steven and I had first come across the first statue in City Park the day before with our former Denver friends, Kay and Gary, who had relocated to Coeur d'Alene, we wanted to see all of them!

A close up of Millie the mouse! Shh, don't tell our granddaughters Max and Clara but I just ordered a copy of the book and a stuffed animal of Mudge for each of them for Christmas from a bookstore in Coeur d'Alene! I hope the book and toy will give them as much pleasure as we had discovering the Mudgy Trail while in town.

As we walked toward the library to see another Mudge statue, I was quite taken by how the library staff had taken special steps to make their Children's Summer Reading Program particularly fun in the age of Covid-19. Signs on the footpath leading to the library encouraged little ones to take a nature walk, do a science experiment by seeing which items float or sink, and suggested books they might like.

This was the Mudge statue by the library. It was so cute that, as each of the statues was slightly different, doing the Mudgy Trail was well worth it! 

Views of the very attractive Lake Coeur d'Alene:

The Kootenai Memorial honored all who served and was dedicated to the everlasting memory of those who sacrificed their lives on the "altar of freedom in all wars."

From Coeur d'Alene's Playland Pier we had fun views of a tugboat as we walked along the Bellerive Boardwalk about a ten-minute drive from the city center.

The homes along the Boardwalk were jawdropping as you can see!

From the Bellerive neighborhood, we returned to the city center to walk along the 'world's longest floating boardwalk' which has been measured as 3,000 feet long and bordered Lake Coeur' d'Alene. Because of the inclement weather, we had the place to ourselves!

The very upscale Lake Coeur d'Alene Resort enjoyed an enviable location on the lake.

A big if but IF we were ever to return to Coeur d'Alene, I'd sure love to take a cruise on the lake just based on afternoon views like this!

The chair promoting cruises on the lake was a mite big for us!

We then drove the short distance back to Spokane, Washington, as there were also some final sights we wanted to see in the city we were staying in. I'd love to have known more about the American Jesus mural located opposite the Catholic Charities building.

Being a new fan of murals, these, too, caught my attention.

The former steam plant's exhaust towers almost looked like they belonged in one of the 'stan' countries with their intricate banding at the top.

If you've been following my blog for awhile, you may remember that Steven and I have made a point of visiting some of the finest hotels in the world whenever possible. In the Spokane Arts District was the Historic Davenport Hotel built in 1914 and named after Louis Davenport, its first proprietor and overseer of the project.

The hotel, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was the first hotel in the United States with air conditioning, a central vacuum system, a pipe organ, and dividing doors in the ballrooms! It is also the place at which the first Crab Louis (named after Louis Davenport) was created and served! 

The hotel's rooms spaces, inspired by the great architects of France, England, and Spain, were filled with fine art and its tables dressed in the finest Irish linens from Liddell (whose linens sailed on the Titanic) and set with 15,000 pieces of silver (the largest private commission ever created by Reed and Barton)!

If you wanted to meet in town, all you had to say was "meet me at the fireplace" which everyone knew was in the lobby of the Davenport. 

Secretary of State Herbert Hoover and the great-granddaughter of Chief Spokane Garry in 1926: 

A wedding banquet in 1909!

The hotel's Hall of the Doges was an exquisite room. I could only wonder how such a grandiose room is used nowadays in a relatively 'provincial' city like Spokane. 

Davenport described in 1915 that in old Spanish homes it was the custom to display medallions carrying the portraits of honored ancestors and distinguished members of the family. 

 Also prominently displayed were griffins who had the body of a lion, symbolic of strength, and the wings and head of an eagle, emblematic of alertness, swiftness, and rapidity of execution. 

Even though we've been lucky to walk through some of the world's finest hotels, it was difficult right then to think of one grander than the Davenport. How fortunate we were to stroll through the magnificent public spaces in the era of Covid-19! I couldn't help but think, though, the stunning hotel looked like it should have graced one of the world's capitals rather than Spokane.

Onto our last stop in Spokane that day, the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, we saw this uplifting sign. Unfortunately for us, the cathedral, located south of downtown, had been closed for months because of the virus, so we could only admire it from the outside.

Next post: A hike in Spokane Valley.

Posted on November 2nd, 2020, from our home in suburban Denver. With the election looming tomorrow, Steven and I wish you an even greater measure of peace amid the tumult.