Sandpoint, ID

I read my horoscope for the day and it said “do not let fear get in the way of trying new things today”. Ironically the day I read this was the day my boyfriend had asked me to go snowmobiling with him and his family. I had ditched out last year when he asked me and I still felt bad about not going. So I sucked up my fear and grabbed my snow pants, gloves, a hat, boots, goggles and a borrowed helmet and headed out the door. My boyfriend loaded up the snowmobiles on the trailer as I sat in the truck convincing myself it was going to be great. As we took off for our Priest Lake destination my boyfriend gave me a few pointers about snowmobiling. Some of which were: leaning into the turns to help the machine turn and when you pass another group going in the opposite direction hold up your fingers with the number of people behind you to let them know how many to expect and if you are the last one in the group to hold up your fist indicating you are the last one. After these few pointers he felt I was ready to go. I on the other hand started hoping that my sled would not start and I could sit in the bar all day being a snow bunny while they went off on their adventure.

We had arrived at Nordman, our starting location, where we waited as the rest of our group who was running behind. We got out to start up the sleds and my wish had come true as my sled would not start. I stood there and watched my boyfriend frantically try to get the snowmobile started. I began to feel bad that I had wished for the sled to not start and asked my boyfriend if we could double up on his larger sled. He gave me a funny look, which I was not sure if it was because I had doubted that he could not fix the problem or if it was because I would add extra weight to his sled and slow him down, probably a little of both. He eventually got my sled started and we unloaded. His family had showed up and we were ready to go. I was concern not only with the lack of my ability but also that I would hold them up since I knew I would not be going as fast as them. I was relieved to find out that another member of our group was also new to the sport and we would be hanging out together in the back of the pack with one of our two significant others riding near by.

We headed out on the first path and I was instantly shocked at how fast the rest of the group was going. I had been warned by my boyfriend that they liked to go fast and it was now clear just how fast they like to go. Thankfully they were nice enough to stop at each Y intersection to help lead the group and leave no one behind. My sled was a little older and smaller than everyone else’s, which meant I had less power, but I felt like it was a good fit for me. Being that it was smaller I was able to handle the weight of the machine better and knew I would not be able to go uncontrollably too fast. I learned that when my boyfriend and I switched machines for a little bit of time and I begged him for my old one back. His machine had a lot more power and my arms were instantly tired from turning a larger, heavier sled, however I was able to keep up better with the group as I could go a little bit faster on the larger sled.

As we were riding I realized I was having fun and enjoying myself. I felt like a moron having made excuses for not going in the past. My fear was gone and I found my boyfriend talking to his cousin about helping us find a sled for me to buy. I had also realized that I never really got cold, which I was a little worried about. I luckily had a larger windshield on my sled and a full face helmet that helped out in the 20 degree weather.

If you would like to try snowmobiling and do not have access to your own sleds Priest Lake does offer rentals. Four Seasons Rental rents Polaris snowmobiles. To reserve call 208-443-0115. Priest Lake Rentals also rents Polaris snowmobiles. They can be reached at 208-443-2415 or email at pl-rental@povn.com. Both places include clothing and accessories if needed.

To get to Priest Lake from Sandpoint take highway 2 to Priest River, turn right on Highway 57 towards Priest Lake. Follow highway 57 to Nordman, it is about 60 miles from Sandpoint. Our trip was about 5 hours long and we traveled around 40 miles. There are around 400 miles of trails in the Priest Lake area. These trails are free to the public, however they do require a licenced snowmobile and tabs for the Priest Lake area 9-A. Fuel is available at several locations around the lake as well as a snowmobile shop, Priest Lake Powersports, located at 28392 on Hwy 57 (208) 443-2415 if any supplies are needed.