A Stop in Weippe, Idaho On the Lewis and Clark Trail

Following the trail of Lewis and Clark, my husband and I stopped for coffee in Weippe, Idaho, a hamlet on the high mountain prairie where the Nez Perce fed the starving Corps of Discovery in 1805.

Walking up a slight hill from First Stop Java, I entered Cyndy's Echoes of the Past. The realistic-looking dolls that owner Cyndy Koerling sculpts and dresses in authentic Nez Perce fashion were amazing. Even the infants on flat cradleboards wear beautiful beaded leather covers!

Cyndy told me she'd always been fascinated by newborn's faces. As a young girl, she sculpted her first doll from clay because her family couldn't afford one.

Weippe is on State Highway 11 in northern Idaho, about 26 miles southeast of Orofino on U.S. Highway 12. First Stop Java, also owned by the Koerlings, is across the street from the “Welcome to Weippe” sign.

Cyndy's Echoes of the Past (1006 Pierce St. West) is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October; closed on Sunday. To learn more, call 1-208-435-4405.