It takes two hours and 15 minutes to reach Spokane on the new Highway 395, which is about enough time to find a good radio station, but not enough for boredom to set in. This is hardly the way to see Eastern Washington. Just about every two-lane highway in Eastern Washington fits this description, but the problem is they all seem to lead to places like Colfax. U.S. Highway 395, to Spokane - are being turned into gently curving freeways that take all the pain out of driving.
Heavy traffic dispels the sense of loneliness.
Most of the old two-lane highway still exists, twisting around hills instead of bursting through them. It's just that you have to want to find it. It starts in Eltopia, with a 19-mile stretch of blacktop known as Blanton Road. It curves gently through rocky hills, then heads straight over the prairie to Connell. Today, you might pass three cars the entire way.