Multiday loops near Spokane, WA?

[Mina Loomis]

Our daughter and her husband have moved to Spokane.  We want to go visit them for a couple of weeks in early August 2016.  They won’t have vacation time to use, so during the work weeks while we are up there,  we would like to do some backpacking so we won’t be underfoot when they are busy.  We are looking for some spectacular options within maybe a 4-5 hour drive of Spokane.  We spent a few days backpacking in North Cascades NP last year and that was great, but at the far end of travel radius.  And I don’t want to even think about getting a permit for Glacier NP in early August.  But there are a *lot* of other places in northeastern Washington and northern or central Idaho.  So I’d like to hear some of your favorites!

Some context details:  We are in our early 60’s.  Our longest hike to date has been 125 miles of the Ozark Highlands Trail.  We’ve also section-hiked most of the JMT, plus all of the Wonderland Trail, High Sierra Trail (HST not SHT), and a bunch of shorter trips in northern New Mexico, southern Colorado, and of course Big Bend (rims and Outer Mountain Loop) and Guadalupe NP.  All this has been in recent years on generally well-marked trails.  We have navigation skills but would be beginners with regards to anything cross-country.  We have canisters (Bearikade Weekenders), tarps, Mariposas.

Thanks!

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