Lewiston

The one and only time that I visited northern Idaho, I entered the state at the town of Lewiston. Lewiston is located on the border with Washington.  The town is at the confluence of the Snake River and the Clearwater River. At the confluence of these two rivers, the Snake River makes a 90 degree turn to the west and enters Washington. At this point, the border between the two states leaves the river and becomes a land border all the way up to the border with Canada. The point where the Clearwater flows into the Snake is the lowest point in Idaho, 710 feet above sea level. As a result, Lewiston is usually one of the hottest places in Idaho during the summer months.
  The oldest part of Lewiston, which is now the downtown business district, developed southeast of the confluence.  Today, about 95% of Lewiston lies to the south of the Clearwater River. In fact, the population north of the river is only about 1,000 people.
  Lewiston has slightly more than 32,000 people. It is growing, but very slowly. Since 1970, Lewiston has grown from just over 26,000 people to just over 32,000. In fact, until the 1990 Census, Lewiston was the largest town in the northern part of Idaho, now it is the second largest, after Coeur d'Alene, which has grown so fast it has left Lewiston in the dust. Coeur d'Alene now has about 50,000 people. Post Falls, a few miles west of Coeur d'Alene, is also growing at an explosive rate. It now has about 26,000 people and will eclipse Lewiston in the next few years.
  The northern half of Lewiston is basically down in a hole with an average elevation of around 750 feet above sea level. All of the streets that connect the northern and southern parts of town make a steep climb. The southern part of town is about 2,000 feet above sea level! That makes for alot of steep streets in town. The extremely low elevation follows the Clearwater River east from Lewiston to a short distance east of Orofino, which is 44 miles east of Lewiston (Orofino holds the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in Idaho, 118 degrees, and Lewiston is right behind with a record of 117 degrees). Any drive into Lewiston requires a steep descent in any direction.
  Across the Snake River from Lewiston is Clarkston, Washington. These two towns both honor the  intrepid exploratory party  led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark by taking their names.
Clarkston has about 7,200 people, so it is alot smaller than Lewiston.