I saw the same thing and felt sorry for the guy. He did end up with some nice stuff in the Gorge, but (gathering enough courage to insert a comment about a Californian compalining about overcrowding and prices, etc.) most of the "tourists" that he saw milling about either had California plates on their vehicles or the ones that they had only had Washington plates because that's what they picked up at the airport--but their Driver's Licenses said CA. I have a feeling that he was only grumpy because it was cloudy. Us locals can probably tell what day he was unfortunate enough to come through because we have only had 1 or 2 since May (which is why Montana is on fire). Sandpoint has the same "issues" as any other "resort" town--radiate AWAY from the core and you'll find things less expensive and less crowded.

Bruce: I did a "Longest Day of the Year" trip in late June to Sandpoint. Train count through town was 34 between 5AM and 8PM.