Day trip from Boise- Hells Canyon and Dam , and Owyhee Reservoir

"Hells Canyon, North America's deepest rover gorge, encompasses a vastly remote region with dramatic changes in elevation, terrain, climate and vegetation. Carved by the great Snake River, Hells Canyon plunges more than a mile below Oregon's west rim, and 8000 feet below He Devil Peak of Idaho's Seven Devil Mountains. There are no roads across Hells Canyon's 10-mile wiade expanse, and only three roads that lead to the Snake River between Hells Canyon Dam and the Oregon-Washington boundary." (Copied from an informational sign at the Hells Canon Visitors Center) After what seemed to be the winter that would never end, then the Spring where it only rained on weekeneds, the weather gods finally smiled down upon us. We were just ITCHING for a nice road trip where we could drive for a few hours, get out in nature and enjoy each others company. We LOVE the wonderful spots all around Idaho, but wanted to try something new. We decided on Hells Canyon (more specifically the Dam and Reservoir), about 3 1/2 hours away from Boise. We heard the drive was spectacular, and everything we read said the same. The first 3 hours were pretty uneventful. We drove through Emmett, Fruitland, Weiser...getting further and further away from Boise, and into the small towns dotted along the snake river, straddling the Idaho-Oregon border. One of our favorite drives from Boise is up to Idaho City, through the Boise National Forest and the Ponderosa Scenic Byway. As we were driving...and driving...and driving I was starting to get worried. There was nothing here that was different or better than our beloved Idaho City. I couldnt really understand what all the fuss was about. Yeah, it's pretty...but 3 1/2 hours for this?? I was frustrated. Then about 20 miles from our destination we took a different road and headed into the Canyon. Everything changed! It was absolutely breathtaking. 

The roads are well paved, but VERY winding. You cannot drive too fast because of all the sharp turns. The hillsides gave way to tall cliffs and mountains, and the little winding road cutting through the gorge along the fast running snake river kept impelling us forward. Every corner brought new scenery and a new "pull over I need to take a picture" moment. We drove down to the Dam and then over to the visitors center. From what we could see there was a little hiking you could do . We saw people fishing and there were even scenic chartered boat trips.

We drove the sharp and winding roads down to the Visitors Center.

The canyon and gorge are really very striking with the coniferous trees and dark rock canyon.

You can hike, boat, fish and jetski in the recreation area.

Us at the Visitors Center. There is a boat trip going on behind us. (you can see the boat right on top of hubby head)

The Dam.

All said and done it was a great little trip. From Boise it does take 3.5 hours drive time to get to the visitors center. We thought if we did it again we would make it a weekend trip because there is a lot to do and see. Maybe get a hotel room or an air B&B an hour away then drive in.  It really is kind of a long drive just for scenery.  

But I will say it is VERY dry and can get quite hot down in the canyon.  Make sure you have good footwear, plenty of gas in your car and bring sunscreen and water!!!

Looking or more information on Hells Canyon?

HERE

ROAD TRIP- City of Rocks National Reserve Almo, ID

 I am not a camper.  Like, at all.  In fact if I had to choose between camping overnight and a double colonoscopy, you best believe I would start drinking up for the tush push.   I have only ever been camping one time where it was enjoyable and I loved it.  I was 12, so you can imagine how long ago that was! 

SO the other weekend we pointed to a spot on the map and said "lets try that".  It was City of Rocks National Reserve in Almo, Idaho.  We heard it had great hiking and climbing and was dog friendly.

We set out in the morning and drove the 200 miles. The drive was an easy shot down I-84 , past Twin Falls.  Once we hit the Burley area, we head southeast through some of the most beautiful farmland and hills in the area.   

ALMO Idaho is a little "blink or you miss it" type place, but it is GORGEOUS. As we were driving, more and more scenery started to pop up and we started to get excited.  I kept telling Charles "When we retire lets move out this direction!" City or rocks lies about 2 miles from the Utah border, and this area was used by the California Wagon trains back in the 1840's and 1850's as people emigrated out west.  You can still see some wagon ruts in some of the rock, and one particular area called Register Rock you can see where the people signed their names with Axle Grease.  

This place does not disappoint!  We didn't have a plan, just picked up the brochure from the local visitor center and decided to just drive to whatever looked cool and hiked around. It was AMAZING.  

If you are a hiker there are lots of hiking trails. If you are a rock climber there is some killer climbing spots " with over 1,000^[6] traditional and bolt-protected routes. In the 1980s, it was home to some of the most difficult routes in the US, mostly developed by Idaho climber Tony Yaniro. Climbers in the region refer to the area as simply 'The City'. " (from Wikipedia)

... and if you are a camper there are no bad camping spots.In fact as we were exploring one particularly beautiful area I announced 'WE WILL BE CAMPING HERE!"  We even picked out the spot we wanted to reserve. Me, CAMPING!! Can you believe it? But it was just so beautiful and peaceful and around every corner the scenery changed and got more breathtaking by the mile. It was a crowded day, lots of people out climbing, a few hiking, but lots of people camping.  

So we have it in our calendar for an overnight campout before it is closed for the winter. We really loved City of Rocks, spent all day there driving around and hiking through the different formations. 

If you go to City of Rocks National Reserve, you need to bring your own water.  It is high and DRY there.  The visitors center a few miles from the entrance has a pump with potable water, but thats it.  There are a few porta-potty type rest areas around the different areas of interest, but no drinking fountains or sinks or anything like that.  Make sure you stay hydrated. If it is sunny, there is nowhere to hide, so bring sunscreen and a hat or whatnot. You will get sunburned...and possibly windburned depending on the weather if you arent careful.

I am so excited to head back to City of Rocks and go camping.  It has some of the darkest skies in the country as well, so a great spot to just sit back and watch the stars. 

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve

 Y'all...this is one of the NEATEST places I have ever been.  

From Wikipedia:  The Monument and Preserve encompass three major lava fields and about 400 square miles (1,000 km²) of sagebrush steppe grasslands to cover a total area of 1,117 square miles (2,893 km²). The Monument alone covers 343,000 acres (139,000 ha).^[5] All three lava fields lie along the Great Rift of Idaho, with some of the best examples of open rift cracks in the world, including the deepest known on Earth at 800 feet (240 m). There are excellent examples of almost every variety of basaltic lava, as well as tree molds (cavities left by lava-incinerated trees), lava tubes (a type of cave), and many other volcanic features.^[6]

As we were driving up to the Monument area we kept passing what looked like freshly  turned fields of giant black rocks.  It seriously looked like someone had excavated and dug and scattered these big lava rocks everywhere. It was really cool! 

The park itself isnt huge. We were done in a few hours time, BUT will definitely go back to spend more time there. Bring a tent and camp. It is a designated dark sky area!!

These lava fields are from all the volcanos in the area, and eruptions from 15,000 years all the way  up to just 2000 years ago.   Some of the eruptions were so violent it blasted chunks of rocks and blew them everywhere, which call still be seen in Devils Orchard.

We then headed down to the Inferno Cone, which you can climb.  It is a steep quarter mile climb, but at the top is an amazing view and vista of the whole valley. 

You can see Finn about 1/3 of the way up.  what looks like the top, isnt really the top.

You can see the surrounding shield volcanos in the background.

Everywhere you look you can see all types of lava and cinder fields.  There is everything from the large chunks, to the long ropey tube type lava flow, to the slow oozy puddle looking lava. It is amazingly beautiful in an eerie and kind of grotesque way. I can describe it.  I guess the sheer power of the volcanos that had created this and the dark and twisted landscape is just striking.

They also have lava tubes/caves that you can explore by permit only.  They were closed the day we went.

Pets are welcome to stay in the parking lots or in the car, they are not welcome on trails.

20$ per car entrance fee.

Idaho is rad.

ROAD TRIP!! Sawtooth National Forest (Idaho)

 This past weekend I woke up and decided "I have GOT to get out of this house and into the wilds!!".  I just had an itch to go somewhere.  I didnt care where. ANYWHERE.  

We decided on a nice, scenic route that would make a great day trip from Boise.

 We headed out and took the scenic back drive and head over towards the Sawtooth National Recreation and National Forest.  It was an incredibly beautiful, peaceful drive.  

We headed up rte 55 and then followed rte 17 along the Payette river, through the Boise national forest. 

When we hit Lowman, we took hwy 21 and headed towards Sawtooth.    We then joined up with rte 75 and circled around through Sun Valley and Hailey.  We stopped off  outside of Hailey at a trailhead and hiked for a little bit, cooling off in the creek at the end. It was a breathtaking day!

Seriously...how gorgeous is this view??

If you just want a beautiful peaceful drive, this is a great route!  It was the weekend,so the campgrunds and cabins were all full, but I think with a little preparation this would make an excellent weekend trip to camp, hike, raft...whatever.

Idaho is rad.

Road Trip!! Shoshone Falls

About 2 hours outside of Boise is the city of Twin Falls.  I had done some research and saw the love everyone seemed to have for Shoshone Falls.  The last day my mother was here we decided to head over and see what all the fuss was about.
The drive itself was pretty uneventful, easy shot on I-84.  When you get to Twin Falls you follow the signs to the park.
Now, when we pulled into TF, it seemed rather flat and unassuming. In fact I was concerned that all the hype on the Google was an elaborate ploy to punk as many people as possible into coming. However, as we drove it became apparent that was not the case.  The ground seemed to just open up and there it was!  They call it the "Niagara of the West".  It is taller than the famed Niagara Falls, so I had kind of assumed that it would be up in the mountains or something, rather than the flat land and magical appearance.  As we got closer and started seeing the view from the various bridges, we got more and more excited.

Cost to get in is 5$ per car.  They have a little concession stand and restrooms and a few little kiosks with plaques and signs to read, all about the history of the falls etc. 

We parked and walked over the the lookout.   IT. WAS.  STUNNING!!  As you overlook the falls, it is almost dizzying.  We went on a day where water level and flow was high.  We had perfectly sunny skies and a nice 83 degree temperature. Just perfect.

                                    

 

Me and son -yes he IS that much taller than me (I am almost 5.11)

my mom and son

my mommy

me and hubba hubba

In sunny weather there seems to be a permanent rainbow!  Just so beautiful.

someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection

If you continue on in the same park, there is Dierks Lake.  They have a little beach and picnic area, you can fish, kayak, swim etc.  The swimming seems to be contained to the one portion of lake inside the docks, but they have a diving board and everything. The water was a really beautiful blue green. It wasnt too terribly crowded(granted it was a monday morning/early afternoon).

Dierks Lake

Definitely a place we would come back to and spend more time.(bring our swimsuits!) 

Happy Traveling!