billbauer

A highlight of the trip is the drive west on US12 over Lolo Pass along the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness alongside the Lochsa River roughly paralleling the Lolo Trail taken by the Lewis and Clark Expedition. We soon reach Lolo Pass and enter back into Idaho and join the Pacific Time Zone. While at Lolo Pass, we hike ... to the location of an encampment of the Lewis and Clark Expedition ... with a view of Glade Creek ... and find more wildflowers. This section of US12 is a bit curvy. Views of the Lochsa River which runs alongside the highway the entire way through the wilderness. We stop at the Lochsa Lodge, a restaurant and "lodge" with cabins, for breakfast. For "lunch" we take out a huge cinnamon roll from the Lochsa Lodge and have it at a turn out along the river. Our overnight tonight is the White Bird Summit Lodge, a B&B south of Grangeville, ID which will be our headquarters for our jet boat ride through Hell'

The morning starts with a visit to the Sacagawea Center in Salmon, ID celebrating the young indian guide who was instrumental in the success of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Jean Bapiste's blanket. A very nice nature trail with a view of the Bitterroot Mountains. A bitterroot wildflower. After leaving Salmon, we follow the Salmon River still farther north until the river turns west at North Fork. As we keep heading north following the path of Lewis and  Clark, we re-enter Montana (encountering big horn sheep) so that we can take US12 over Lolo Pass.  We stop in Hamilton, MT at the Bitter Root (some places it is two words and some places it is one word) Brewery for lunch. We also stop at a well known independent bookstore in Hamilton, the Chapter One Bookstore, which, alas, happens to be closed for graduation Sunday. Roadside wildlife. We turn west on US12 at Lolo, MT and overnight in the wilderness at the Lolo Hot Springs Lodge which

Those who know me know that I love my Starbucks.  While we love the little town of Stanley (population of something like 63) with good places to stay, many great restaurants, an ice cream shop, an amazing outfitter that puts Outdoor Ventures to shame and friendly people, Starbucks is not yet on the horizon.  This is the local stand-alone espresso stand. We are up early this morning to be able to get in a six mile hike in the Sawtooth Mountains along Fishhook Creek near Redfish Lake. We even find a tree that seems ready made into which to carve our initials. This is the "prize" at the turn around point on the hike looking directly up into 10,229 foot Heyburn Mountain and 10,470 foot Horstmann Peak. Resting ... and posing on the way back out. Our drive today is from Stanley to Salmon.  All of the drive is part of the Salmon River Scenic Byway following the Salmon River.  The Salmon River just outside of Stanley. We get one more look at the Sawtoo

A lazy day around the hotel this morning catching up correspondence and waiting for the shops in Ketchum to open at 11AM.  We find the Sun Valley Center for the Arts, which is showing a special exhibit of art from Craters of the Moon, and take a "selfie" in the window. Remember Picabo Street, the downhill skier of USA Olympic fame?  This is where she lives/lived (maybe). The Douglas firs are sprouting their cones. We drive ten miles out of town on a narrow gravel/dirt road to Frenchman's Bend Warm Springs, a spot in a creek that supposedly has warm thermal waters.  We can smell the sulphur but the water is definitely not hot.  Signs warned against nudity so we kept our clothes on.  Here is Beverly testing the water. Then we head north up toward Galena Pass. We get our first glimpse of the Sawtooth Mountains just on the other side of the pass. We arrive in our destination for tonight, the very small but tidy town of Stanley, ID.  Stanley offers great v