Traveling to Idaho
This past summer our family traveled to Idaho. My husband and I had been there 10 years prior, and now we were excited to bring the kids. We flew Southwest Airlines into the capital city of Boise. We rented a car at the airport and drove to my uncle's home in downtown Boise to visit. The drive down Harrison Boulevard is picturesque. Older homes run along the street, while beautiful trees provide shade and tranquility to the area, known as the North End.
While in Boise, we went to Camel's Back Park. The park sits at the base of the foothills. We climbed the hill and saw tremendous views of the city and surrounding landscape. There is access to miles of trails for hiking and biking. We also visited the Discovery Center of Idaho where the kids were able to actively participate in the STEM centered exhibits. One evening, we walked to the spectacular Hyde Park neighborhood. The historic district has locally owned restaurants and specialty shops. We went to Goody's Soda Fountain. It is like stepping back into 1950. The ambiance is magical. There are so many choices of homemade ice cream and dozens of varieties of candy to choose from, along with fresh popcorn. The night we were there, they had musicians playing on the sidewalk patio.
From Boise, we drove to Sun Valley, the ski resort--about a 2.5 hour drive. We had bought tickets for the ice skating show at Sun Valley Lodge. The kids loved seeing former Olympians and World-Class athletes perform on the ice. After the performance, the figure skaters signed autographs and visited with the crowd. Members of the audience stood in lines waiting to have their own sets of ice skates signed by the talented athletes.
After our evening in Sun Valley, we drove to the city of Stanley, home of the Sawtooth Mountain Range. We stopped along the way to see the origins of the Salmon River and take a dip in Alturas Lake. This lake was created long ago by alpine glaciers and is the second largest lake in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. We fished along the Salmon River and soaked our feet in the Sunbeam Hot Springs, outside of Stanley. The family had an educational introduction about fish loss compensation of the chinook salmon and steelhead at Sawtooth Fish Hatchery. The goal of the hatchery is to restore harvestable and self-sustaining levels of the chinook salmon and steelheads by releasing adults and smolt into the river.
After a peaceful and relaxing night in Stanley, we continued our trip to the resort town of McCall. We went kayaking on Payette Lake and saw a river otter swim across the shoreline and eagles perched in the treetops. Dinner was eaten at Lake Grill, a restaurant at Shore Lodge, with a magnificent view of the lake and surrounding mountains. The following day, we spent time on the sandy beaches of the lake. We built sandcastles and walked barefoot in the chilly water, while sand crept between our toes. It was magnificent to have the mountains as our backdrop while we relaxed on beach towels, shovels in our hands.
Over sixty percent of Idaho is public land. There is a wealth of beauty and animals that inhabit this protected land, and I am grateful that we were able to see so much while we crisscrossed the state on our expedition.
