No U Turns: On the Road With the Steeles: Moonscapes and Sawtooths: Just Another Day in Idaho

Just returned from a nice four-day getaway to central Idaho. Our first destination was Craters of the Moon National Monument. Two summers ago, we had stopped in for a short visit and vowed to return someday and spend more time.

The monument is located in the Snake River Plain, which was created by a series of cataclysmic caldera-forming, super eruptions which started about 15 million years ago. In fact, the hotspot that created these eruptions is now located under the Yellowstone Caldera in Yellowstone National Park, due to the tectonic plate's drift that is moving north at the same rate that our fingernails grow...about 2 inches a year. Over the past 15,000 years, a series of Hawaiian-style eruptions filled in most of the calderas and created a surreal landscape of volcanic tubes, cinder cones, and a variety of lava flow formations. When we visited without the deep snow, we had the feeling of walking in an immense gas-fired BBQ grill!

The closest town for lodging is Arco, where we stayed for two nights. It's a town I wouldn't recommend to visit for its own sake, unless you want to stay in the first town in the world to be powered by its own nuclear reactor. In fact, the old reactor is now a museum and on the register of historic places. Didn't stop as it was closed for the winter.

Our first day at Craters, we joined a Meetup Group from Boise for a ranger-led snowshoe hike. What a nice group of people. Turns out they were staying in our motel, and they invited us over that night for a potluck dinner. (You can see photos of the day at their website: http://www.meetup.com/Boise-Trail-Heads/ and click on "past trips."

The day was snowy and windy, and the snow-covered lava formations gave a surreal look to the landscape. The hike was topped off with a trek to the top of one of the volcanoes.

Our plan for the next day at Craters was to cross country ski on the 7-mile groomed trail that in the summer is a road that takes you through the park. But the wind was fierce--too windy for me. However, Jim persevered and did the entire loop while I hung out in the visitor center and watched a movie that said the entire area is overdue for another lava-forming event. (The eruptions occur about every 2000 years, and guess what? That was 2000 years ago!)

After Craters, we drove through Ketchem (ie sun Valley), Idaho, to Stanley, Idaho, which has the frequent distinction of being the coldest spot in the Continental U.S. It's also known as the Gateway to the Sawthooth Mountains, a spectacular rocky-cragged range that visually lives up to its name. We love Stanley. During the summer, the place is busy with white water rafters taking off for trips down the Salmon River, as well as mountain bikers and hikers/backpackers. However, in the winter, lots of places close down and the population goes down to around 100. The town even has its own school--grades 1-9 with just 8 students.

What we like most about Stanley is that the residents haven't sold out to the big resort conglomerates, so it's kept that rustic mountain-town feel. As far as we could tell, all the businesses are locally owned. We stayed at one of the few motels open, The Sawtooth Motel. Loved it. A few years ago, the owners bought and restored the lodge and restaurant, which was built in the early 1930s. While our room had simple furnishings (no TV), we slept under a comfy colorful quilt and had a great view of the sunset over the Sawtooths.

We spent one full day in the area, cross country skiing a groomed area not open to snowmobilers. Although the temp hovered in the low 20s, we topped off our day with a soak in a natural hot spring. In fact, this hot spring has its own hot tub, which was really the bottom half of an ocean buoy that some enterprising soul(s) hauled in. A pipe running from the spring funneled the water into the "tub" and when it overflowed, a valve on the bottom could be opened to drain some of the excess water. When the water got too hot (110 degrees maybe?), two buckets could be used to scoop up water from the icy Salmon River and pour into the tub to lower the temperature ...for a while. The soak was wonderful but of course, getting out and changing into dry clothes is the real challenge.

We took the long drive back to Jackson via the scenic St. Rt. 75 from Stanley to Challis, then dropping back down to Arco and Jackson. After Arco, the roads got really trecherous, with strong winds and whiteout conditions. Jim did great, relying on his 20+ years of professional driving experience to get us back safely.

We are now back in Jackson, winding down our third winter here. We should get a few more days of skiing in before heading back to Ohio in about a week. See you then!

Arco's Claim to Fame