The National Park Road Trip - Idaho

After a skin-of-the-teeth plane journey (we had to run from one gate to another in Denver due to problems in Cleveland getting off the ground) we landed in Boise around 9 p.m. on Sunday. Now I've been informed by a friend that a real road trip doesn't involve a plane but I like my husband's answer: We did it because we're old.

We spent Sunday catching up with our friends in Boise and enjoying a wonderful home cooked meal. On our way back to our hotel we discovered a place called the Villages at Meridian. The area was an outdoor shopping mall with lots of shops, restaurants, and several entertainment centers. It was all landscaped beautifully and was a great place to walk around in the cool of the evening. As we walked, we came upon the dancing fountain. On the hour a song plays and the fountain waters dance to the music. We've seen the big ones in Vegas and Dubai and this was just as good. A lovely evening to celebrate our anniversary.

Monday morning after breakfast we set our on the road at last. Yes, here the real road trip began. About two hours out of Boise, we stopped to take a look at the Shoshone Falls. The falls are called the Niagara of the West and are shaped similarly to Niagara Falls. This day the water level in the Snake River was low so there was not as much water running over the cliffs but it was still pretty dramatic.

The canyon was stunning even in the dreary cloudy day we had. After the Kodak-picture-taking, we strolled around the displays of old photographs and information on the hydro electric plant across the river from us and some of the history of the area including a map showing where Evel Knievel made his jump across the canyon on Sunday, September 8, 1974.


I love legends and there was a good one displayed here. Ejupa, a coyote was out fishing and he put his fish in a basket on his back that was filled with water to keep them fresh. On the way home he stumbled and the basket fell to the ground. The water started rushing away and he chased ahead of it and built a dam to stop it. The water flowed right over the dam. He tried a couple more time to build dams but each time the water just ran over the boulders he put in its path. Of course the results are the two large waterfalls in the area called Twin Falls.

The Idaho landscape was fascinating as we made our way to Utah. Most of the drive was desert covered with lots of sage brush. The land was flat and surrounded by small mountains. In several valleys we saw large fields of corn and what we could only imagine was potatoes. After all, we were in Idaho.

As we neared Utah, the mountains were growing and the skies were clearing. The deep blue of the sky starkly contrasted with bleached white clouds against which the mountains were silhouetted. As I drank it all in  I took a deep breath .and wondered at God's creation.