Idaho Sportsmobile Adventure

[geoffff]

I finally got my new 2005 Sportsmobile ready enough for its first real road trip!

Usually I aim for deserts for my road trips. My trips are mostly in the winter or springtime. But this was August! I wasn't very excited for the brutal mid-day heat.

I've never spent much time in Idaho – and mountains sound nice and lush! I have read that Idaho is chock-full of hot springs (it is), and has a lifetime of mining and logging forest roads to explore.

Here are some photos from my trip this past month – hopefully they inspire some of you to also go explore Idaho!

 

[geoffff]

I spent almost two weeks wandering in Idaho, driving generally from north to south on a make-it-up-as-I-go-along zigzag route of mostly dirt roads, using my list of hot spring locations (I have collected over the years) as reason to investigate various specific areas. I also planned to visit a B-23 bomber crash site I had read about. I found myself camping either on mountain peaks, or beside streams. There was no shortage of either of these.


I spent my first night in Idaho on Sunset Peak. This was the closest fire lookout site (I collect these locations, too) to the mining "ghost town" of Burke. I had visited Burke earlier in the day, but it turned out to not so ghostly after all. For some reason it was now congested with big dump trucks, which were being directed around by various flaggers wearing bright orange vests. So, I headed up into the hills to camp.

Sunset Peak was a fire lookout site from 1916 until 1975. These days, there is some active radio equipment still up there. GPS: 47.5631, -115.835 elevation: 6424 ft

It's a steep climb, and the last two tight switchbacks before the very top are a bit unnerving to navigate when driving a large vehicle. At the final switchback, I tried the "backing-up" trick -- rather than turning the last corner -- but that didn't help me the next morning when I had to drive back down! That ended up being a very careful 5-point turn. (Not a big deal, technically, but going too far means certain drop-off death and I'm still new to driving this van which is larger than my old one.)










I spotted some curious (and very expensive-looking) remediation work going on in the nearby mining country. Apparently the area is a superfund site. Work crews are working to cover the polluted hillside with thick black plastic (which they then bury) to (I read) prevent water from washing the toxic lead and mercury mining remnants in the ground down into streams.

 

[geoffff]

One of the joys of traveling in Idaho (that I hadn't considered in my history of desert road trips) is that I can stop for a swim break at almost any time! The main Idaho forest roads through the mountains mostly follow rivers and streams, so pausing for a spontaneous dip is easy!

 

[geoffff]

The B-23 "Dragon Bomber" wreck site is in the Loon Lake area of Payette National Forest. Loon Lake itself is a stunningly picturesque destination. So much bright blue and green! Directions to the wreck itself are easy to find out there on the internet, or you can just follow the most well-trodden path when you get there. You'll have to cross a little stream on a log. This being Idaho, you can hike, bike, or ride your horse or motorcycle on the trail!




This airplane crash-landed on a frozen lake in January 1943 after icing up and then running out of fuel. Amazingly, the whole crew survived -- after spending a couple weeks trudging out through snowy wilderness.

Sadly less than half the airplane remains are still there today. It's still an impressive site to visit, but much of the plane has been cut up and taken away by souvenir hunters over the years. In 1999, a team from the USAF Museum airlifted out large chunks to use as patterns to build a recreation of the plane! I spotted saw marks everywhere. Someone even cut out a piece of tire!

 

[geoffff]

I visited a total of 21 Idaho hot springs on my trip. (I skipped any commercial or developed hot spring sites.) The banks of the South Fork Payette River, the Middle Fork Boise River, and the South Fork Boise River (and adjoining streams) are loaded with hot springs. My favorite hot springs were situated right there in the river/stream bank, where you can adjust the water temperature by moving around rocks to dial in a perfect soaking temperature. And then you can cold-plunge in the river itself when you get too hot!

Pictured are: riverside hot springs across from Hot Spring Campground on South Fork Payette River, Ninemeyer Hot Spring, Loftus Hot Spring, Chattanooga Hot Spring (in Atlanta, ID), Penny Hot Springs, Jerry Johnson Hot Spring, some hot springs under a bridge (4 miles north of Pine, ID), and Willow Creek Hot Spring.

 

[geoffff]

I wrapped up my trip at Dollarhide Summit, where at the top of the pass is a little ATV ridge-top track which takes you just a little bit higher (8800 ft. elevation) before it fades out into a motorcycle-only trail. I camped there. GPS: 43.5967, -114.6819

 

[GR8ADV]

Very cool indeed. Thanks for taking the time to post this up.

 

[Kingsize24]

This looks like an AWESOME trip. Love the setup as well.

 

[FAW3]

Great photos and detail…especially the hot springs!