Twin Falls, Idaho

Our goal on Tuesday was to Boise.  Fortuitously that did not happen, for by late afternoon we realized that we still had a hundred miles to go.  We stopped for the night in Twin Falls and I started looking in the park's office for information about the area.  This was one time John was not on the ball regarding local tourist information.  I soon discovered that in the town of Twin Falls there was the Snake River Canyon, a large bridge spanning it, as well as some scenic waterfalls.  I informed John that the next day we had to explore the area before moving on.

 Pictured above is the Perrine Bridge which is 1500 feet in length and spans the Snake River Canyon.  After crossing the bridge we parked our rig in a location near the visitor's center and began walking along the rim of the canyon.

 

The land surrounding Twin Falls is called the "Magic Valley".  It is mostly sagebrush and desert, but the Snake River makes it magic.  Notice the green areas in the picture above.  In the late 1800s development of the land surrounding the river began brought in dams, canals and irrigation systems.  Magically parts of the dessert became green.  More on that in my next posting.

As we walked along the canyon rim John pointed out to me the raised ramp at the edge of the canyon from which Evil Knievel attempted to fly his sky cycle across the Snake River in 1974.  It is the raised area off in the distance in the picture above.  That earthen ramp is the last remnant of that event.

While we were there two Base jumpers came down from the bridge.  Pictured above is the first part of their journey from the bridge.  Base is an acronym for fixed objects from which they jump: building, antenna ,span and earth.  The bridge is 86 feet above the river.  It is the only man made structure in the United States where people can jump without a permit.

 

I talked to a local person who said he walks the canyon rim daily and sees many jumpers, not only from our states, but from around the world.  They are required to make 200 jumps before attempting the Snake Canyon.  Circles are marked along the bank where they are to land, the jumpers we saw did get close to that target safely.   We visited the falls next, which are located about 3 miles from the visitor's center.  More on them in my next posting.