Seattle Revisited

We were not successful in reserving a spot for our rig in any area in Seattle or even near it.  Next time we are here we are going to have to do that months ahead of time, especially during the summertime.  Consequently we had to settle for Fall City, which is about 25 miles north of Seattle.  In 2010 I wrote a post about a visit we made to Snoqualmie Falls, that place is located about 3 miles from where we are presently parked.  We have been in this park now for several days and I am thankful that we could not get into any other place!  Our home is surrounded by tall pines, large-leafed maples and  ferns which offer lots of shade and keep us cool.  There is little grass on the ground because it is mostly covered with moss.  Across from us is an empty lot and its borders are lined with many blackberry bushes.  The bushes are heavily laden with the ripe sweet fruit, which we have already indulged in rather frequently.   Today our nephew Andy and his son Ben visited us, and, while returning from the pool, we saw three pileated woodpeckers.   Maybe you can understand why we love it here.

Yesterday we made arrangements to visit John's cousin Gretchen and her husband Tom who live on Bainbridge Island.  After getting together for lunch with them at a restaurant on Seattle' waterfront, John and I headed out on our own to see some of the sights of Seattle.  Our first stop was Pike Place Market.  We had been there in the past, but could not pass up another chance to look at fresh seafood, beautiful cut flowers, yummy pastries- well, maybe you get the picture. This time we found a back alley which took us into one of the entrances of the market.  And YUCK, a wall of already been chewed gum greeted us!

Hope it does not gross you out to see a close-up of the mess.  The gum surrounds a ticket window for a comedy improv theater.  For some reason John wanted to ride the Seattle Center Monorail.  It had been built in 1962 for the Seattle World's Fair.  It whisked us from the Westlake Shopping Center to the Seattle Center in about a minute and one-half.   At the Seattle Center area variety of museums, the Space Needle and Chihuly Glass Garden and Glass Exhibition.  I will write more on that in my next posting.

Our final stop for the day was at the Olympic Sculpture Park.  It is a 9-acre sculpture park designed for visitors to experience sculpture outside in an urban setting.  On display are primarily contemporary works.  The main path zigzags 2,200 feet down past a miniature meadow and forest grove to the waterfront.  Another path brought us back to the concrete and steel reality of city life.  In case you are wondering, one of the sculptures is in the foreground.

It was good to spend a day in the hustle and bustle of a big city, but we were quite happy to return home to our motor home sitting in some very quiet deep dark woods!

Coal Mine Trail to Roslyn

I had no plans to write any more postings until we were in the Seattle area.  However, we had such an interesting day Saturday on our bike ride, that I thought our readers would enjoy hearing about it.  The Coal Mines Trail runs from Cle Elum to Roslyn.  The trail follows the right-of-way of the Northern Pacific Railroad branch line developed in 1886 to export coal from the Roslyn Cle Elum coal fields. In 1987 the railroad branch line was decommissioned and the tracks and ties were removed from the right-of-way.  The trail is 3.5 miles long, and seemed to us to be quite doable for our small bikes.  We also thought that, since the weather had been quite cool, we had no danger of becoming over-heated.  We were wrong on both counts.  It was a steady uphill climb from Cle Elum to Roslyn, on a gravel path.  We did not get over-heated, but the uphill struggle on loose rock did cause us to sweat a bit.  Then I thought that maybe it would all be worthwhile if a deer crossed our path, but all we saw was one lone squirrel.  That short distance took us about an hour- returning to Cle Elum took 15 minutes- we coasted most of the way!  On our return trip our path was shadier, and a cool breeze wafted out across our path bringing with it a wonderful pine smell.  Occasionally we could get a glimpse of the Cascade Mountains between the tall pines.  And we were surprised by the presence of a great blue heron on the bike path!  I braked suddenly, and the screeching of my brakes sent him into instant flight.  I also have to mention here the profusion of wildflowers which we saw along the trail.  It was surprising how much more pleasant that ride home was!

Our morning trip to Roslyn left us quite thirsty and tired.  After sitting and lingering over a long lunch hour in a restaurant, we felt up to tackling a hike to the historical cemetery located on a hill a short distance out of town.  As we soon found out, it was one of the most interesting cemeteries which we have ever toured.  The complex covers 19 acres of woods and hills and has within it 26 separate cemeteries from prior to the turn of the 20^th century.  There are sections dedicated to the African American miners, veterans, and many different fraternal organizations.  We found one lodge which we had never heard of before- the Redman organization.  Apparently for their meetings they wore buckskin clothes and leather moccasins to “preserve American traditions”.  Heaven help us!   Seriously, the lodges were probably important for providing sick benefits, as well as caring for widows and orphans.   Work in the mines took many lives.

 As in many coal towns Roslyn was a melting pot of many nationalities.  In the cemetery there is a section for the Italians, Slovakians, and Serbians, to name but a few. In the Polish Lithuanian section is a large sign explaining that after immigration to America the two nationalities shared churches, societies, and cemetery ground.  However, due to “reawakening of nationalities” in their home countries, the two groups parted ways here in America.  I would assume that happened around the time of World War l.

There is also a section for foresters.  In 2001 a forest fire took the lives of four local young people.  Their cemetery section is quite beautiful with blooming flowers and sculptures. In the picture above two burnt stumps are placed among the animals and flowers.  It may seem a bit morbid to get excited about a cemetery, but for me this one certainly spoke to me about the lives of Roslyn's citizens through the years.

Cle Elum, Washington

On Thursday we drove further west into the state of Washington.  We passed through the three-city area of  Pasco, Kennewick, and Richland.  They lie at the confluence of the Columbia, Snake and Yakima Rivers.  After noticing the harvesting of wheat in the Walla Walla area, it was interesting to see the wheat sitting in large piles at the wharfs waiting to be shipped out.  Heading north we drove through a section of the Yakima River valley where there are many peach and apple orchards as well as vineyards.  I now fully understand why it has been said that Washington produces the most apples of any other state!   Climbing out of the valley we suddenly left the lush fields and pastures to discover a vast canyon spread out below us.

 That evening we parked outside of the town of Cle Elum, a town named after its namesake river which flows down from Cle Elum Lake 8 miles to the northeast. In the Kittitas Indian tongue Cle Elum means “swift water”.  The Yakima River flows into the Cle Elum River, we are currently parked close to the Yakima River.  At the present its level is quite high and it, as well as the Cle Elum River is flowing very swiftly. 

 Yesterday, Saturday, we drove into the town to tour the Carpenter House Museum.  In the early part of the last century Frank Carpenter was a successful banker- his bank was one of the very few which survived the Great Depression years.   His house is a large three-story frame building.  In one of the bedrooms we were surprised to find furniture made by John’s past employer, the Boeing Company.  During World War I most planes were made of wood and therefore Boeing had many wood craftsmen.  Pictured below is a French styled bed painted cream with floral wreaths, made by the company.  It was in the nursery of the home.

 

From the town of Cle Elum we wandered north and stopped to take hike the Salmon Viewing Trail along the Cle Elum River.  Unfortunately this is the wrong time of the year to see their passage down the river- that happens in September and October.  Along the river there are bleachers from which to view the salmon.

 Our furthest point north Friday was the town of Roselyn.  It was once used as a backdrop for the television series “Northern Exposure” and given the fictitious name of Cicely, Alaska.  In reality it was a successful coal mining town founded in 1886 with its population peaking at 4,000 in the 1920s.  It is now a town catering to tourists, with many restaurants and small shops.  What makes it so charming is that the town has kept many of its older buildings, many of which were built in the early part of the 20th century.

Lake Wallowa, Oregon

We have been staying in Walla Walla, Washington since last Thursday visiting with my brother John and his wife.  Being here has also given us the opportunity to also visit with their son Matthew and his family.  We have toured the sites of Walla Walla on other visits, so when my brother and his wife Linda left town for their vacation at Lake Wallowa, we followed them and spent a couple of relaxing days at the lake with them.

 

This lake is located at the foothills of steep forested mountains( which have the same name as the lake) in the northeast corner of Oregon.  It is a magical land and a land much loved by the Nez Perce people who inhabited it for over 12,000 years.  They ceded lands to the United States in 1855, but kept the heart of their domain, including the Wallowas, as a homeland for their exclusive use.  However, the discovery of gold led the government to make new treaties and eventually the tribe was moved to reservation land in Idaho.

One of the first things John and I did when we arrived at the lake was to join John and Linda on a tram ride to the summit of Mount Howard.  From the tram we had a wonderful view of the Eagle Cap Wilderness, as well as that of the clear blue waters of Lake Wallowa.  We were greeted at the top by a guide who offered to take us on some of the groomed trails which circumnavigate the summit.   She told us of the history of Chief Joseph and his Nez Perce tribe, as well as pointed out some of the flora and fauna of the alpine forest as we traversed through it.  Wild flowers are in abundance on the alpine meadow, pictured below are pink heather and lupine.  We also saw a lot of the golden buckwheat and penstemon.

There is a lot of white-barked pine on the summit.  We have the Clark's Nutcracker to thank for the presence of the trees.  He caches the pine seed all over the forest and what he does not eat grows into trees. It is a chunky grey bird with black wings and white wing patches.  His irritating drawn out kra-a-a call is the loudest sound to be heard on the summit.

After our guide left us we continued to wander over the trails of the summit, taking the last tram car down.  Just before we boarded a deer wandered over the path in front of us.  That is part of the charm of Lake Wallowa- deer are wandering everywhere, they seemed to have adjusted to the presence of humans.  Also scurrying hither and yon around us were ground squirrels, chipmunks, and marmots.

Missoula to Walla Walla, Wa.

We had a very long day traveling here to Walla Walla on Thursday.  Part of the problem was again having to climb a couple of mountain passes.  However, it was on a scenic by-way- Highway 12 out of Montana, through Idaho and into Washington.  That is our rig pictured above, parked next to towering rocky canyon walls.  Our drive took us through  river canyons (as the Lochsa River Canyon).   On the left side of the road we had wonderful sightings of mountain rivers and creeks; some very shallow and clear, and others running deep with white water rapids.  While I was keeping an eye on the scenery, I was also beginning a book by Yann Martel- beatrice and virgil.  Trying thus to multi-task made for an unusual day.  Just as I found the book a bit strange, I also discovered that each section of the river we were following had strange names (which probably could be stories in themselves).  I will mention a few here:  Smoked Cedar Creek, Dead Man's Creek, Split Creek, Tumbling Falls Creek, Post Office Creek, Fire Creek- to name but a few. 

Other road signs had equally fascinating names.  We drove through the Pink House Recreation Area, as well as Heart of the Monster Site.  I just had to search for information concerning the latter one, and discovered  it is the legendary birthplace of the Nez Perce tribe.  It is their culture's creation story.  Coming into the state of Washington we found ourselves in the foothills of the Blue Mountains and the scenery changed dramatically.  Now surrounding us were low-lying hills with sparse vegetation.

 

   Our trip Thursday also took us by sites related to the Lewis and Clark Trail.  At Alpowa Summit we found interpretive signs which informed us Lewis and Clark passed through this area in May of 1806.  Lewis noted: "the lands we passed through today are quite fertile consisting of a dark rich loam".  In the picture above are vineyards, and just outside of the town of Walla Walla we saw many fields of wheat.  The wheat is ripe and waiting to be harvested.  Red combines dot the hillsides.  This area is one of the world's most productive agricultural regions; also grown here are dry peas, lentils and barley.  And since we have been parked here in Walla Walla we have enjoyed sweet onions, blueberries, melons, cherries and peaches.

Fort Missoula, Montana

Before I write about our trip to the fort, I wish to mention some other details about the town of Missoula.  If you are fortunate to be here over the summer season, make sure to visit the farmer's markets.  There are two of them in town on Saturdays during the summer months.  I have never seen such a variety of vegetables, fruits and bakery goods before, especially not in one small town!  A popular fruit right now, besides sweet cherries, are huckleberries.  However, we found the huckleberries to be a bit expensive.

I did buy a small bag of them.  They are about the size of wild blueberries, which makes them quite small.  After checking out the farmer's market, and buying more vegetables and breads than we needed, we went on a walking tour of Missoula's downtown.  Our first stop was Saint Xavier Catholic Church, built in 1892.  Its style of Romanesque Revival provides large interior expanses suitable for murals.

The interior was decorated by an Italian native and Jesuit lay brother, Joseph Carignano.  The murals reminded me of the religious paintings we had seen in the interior of the Sistine Chapel.  An interpretive sign outside the church notes that the artist "employs many of the devices used by early Renaissance artists as feathery trees, oval female faces, classical costumes..".   Our next stop was Missoula Art Museum where we encountered much different artwork.  MAM fosters the creation of new art and contemporary artists.

I was immediately drawn to the wooden skeleton pictured above because his dangling arms made a clacking sound as they moved up and down   His right arm is grasping a very large M-16 rifle.  The wooden sculpture was created by Jay Schmidt.  The art museum's brochure notes that "this work addresses our contemporary global culture in a frontal assault".  I usually do not care for contemporary art, but I my thinking is changing! On Monday morning we climbed Summit Mountain, its trailhead is on the campus of Montana University.  Forestry students cut switchbacks on the mountain in the early 1900s.  A concrete M was placed in1968.  After seeing the M so often as we drove around Missoula it was great to finally climb up to that concrete monolith and sit on it.  The M is 125 feet long and 100 feet wide.

 

Fort Missoula was established in 1877 in reponse to the local townspeople who wanted protection from the Montana Indian Tribes. Construction of the open fort had just begun when the first skirmish with the non-treaty Nes Perce occurred. After a couple more encounters with the Native Americans they surrendered in the Bear Paw Mountains.  The 25th Infantry arrived at Fort Missoula in 1888.  The regiment was one of four made up of black soldiers and white officers after the Civil War.  In 1896 this regiment was organized to test the military potential of bicycles.  After a 1,900 mile bike trip from Missoula to St.Louis it was decided that bicycles could never replace horses.  The fort was used during World War ll as an Alien Detention Center for non military Italian seamen, and later for Japanese-American men.  It was decommissioned in 1947.  Only three of the original buildings of the fort remain.  Pictured below is the Quartermaster's storehouse where post supplies were kept.   It has been remodeled and now houses some of the museum's galleries.  A lot of the museum, indoors and outside, has nothing to do with the fort but with the history and material culture of the region around it.  

Missoula, Montana

Our next stop was to have been Boise,Idaho.  However, the town seems to be caught in the grip of a heat wave, so we changed our plans and headed north to Missoula.  It was a beautiful but slow drive yesterday because we went over a couple mountain passes and through some gorgeous canyons.  Because of the narrow winding highway we were on (US 93) I felt that I could just about reach out and touch the jagged rocky canyon walls.  We are now parked outside of Missoula, all the campgrounds closer to town were full.

 Near where we are parked is the U.S. Forest Service campus.  In Missoula it maintains its Region Number 1 headquarters, research station and smokejumpers training center.  We had learned that a museum was located there and that we may also have a tour of the center.  We arrived a few minutes before a tour started.  Smokejumpers give the tours, which made it very interesting as our tour guide gave us his first-hand experiences with fighting forest fires.  I could not help but notice how much he loved his job, and he has been a smokejumper for 10 years.  He told us that it is necessary to have 10 years of fighting fires before taking the job, jumping from planes to fight forest fires is taught at the center.  He showed us where their parachutes are hung, in another room they are mended and placed back into their sacks.  In that room we saw jumpers at sewing machines and also at tables folding their parachutes.  It is expected of the jumpers to keep expenses down by repairing their own clothes and equipment.  On the tour we also saw their locker room.

It all reminded me of a regular fire house, with the difference being that the jumpers load into planes with parachute gear.  Their tools and food and water get tossed out of the plane after them.  Once they have landed it is necessary for them to fold and repack their parachute.  They also have to also fill their backpack with food, equipment and water.  It all comes to about 110 pounds which they have to carry.  They are not usually flown out of the fire area once the fire is contained, but must walk from several or possibly as much 100 miles out. In the museum a mannequin is dressed with the full gear of a jumper as he is about ready to head to a fire.  The forest fires out west here are usually caused by lightning.  They can be as small as 2 miles of forest, or involve many acres.  The center may receive several calls a day or there may not be any fires for a couple of weeks.  We looked at the names of the jumpers posted in the dispatch room and noticed that there are female jumpers.  The Forest Service has learned since 1944 that fire jumpers are the fastest and most efficient way to contain a forest fire, especially in remote areas where there are no roads.

 

After our visit to the museum we drove into Missoula.  The city sits astride the Jack Fork River.

 

 There is a beautiful river walk in the downtown area.  Maybe in a day or so we will hike the hill in the background.  Before starting our walk along the river we rode the carousel  at Caras Park. It is the fastest carousel we have been on, seat belts are required!  The carousel was made possible by many volunteers who carved and painted its animals. As we were leaving town we noticed a deer feeding in a residential neighborhood.   And to think that I have been looking for them in the hills behind where we are now parked!

Craters of the Moon National Monument

We visited the other half of Hell's Half Acre!  Well, the area of Craters of the Moon is a bit more than half of an acre, like about 750 thousand acres.  The land here in southeastern Idaho does have a connection, however with Hell's Half Acre as well as Yellowstone.  The Snake River Plain extends across southern Idaho in a 400 mile arc, one of the largest volcanic regions in the earth.  Its geologic features indicate that about 16 million years ago the volcanic activity began and continues today in the geysers and hot springs of Yellowstone.  Craters of the Moon represent the most recent eruptions, which occurred only 2,000 years ago.  First scientific proof of the age of that flow was found in the growth rings of the core of a limber pine, which took root after the lava cooled.  Age of the tree was estimated to be about 1,350 years old.  Oral traditions of Native Americans also tell of a time when the lava flowed.

The eruption at Craters of the Moon was similar to Hell's Half Acre- vast amounts of lava issued not from one volcano, but from a series of deep fissures known collectively as the Great Rift.  However, here the eruptions were of a more moderate strength, strong enough to throw up cinders into the air, and these cinders built up into fairly large cones.  John and I climbed Inferno Cone to view a row of cinder cones which make up a part of the Great Rift.  The tallest cone in the monument, Big Cinder Butte, is 700 feet high.

As we found at Hell's Half Acre, the lava fields do eventually sprout life, called cinder gardens.  Lichen breaks the rock down into soil, and soil is also brought in by the wind.  Desert-tolerant plants take root and life begins.  We saw cones dotted with the white-colored dwarf buckwheat, and, on one side of  Inferno Cone, we found a patch of blazing star.  It reminded me of Cinderella sitting among ashes.  Most of the plants grow with such regular spacing that we wondered whether someone planted them.  However, we later learned from the park's brochures, that regular spacing occurs because each plant competes for water through their extensive root system.  That spacing is needed for survival.

 

Unfortunately we did not catch the plant at its prettiest moment, its blooms open only at night.  If we thought finding a pretty flower in this barren hot land was strange, how about finding a patch of snow?  We climbed a splatter cone (cones made by clots of lava paste instead of cinders) and peered into its vent.

That is a patch of snow!  Craters of the Moon certainly had many surprises for us.  It is an interesting land, but not one where anyone would choose to live.  In the past Native Americans and pioneers would only pass through it, not choosing to live there because of the lava terrain and lack of water.  Astronauts visited it thinking that the harsh alien environment would give them a feel for the geologic features of the moon.   I will conclude this with one final picture.  In my last posting I had a picture of ropey coil of lava, pictured below is a better picture of that type of lava flow.  In the background are fragments of a crater wall.

Arco, Idaho

It has been quite warm here in Idaho, so museums have been our better bet.  Before leaving Idaho Falls, we spent a good part of Monday at the Museum of Idaho.  It has an interesting temporary exhibit with the title "Guitar: The Instrument that Rocked the World".  Considering that 3 million guitars are sold yearly, more than all the other instruments combined, it would seem that there would be a lot of interest in this exhibit of everything having to do guitars.  It was a busy place when we there.  On display is an 8-neck guitar built by the National Guitar Museum, which has been played by 8 musicians- it is called the Rock Ock.  Also in this exhibit is the world's largest playable guitar.  It is 43.5 feet long and 16 feet wide.  It has been certified by Guiness Book of World Records.  A fun part of this exhibit features hands-on experiences with the science of sound and the design and engineering of the guitar.

On Tuesday we moved our home to Arco, the first town to be powered by atomic energy.  Before parking our home we stopped at a building outside of the town where the peaceful use of nuclear power was born. 

On Dec.20,1951 EBR-1 (Experimental Breeder Reactor) became the first power plant in the world to produce usable electricity using atomic energy.  The best way I have here to explain how it all happened is to quote from an interpretive sign in the museum.  "In the core reactor speeding neutrons smashed into the nuclei of uranium and plutonium, splitting them in half.  The result: release of energy- and more neutrons.  The heat generated electricity."  That is about all I can tell you, it is much more involved; especially the details of how the irradiated elements and subassemblies had to be handled.  Pictured below is the turbine and generator, which in 1951, lit 4 light bulbs hanging nearby. When they lit up it was proven that atomic energy had been harnessed for electricity.  On a chalk board in this area are the signatures of the crew who made it happen.  The bright light at the end of the generator is where the light bulbs are hanging.

Another important area of Idaho is also located near Arco.  Craters of the Moon will be in my next posting.

Hell's Half Acre

After we parked our home Saturday afternoon we drove to the downtown area for supper.  While we were eating I happened to glance out the window and see a small portion of the falls for which the town is named.  The falls on the Snake River are long and low, they stretch for 1,200 feet. After supper we walked  in the beautiful city park which runs along the river and falls. 

John reads all the tour books when we arrive into a new area, and he happened to find in an Idaho " State Adventure Guide" a small paragraph about Hell's Half Acre.  When he questioned locals as to how to find the place many had to admit that they knew nothing about it.  Understandably so, for it is in a highway rest area just outside of town, who stops at a rest area when they are close to home?  As you can tell by the above picture, we did find the place.  It is a 4,100 -year-old lava flow with paved walkways and signs describing the unique ecosystem.  The interpretive signs stressed that this was not a volcano but a quiet lava flow.  Molten rock forced its way through fissures in the earth's crust and cooled into lava. 

Evidence proving it was a quiet flow have been found in the ropey coils of lava found at this site as well as in the presence of basalt rock.  The surface of basalt shrinks when it is cooling and forms deep cracks as well as columnar joints.  Along the trail we also saw many other interesting features of the fluid flow- from caves, tunnels, deep fissures, as well as large depressions in the earth

One thousand years ago the lava solidified, and wind-blown soil covered the rock areas.  That explains the presence of vegetation now in this lava flow.  Sagebrush and juniper trees offer shade and food to the big game animals who visit this area.  According to information along the trail, sagebrush is a highly nutritious food source containing four times the protein of other range vegetation.  Unfortunately 90% of "sagebrush sea" that once covered the American West has been converted to crop land or urban development.  Sagebrush is pictured in the foreground of the picture below.  Its foliage feels very soft, and we learned that it is very digestible for the animals to eat.  We also discovered that it has a wonderful smell.  It had recently rained and there was a gentle breeze blowing when we were there, all of which probably helped to make the odor quite noticeable.  Despite the nice breeze, however, it was quite warm when we walked the trail, and with the rugged landscape we could understand why it has been called Hell's Half Acre. 

Following the Snake River into Idaho

This posting will involve a bit of this and that as I wrap up our visit to Grand Teton National Park and move on to Idaho Falls Idaho, where we are presently parked.  On Friday of this past week we drove to the southern entrance of the park where Jackson is located.  Until I learned better, I was referring to the town as Jackson Hole.  However, Jackson Hole Valley is the area encompassing the town of Jackson.  Before arriving in Jackson we drove up Signal Mountain to view the valley below.

The lake pictured above is Jackson Lake.  It is a dammed up lake of the Snake River.  We wondered how Signal Mountain got its name, thinking it had to do with Native Americans and their smoke signals.  However, the first thing we noticed at the summit was a large building and a tower filled with antennas next to it.  Strange that we did not even consider Signal Mountain having any connection with the past fifty years!  One more item before leaving the Tetons.  The range is comprised of three mountains;  the South, Middle and Grand.  Shoshone Indians called them "Teewinot" meaning pinnacles.  Canadian Frenchmen called them "Le Trois Tetons, or the three breasts.

Pictured above is a street in the town of Jackson.  In the lower right-hand corner is an arch of elk antlers.  They have been gates to the Jackson Town Square since 1960.  Elk National Refuge is located just outside of the town, and 7,500 elk winter there yearly.  The bulls shed their antlers in the spring, and local Boy Scouts pick them up in May.  They are then sold in a public auction.  The town is a supply point for ranchers and tourists.  Besides the usual tourist shops there are also up-scale clothing and jewelry stores as well as art galleries.  Outside one art gallery we saw some interesting life-like sculptures.

Pictured above is George Washington and Albert Einstein.  In other benches near them are Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln.  On Saturday we drove further west from Wyoming into Idaho, following the Snake River.  We stopped at a  rest area and discovered that it overlooked a canyon through which the river flowed.   That scene is pictured below.  One thing we noticed driving further into Idaho are many  fields of potatoes.  Currently they are in bloom with white flowers. That evening we parked our rig in Idaho Falls.