I love road trips

There is no better way to see the country than to drive it and visit some of its attractions. It had been a long time since I had driven through the West and Midwest, and it was good to be reminded of how much we have so close at hand.

Thanks to Mackenzie for making the trip to Chicago top-notch. She is an excellent traveling companion, willing to sleep in a noisy KOA without compliant or in a tent beneath a major lightning storm with a sense of awe. Her huge collection of custom CD's really contributed to the rhythm of the road.

Thanks to Laurel for demonstrating how much more efficient it is to fly to Chicago instead of driving there. Making multiple trips to Target to get stuff for the dorm room would not have been half as much fun without her.

Thanks to Bob for making the trip to Omaha and back, just so we could take a walk in the woods. It was like old times, and it gave me a chance to catch up on all my physics homework that I neglected in high school.

Smoky Sawtooths

There were fires to the south of us, but we had two days of crystal clear weather while we were hiking and camping. On our last day we awoke to the smell of smoke, and the view had been transformed. The hike out was considerably easier, as it was more downhill, and we got to the boat dock about ten minutes before our intrepid speedboat arrived. The ride back to the lodge was even more exilerating than the first one, since our young pilot decided to take on some cross-wakes with a vengance. However, we made it back to the lodge, and took a dip in the lake to wash off some sweat before heading back to Portland. We drove straight through and arrived at 2:30 am.

Wildlife

We never saw a bear or elk, which was a bit disappointing, but we did see some trout floating by. Since we had no fishing gear, we figured the best way to get one was to dive in. No luck with the fish, but we did have a few deer cruise through our campsite as they came to the lake for water and some young moss.

Baron Lakes

The Sawtooths are pretty dramatic, and there was lots of water in the streams and lakes, which makes for easy hiking and camping. We were expecting to see a lot of other backpackers, but except for a few on the trail, it seemed deserted. We camped at Middle Baron Lake, and there was no one else there. That's Bob standing next to our campsite.
In the morning, the water is like glass.

I da Hoe

Bob's flight is on time, and I meet him in Omaha as planned. (amazing...) Before heading west, we have to stop for some GeoCaching at the local Botanical Garden. We successfully locate the cache full of random stuff. (It seems to be an aquired taste, but perhaps I'm catching cache fever.) Then we hit the road in earnest, and take in a long day. As we were doing a bit of night driving, we chose to stay on the interstate. Blue roads at night are great if you're driving a hummer and hoping for fresh road-kill for dinner. Since we didn't really like the idea of peeling an elk out of the grill, we stuck with the semi's . As we get into Idaho, we cruise through Crater's of the Moon, which is an awesome reminder of the way things were a few millenia ago. Never fear, the whole damned place could blow again at any time.

We make it to the Sawtooths in two days, and spend the night in the campground at Redfish Lake. There's a great lodge there (circa 1929), and since we were roughing it, we ate dinner at the bar instead of at a table. The buff burgers are excellent...

Next day we take a boat to the far end of the lake. It's five miles, and we figured a 20-minute cruise, but the 20-year old "skippers" seem to think the throttle has only two positions, "stop" and "go like hell", so we got there in about 7 minutes.

Lost in Iowa

I've got a day and half to meet up with my brother, so I take the "blue" roads to Omaha, and stop occasionally to check out local town squares, covered bridges and churches with old cemetaries. Despite its lack of grand topography, the rolling hills of the midwest have a beauty of landscape that stands up to more celebrated parts of the country. Of course, I was there at the height of summer, and everything was lush and green.

Leaving Chicago

We finally head out, leaving Mackenzie to fend for herself. (sink or swim....) It was tough for Laurel and me to leave our luxury crib with the mini-mini kitchen. (Do you see a countertop anywhere? ...and those 2 cups in the cupboard, that's it....) Laurel flies back to SF, and I start out on the road to rendevous with my brother, who is flying from Portland to Omaha. Once we hook up, we're heading to the Sawtooth Mts. in Idaho for a few days of bear hunting.