A hidden gem in Idaho

5/19/18 Saturday Great Basin NP to Twin Falls ID

We headed back to Ely and on north to Twin Falls, Idaho for the night.  Just outside of town, we stopped at Shoshone Falls, highly recommended by Cory.  He was right.  Tucked away a couple of blocks beyond suburban streets is a series of waterfalls on the Snake River that rival Niagara.  It's a unpretentious grassy park with overlooks all along the edge of the canyon.  We took in the view from Perrine Bridge, that spans the river just upstream from the falls.  Enjoy the pics!

A couple of days off grid

Cathedral State Park

Wheeler Peak

Lehman caves

5/17/2018 Wednesday
Start: Nellis AFB, NV   End: Great Basin National Park, NV

We left this morning and headed north toward Ely, Nevada, on the northeast side of the state.  We drove through Cathedral State Park and snapped a couple of pictures of the eroding sandstone spires.

The 275 miles to Great Basin were unbroken desert until we started gaining elevation on the approach to Wheeler Peak.  The snow covered top of the mountain stood out across the flat valley.  We settled into Upper Lehman Creek campground and then headed up the road to Mather Overlook to take in the view.

We came back and had steaks on the grill next to a campfire until it got chilly and called it a night.

Friday afternoon we toured Lehman Caves which are inside of the park.  The ranger had a few tall tales to share.  The group was limited to 20 people and the hour underground went by quickly.  We had lunch in the tiny town of Baker with enough leftovers for dinner.  We made it an early night so we can get on the road in the morning.

Rainbow at sunset from Upper Lehman campground

The trek begins...

In 2016, we visited Alaska for the first time.  We went 9,000 miles in 8 weeks.  Check out the blog archive for our adventures on that trip.

We're taking it slower this year, leaving about 8 this morning and stopping for the night in Las Vegas.  My cousins, Rick and Charlotte had us over for a scrumptious dinner, tri-tip on their egg barbecue!  It was great to catch up and I finally got to meet their son, Eric, too!

We're staying at Nellis AFB in North Las Vegas and tomorrow plan to visit the Springs Preserve.  It's a bit cooler here than Phoenix and we're looking forward to even cooler nights as we head further north. 

As the miles roll on by, it feels good to get away from the routine and enjoy the moment.  See you on down the road!