Wednesday 9-28 Bill Frome County Park

Camping at Bill Frome County Park

We had three wonderful days at Buffalo Campground and now it's time to move on. The National Forest Campgrounds in Idaho all close September 30th at noon and we have reservations at Madison in Yellowstone on October 1st. We needed to find somewhere else to stay for at least the night of the 30'th and we can't go too far away.

Before leaving Buffalo we decided to go for a walk around the campground. We ended up walking for 40 minutes for 2.25 miles. Then we got the Minnie ready to go. We weren't in any hurry because our next destination was 25 miles away. Once the Minnie was ready we were on the road at 9:30.

As we were leaving we stopped and filled the water tank because where were going has no water. The highway we took was a two lane highway. We saw a lot of prairie with cattle grazing. Some of the area looked like a great place to see a moose or elk. We didn't see any. We had two options on our list of places we might go next. The first one was a dispersed camping area. The turn off was very hard to see and we missed it, as we went by Larry glanced at it and did not like what he saw. We went to a pull off to turn around, the turn off had a spring called Howard Springs. It was small but cute. It had a little picnic area.

Howard Spring

Larry turned around and in looking at the dispersed area turn off there was a huge chuckhole/puddle and then you had to go up a steep rocky road, we decided to pass. Our second choice was Bill Frome County Park which was a few miles back. The road getting there ran out of black top and was very rough for about a quarter of a mile and then it was once again blacktop, Larry drove very slowly through the rough, wash board section. 

Frome County Park is located on Henry Lake. The park is very nice and cost $15.00 a night. It has no water or trash service. It has vault bathrooms. There a boat ramp that works on donations.

The mountain around Henry Lake

 

Henry Lake from the boat ramp

 

Fall is just around the corner

We had stayed at Henry Lake State Park in 2014, Larry looked into staying there again but for non-residents the price per night was outrageous. It was over $74.00 a night. For residents it was $30.00 plus $7.00 for day use plus tax. 

We set up the Minnie and relaxed with a book. There is no hiking and the only place to walk is a small dirt road and boat trailer parking area. I walked for an hour using the road to get some of my steps. I ended up doing 27,000 steps for the day. This put me in 5th place in my group.

We had a wonderful relaxing day.   

 

Tuesday 9-27 Island Park Dam & Boat Ramp

 

Walking/Hiking with friends

We had another super day at Buffalo Campground. The temperatures were like yesterday, morning in the 30s and the high in the mid 70s.

We started the day out the same as yesterday except we did a different walk. We walked for 4.5 miles. We started from our site and walked to the highway. Then we crossed where there was a sign. We walked the road 1.5 miles to the boat ramp. The reservoir is very low. A few gentlemen showed up and thought the same thing. One of them asked if we knew where the dam was, Larry told him. After looking at the lake we decided to walk another half mile to the dam. At the dam we saw the main site of the power plant we saw yesterday. We saw how its hydroelectric plant works to generate power. We also saw a couple of fishermen by the plant. It was a beautiful view of the river at the dam. The area at the dam has a fence with a sign that said no hunting because it is a wildlife preserve. We saw a grouse hiding in the trees. After resting we headed back. We had another nice walk.

Sign for Island Park day area

 

Island Park Reservoir

 

Hydroelectric Plant

 

Fishing on the river

We spent most of the day relaxing with a good book. I also did some Sudoku games.

After dinner we went for another walk. Larry walked with me for a half hour around the campground we walked A, B & C loops. While walking back we saw an elk. She was by herself but she moved too fast to get a picture. This was really the first wildlife we have seen on our trip besides mule deer and some pronghorns. After dropping Larry off at the Minnie I walked around for another hour. I walked the rest of the loops, C, D, E & F. I walked all the way to the fishing pier. We had another wonderful walk.

I finished reading Carrying Albert Home by Homer Hickam. It was a cute farcical story about his parents, an alligator name Albert and a rooster. Then I started another book called The Fire and the Ore by Olivia Hawker.

By the end of the day I had done 27,000 steps, which put me in 4th place in my group. 

 

Monday 9-26 Buffalo Campground & Walking

Having fun camping in the forest

Larry woke up with the temperature in the Minnie in the 40's. It was 32 degrees outside. He started the heater. At 2:00 it was 74 degrees.

I crawled out of bed about 7:30 and turned on the oven for breakfast sausage biscuits. The oven helped warm up the Minnie. The biscuits were very good. 

There's really no hiking trails in the area but they do have cross-country ski trails. I have had a cough for over three weeks and Larry thought I might want to take a day or two off of walking. I thought about it but decided to walk. I put my pouch together with water. We left the Minnie about 9:45 and did a 4.5 mile walk. We walked to the main highway, which was a half mile. Then we took a bridge over to the other side of Buffalo River. The bridge had a walkway for people. When we got on the other side we checked out the ski trail. The reviews about the trail were very negative. We have hiked ski trails before and knew they could be rough. We looked at the trail, it was over grown and not maintained so we decided against it. Instead we walked down the highway to where there was a sign for a day area and crossed the street. Then we took the road through a summer home area for 1.5 miles to the day area. The cabins were in the trees so you could barely see them. The road was dirt and very well packed, no potholes. The day area has a power plant and a hiking trail that goes to Box Canyon Campground. It's a cool power plant with metal grate walkways and is open to the public. We walked around the area and the walkways. It was very pretty. We didn't walk the trail because we didn't want to walk another 3 miles one way. After enjoying the area we started our walk back to the campground. After crossing the highway we stopped at the ranger station to ask about a trail in the area and about campground availability, all Forest Service campgrounds in this part of Idaho will be closed by this Friday at noon. We also picked up new state maps for Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. We had a great walk.

 

The power plant

 

The Buffalo River flowing down stream from power plant

 

Fishing on the Buffalo River

 

The fish ladder walkway we walked on

The Buffalo River Hydroelectric Project was originally built in 1930's to supply electricity to the Island Park Dam. Later it supplied power to Ponds Lodge. The power plant burned down in 1976 and was rebuilt. It was back in business in 1994. In 1997 the Fall River Rural Electric Cooperative Inc. acquired the facility and in 2004 it received a 40 year contract to supply electricity to 190 homes. It built a fish ladder to make it fish friendly which was completed in 2005.

We spent much of the day relaxing with a book. 

After dinner we walked around for a half hour. We walked to the fishing pier and the loops of the campground. Then Larry sat outside to read while I walked another hour. By the end of the day I did 27,000 steps, which put me in 2nd place in my group.

We had another outstanding day.           

 

Sunday 9-25 It's My Birthday - Buffalo Campground

Today was my birthday. I had a wonderful day.

Larry woke me up at 7:30 to wish me a happy birthday. I crawled out of bed and got dressed. He wanted to get an early start because we needed to do a couple of stops before our next destination. We got the Minnie ready to go.

We had four great nights at Idaho Falls. It's a terrific place to visit. South Tourist Park was a super place to stay. Before leaving the park Larry dumped the tanks and filled the Minnie with fresh water. I took the trash to the dumpster. We were ready to go by 8:15.

Idaho Falls fountain

On our way to Walmart we saw a gorgeous fountain. While we were in Walmart Larry bought me a birthday cake and breakfast, triple chocolate muffin and cinnamon roll. After paying for the items we went to the Minnie and I put everything away. Then we had breakfast. We shared a cinnamon roll and saved the other one for later. 

Next stop was KJ's Travel Center to take a shower. It cost $8.50 for a shower. The lady who helped us asked if we wanted one stall or two. We were surprised when she said we could share a stall thereby saving us $8.50. It was upstairs in the truckers lounge area. It was a combination room with a toilet, sink and shower stall. The shower was small but excellent. The room was clean. This was the first time we used a travel center shower and we were impressed by it.

We were headed to Upper Coffee Pot campground, it was 90 miles away and two miles down a dirt forest road. It is a small campground with only 15 sites, unfortunately they were full until the campground closes on September 30th. They were suppose to have some first come first serve sites but those sites had reserved signs on them. The host said one was available for today but then we would have to move. The host was not able to explain how first come first serve sites were reserveable. The host did say that Buffalo had sites because it was bigger, 137 sites. Larry thanked the host and we left.

Buffalo Campground was a few miles back down the road. It has a paved road but you have to be careful of the potholes. Larry talked to the hosts and they said that loop C was first come first serve and had lots of sites available. The powered sites were full. The hosts were very nice. We didn't have a problem finding a site. The river runs behind the campground. We parked the Minnie and made sure it was level. Then we paid for a couple of nights. There's no hiking at the campground but there are trails close by. 

After setting up the Minnie we went for a half hour walk around the loops and by the river. It was a nice walk. We walked through the loops and down to the fishing pier. When we got back we setup our chairs. The sites are beautiful with a lot of trees. It's a beautiful forest. We relaxed in our chairs.

Camping at Buffalo Campground

 

A family boating down the river

 

Buffalo River

For dinner we had cheese tortellini and tomato sauce. For dessert we had my birthday cake. After dinner I walked around for a half hour. I finished doing my steps in place. I ended up doing 27,000 steps, which put me in 6th place in my group. For the week I did 179,584 steps.

My birthday cake

  

Saturday 9-24 Idaho Falls Zoo

 

Sunset on the Snake River

We woke to 43 degrees and at 2:00 it was 76. There was a very lite breeze all day. We had cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

After breakfast we read a little, we were going to the Idaho Falls Zoo and it didn't open until 9:30. We left the Minnie a little before 9:00 because we had a 20 minute walk. We took the bike trail to the main highway. Then we turned to the left and followed the road until it got to the road to the zoo. We turned left on the road and down to the zoo. We have been walking a super bike trail for a few days and a lot of sidewalks but when we walked the road to the zoo there were no sidewalks. We thought this was weird because there were a few parks in the area. As we were walking to the zoo we saw a cool business called U-Pick Red Barn. It's where you pick your own pumpkin from September 17 to October 31.

Truck at the entrance of U-Pick Red Barn

Idaho Falls Zoo is a small zoo but it is very nice and well maintained. It had seven different sections (see map below). We walked around the zoo for about an hour. We saw a lot of magnificent animals like: flamingos, tigers, lions, birds, tortoises, monkeys, penguins, zebras, camels, donkeys, chickens, goats and alligator. Below are some of the animals we saw. There were a lot of families enjoying the zoo. We had a great time.     

  Idaho Falls Zoo Map

Idaho Falls Zoo entrance

 

Golden Eagle 

African Penguins going for a swim

Macaws

 

A Wallaby and an Emu

 

Amur Tiger

African Lioness and Lion

 

Gray Crowned Crane

Great Rhea

Gray Gibbons playing

After visiting the zoo we walked another mile to The Sandwich Tree for lunch. Larry read the reviews on it and they were excellent. They make sub sandwiches, you pick your length: 4", 6", 8", 10", 12", 16" and 24", then choose your bread, either white or wheat. Larry and I shared a 8" specialty sandwich called Angel's Special. It had roast beef, pastrami, bacon, Swiss cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, pickles, lettuce and ranch dressing. It had a lot of meat on it and very filling. It was delicious. 

After lunch we went back to the Minnie. By the time we got back we had walked 4.5 miles.

We spent the rest of the day reading. I did two walks, that were for an hour to get my steps. I ended up doing 28,000 steps, which put me in 6th place with 152,000 steps. 

We had a super day.   

Friday 9-23-22 Downtown Idaho Falls

Relaxing with my bear friends

We woke with the temperature at 41 degrees and by 4:00 it was 71. It was very comfortable.

I had turned the heater on last night but when I went to bed it was still 70 degrees in the Minnie so I turned it off. We prefer to sleep when it's a little chilly. When Larry got up he turned the heater back on. I woke up to the smell of fresh cinnamon rolls being baked. I had thawed a few out and Larry put them in the oven. They came out delicious. 

About 8:30 we decided to go for another walk to town. It's so nice when it's only a mile or so away. We took the same route as yesterday except when we got downtown we walked on the opposite side of the river. We wanted to see the Mormon Temple. As we were walking around the park we saw more animal shaped trees, benches and picnic tables. We saw a picnic table with a big rock as a table and the chairs were wolves. There was a tree that had a mama bear and her two cubs, that were seats. The trees were shaped as elk (cow, calf and bull), a big horn sheep and other animals. There were beautiful flowers gardens throughout the park. The benches were in the shape of the state of Idaho, UFO ship and other things. The Mormon Temple was gorgeous and you can see it a mile away. The grounds were immaculate with beautiful flowers. We walked the grounds and took pictures. Before leaving the Temple we took a picture of the church. By the time we got back we had walked 4.5 miles. Larry thought we had walked as far as yesterday. We probably did except that we didn't walk through the Art Museum and to the bakery. We had a wonderful walk.

Big horn sheep

Mama and baby elk

 

Bull elk

The wolves table and chairs

 

The Mormon Temple

 

Some of the flowers at the Temple

 

The Church of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints

One of the utility boxes

After lunch we went for another walk for 2.5 miles. We took the bike trail the opposite direction towards the lower falls. Part of the walk is what I do to get my steps. When we got to the main road we turned right and walked to a bridge that goes over the river. The bridge was part of the highway but they had nice walkways for pedestrians. When we got on the other side we got back on the trail and it took us under the bridge to the other side of the road. We walked to the fishing pond and the bike park. The fishing pond was very nice. The bike park was all dirt but it had some challenging jumps for the BMX bikes. Then we headed back to the Minnie. It looked like the city had just finished connecting the bike trail so it goes completely around the river. The entire trail is a 10 mile loop but can be shortened by crossing the river via bridges. This is a great trail for bikes, walkers and joggers.

The fishing pond

Part of the track at the bike park

In the evening I walked around the campground for an hour and a half to get my steps. I ended up doing 29,000 steps, which put me in 5th place. I'm almost caught up, I only need another 1,100 steps.

We had another super day in Idaho Falls.    

 

Thursday 9-22-22 Idaho Falls - Riverwalk & More

 

Overcast Morning

It rained through the night into the early morning. When Larry woke up the rain had stopped. It was overcast and windy. Larry turned on the heater. I crawled out of bed at 7:30, got dressed and turned on the oven to make french toast sticks. The oven started to heat up the Minnie so Larry turned off the heater. 

After breakfast we walked to town to do a little touristy stuff. There's a very nice walk/bike trail that goes around the river and through our RV Park. We walked the trail from the park to downtown Idaho Falls. The first place we stopped was The Japanese Friendship Garden. It's a beautiful garden with streams that run through it. It was here the first bridge to span the Snake River in Eastern Idaho was built. The garden was built to celebrate 30 years of associating with their Japanese sister city Toai-Mura. It was built by volunteers. There is a path that weaves throughout the park. It was very nice. Next we walked the River Walk for about a mile. The section we walked was the Idaho Falls, there was a lot of them. It was gorgeous. The walk took us through a very well manicured park. Some of the trees were shaped as animals such as a moose and bear with a wild hog. There were seats along the walk in shapes of animals such as a horse and Canadian geese. They have beautiful flowers gardens. As you walk the area there were signs about the falls and how they generate power. They use turbine generators, that are under the falls. We saw a gorgeous Mormon Temple. After walking around we headed back to the Minnie.

Japanese Friendship Garden

 

One of falls from the garden

 

Moose

Sitting on the horse bench

The bear and wild hog bush

 

Some of the Idaho Falls

 

More of the falls

On the way back we stopped at the Art Museum of Eastern Idaho. It is a small museum showing local artist works and most of the art was for sale. We weren't there too long but it was a very nice facility. It cost $4.00 for adult and $3.00 for adults over 65. Then we walked across the street and down a couple of blocks to Carstens' Bakery, where we bought a few donuts: huckleberry iced donut, huckleberry lemon filled donut, apple sauce donut and a twist donut. Then we walked to a nice park and ate two of them. We saved two for dessert. By the time we got back to the Minnie we had walked 5 miles. It was a nice walk.  

Entrance to The Art Museum

For lunch we had soup and shared the other two donuts. We spent the rest of the day relaxing with a good book. I took a break from reading around 2:00 and walked around the park for an hour.

After dinner I walked for another hour. Then I finished my steps in place. I ended up doing 29,000 steps, which put me in 6th place in my group. I need another 5,500 steps to be caught up. We had a super day.