The next day after leaving Torrey’s Inn was quite uneventful. For hours, I drove along the Salmon River. It rained the whole time while driving through northern Idaho. To make matters worse, Montana greeted us with constant torrential down pours. Because of the rain, we stopped short of our goal of reaching Glarcier National Park before night fall.
The next morning we got an early start and reached Glacier National Park before noon. I wasted little time in getting a place to stay before we went to explore the park. The weather forecast had predicted rain for the next couple of days, but this morning it look promising because it was partly cloudy for most of the day. I hiked to this lake call Avalanche Lake. It was a 3 mile strenuous hike up hill through this beautiful dense rain forest of cedar trees. The trail started at the Going-to-the-Sun Road a few miles north of Upper McDonald Falls, and goes along Avalanche Creek until you get to Avalanche Lake. The lake was situated at the base of some very high alpine mountains on all side with long waterfalls everywhere as a result of the melt off of snow. The place was simply spectacular and it made the hard hike well worth the effort.
An hour later, I got back to the car, and by that time it was late and it was raining hard. So, I decided to call it a day, and return back to the place.
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Leaving Ketchum, Idaho and heading for Glacier National Park, Montana
After cruising Sun Valley Resort, we headed north for Montana. We went through Sawtooth National Forest. The road we were on ran through a valley in between the Sawtooth Mountain Range on one side and the Boulder Mountain Range on the other. It was some the most beautiful country I have ever seen.
For lunch, I stopped off at the Smiley Creek Lodge. It was a cool little place off route 75 at the base of the Sawtooth Mountain range. Like I always make a habit of doing whenever I stop at unfamiliar places, I asked the waitress what was cool to do around here. She told me about several lakes in the area and how to get to them. Since there were a couple of lakes that were not too far out of the way to Montana, I decided to check it out.
The first one I visited was Petti Lake. It was right where the waitress back at the lodge said it was. It was a small beautiful lake surrounded by tall pines and right at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains. Unfortunately, clouds were starting to form over head. The sun slowly disappeared behind the clouds and scatter showers were happening everywhere.
When I arrived and got out of the car and walked to the water’s edge, it was a little cool and windy. Not enough to warren a sweatshirt, but enough for the occasional shiver. There were several kayaks on the beach with a few people and dogs standing around. One of the gentlemen there approached me and asked if I wanted to kayak for a while for free of charge. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Even though it was cold, there was no way I was about to pass up a rare opportunity like this.
After signing a waver, I found myself cruising at battle speed through the cool clear waters of Petti Lake. The view from the middle of the lake was simply indescribable. The closes I could come to describing this experience was spectacular at most. An hour later, we said our goodbyes to the nice folks I met at Petti Lake. Our next stop was Redfish Lake which was just a few miles down the road just before the small river side town of Stanley.
Redfish Lake was not as eventful as Petti Lake. Nonetheless, the scenery was just as spectacular. Afterwards, I headed to Stanley because I had heard river rafting was great there. Stanley is situated right on the great Salmon River. The Salmon River is prefect for rafting. It’s not slow, yet from what I can tell, It didn’t have any really bad white water spots. Unfortunately, every hotel, motel, and lodge was booked up solid, so I continued on to Montana disappointed.
For miles, I drove on a windy road that went alone side of the Salmon River with tall hills and mountain walls covered with dark green pines rising high on both sides of the great river. The scenery was simply unbelievable. The weather was getting worse. Now it was raining, and I didn’t want to be on wet windy mountain roads if I didn’t have to. Suddenly, I came across this cool looking lodge with cabins that were right on the bank of the Salmon River call Torrey’s Burnt Creek Inn.
Torrey’s Inn was practically vacant. I had my choice of what I wanted. I got this really cool cabin with a kitchen, dinner room area, living room, and separate bedroom all for a very reasonable price. The owners of the place and I became very close because Bob, the owner, was a former beagle owner. He told that Elk were abundant in the area and after asking, he kindly gave me several Elk steaks to grill for the evening for free.
That night and the next morning was the first time on the whole trip that I walked my dogs packing a gun. Bob had told me that wolves were in the area and they wouldn’t hesitate to attack my dogs, but he went on to say that because that it was late in spring, that the wolves are most likely following the Elk into the high country. Nonetheless, I took my 9mm with me just in case. When I told Bob of this, he said that it wasn’t a bad idea because in this country, you just never know.
I love the idea that I was in this type of country, a country where the wilderness and wildlife still had a say on what lives and what doesn’t. In this country, bears, mountain lions, and wolves, next to man, rule. It was nice to know that such a place still exist in America.
The next morning I left Torrey’s Inn for Glacier National Park. I’m really going to miss this place. I thought it was the coolest place on earth. I felt so fortunate to have stumble on such a place. It was place where wildlife was plentiful and humans were few, and if one wasn’t careful, one might lose one’s life.
For lunch, I stopped off at the Smiley Creek Lodge. It was a cool little place off route 75 at the base of the Sawtooth Mountain range. Like I always make a habit of doing whenever I stop at unfamiliar places, I asked the waitress what was cool to do around here. She told me about several lakes in the area and how to get to them. Since there were a couple of lakes that were not too far out of the way to Montana, I decided to check it out.
The first one I visited was Petti Lake. It was right where the waitress back at the lodge said it was. It was a small beautiful lake surrounded by tall pines and right at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains. Unfortunately, clouds were starting to form over head. The sun slowly disappeared behind the clouds and scatter showers were happening everywhere.
When I arrived and got out of the car and walked to the water’s edge, it was a little cool and windy. Not enough to warren a sweatshirt, but enough for the occasional shiver. There were several kayaks on the beach with a few people and dogs standing around. One of the gentlemen there approached me and asked if I wanted to kayak for a while for free of charge. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Even though it was cold, there was no way I was about to pass up a rare opportunity like this.
After signing a waver, I found myself cruising at battle speed through the cool clear waters of Petti Lake. The view from the middle of the lake was simply indescribable. The closes I could come to describing this experience was spectacular at most. An hour later, we said our goodbyes to the nice folks I met at Petti Lake. Our next stop was Redfish Lake which was just a few miles down the road just before the small river side town of Stanley.
Redfish Lake was not as eventful as Petti Lake. Nonetheless, the scenery was just as spectacular. Afterwards, I headed to Stanley because I had heard river rafting was great there. Stanley is situated right on the great Salmon River. The Salmon River is prefect for rafting. It’s not slow, yet from what I can tell, It didn’t have any really bad white water spots. Unfortunately, every hotel, motel, and lodge was booked up solid, so I continued on to Montana disappointed.
For miles, I drove on a windy road that went alone side of the Salmon River with tall hills and mountain walls covered with dark green pines rising high on both sides of the great river. The scenery was simply unbelievable. The weather was getting worse. Now it was raining, and I didn’t want to be on wet windy mountain roads if I didn’t have to. Suddenly, I came across this cool looking lodge with cabins that were right on the bank of the Salmon River call Torrey’s Burnt Creek Inn.
Torrey’s Inn was practically vacant. I had my choice of what I wanted. I got this really cool cabin with a kitchen, dinner room area, living room, and separate bedroom all for a very reasonable price. The owners of the place and I became very close because Bob, the owner, was a former beagle owner. He told that Elk were abundant in the area and after asking, he kindly gave me several Elk steaks to grill for the evening for free.
That night and the next morning was the first time on the whole trip that I walked my dogs packing a gun. Bob had told me that wolves were in the area and they wouldn’t hesitate to attack my dogs, but he went on to say that because that it was late in spring, that the wolves are most likely following the Elk into the high country. Nonetheless, I took my 9mm with me just in case. When I told Bob of this, he said that it wasn’t a bad idea because in this country, you just never know.
I love the idea that I was in this type of country, a country where the wilderness and wildlife still had a say on what lives and what doesn’t. In this country, bears, mountain lions, and wolves, next to man, rule. It was nice to know that such a place still exist in America.
The next morning I left Torrey’s Inn for Glacier National Park. I’m really going to miss this place. I thought it was the coolest place on earth. I felt so fortunate to have stumble on such a place. It was place where wildlife was plentiful and humans were few, and if one wasn’t careful, one might lose one’s life.
Second day in Ketchum, Idaho – hiking Bald Mountain.
Our next day in Ketchum was another glorious one. It was a prefect day for hiking. Bald Mountain is a tall steep mountain, yet the trail zig-zagged alone the mountain side through wooden pines made the hike somewhat bearable. After all, in the winter time this is the prefect place for skiing.
While hiking to the top of the mountain, Snapper picked up a deer and began to chase it from one end of the mountain to the other. Suddenly the mountain was filled with the sound of Snapper’s wicked baying. True to form and one hour later, Snapper had herded the deer back to the spot where Comet and I were patiently waiting at. If I had been on a deer hunting trip, I would have nailed that deer for it came so close to me and there was no way I could have missed it with a deer rifle. I was so glad to see the tired worn-out superb tracker. He was so thirsty that he couldn’t bay except for an occasional feeble bay. He practically ran down the mountain to get a drink of water. It was the funniest thing I have ever seen. When we got back to the Big Wood River that runs along the base of Bald Mountain, I thought Snapper was going to drink the great river dry.
That evening was uneventful for we were so sore and tired from hiking. I was hoping to go into to town and part take of some of the bars and taverns that I passed by while looking for my dogs the evening before. But, it was not to be.
The next day, we leave for Glacier National Park in Montana.
While hiking to the top of the mountain, Snapper picked up a deer and began to chase it from one end of the mountain to the other. Suddenly the mountain was filled with the sound of Snapper’s wicked baying. True to form and one hour later, Snapper had herded the deer back to the spot where Comet and I were patiently waiting at. If I had been on a deer hunting trip, I would have nailed that deer for it came so close to me and there was no way I could have missed it with a deer rifle. I was so glad to see the tired worn-out superb tracker. He was so thirsty that he couldn’t bay except for an occasional feeble bay. He practically ran down the mountain to get a drink of water. It was the funniest thing I have ever seen. When we got back to the Big Wood River that runs along the base of Bald Mountain, I thought Snapper was going to drink the great river dry.
That evening was uneventful for we were so sore and tired from hiking. I was hoping to go into to town and part take of some of the bars and taverns that I passed by while looking for my dogs the evening before. But, it was not to be.
The next day, we leave for Glacier National Park in Montana.
Snapper enjoying a nice head pat from Ann, the owner of Torrey's Inn. The dog behind Ann is hers and is a Newfoundland, named Lucy. Ann, is a real wilderness person. She has and manages her own horses, as well as, running and maintaining the Inn. She was an incrediable woman to say the least. Salmon River, ID.
Leaving Teton Village – First day in Sun Valley, Idaho
After doing some blogging at my favorite coffee shop in Jackson, the pups and I headed for the ski resort of Sun Valley, Idaho. The route we took, took us through the Targhee National Forest, Swan Valley, and by the Crater of the Moon National Park. Plus, we went through Arco, Idaho which was the first city in America to get electricity from nuclear power.
My first night in Ketchum, Idaho which is right next to Sun Valley was a memorable one to say the least. After some exploring of the nearby terrain, I walked the pups to a nearby store. I secure them to what I thought was a secure post and then I went inside. Moments later, the pups dragged the post off through the parking lot until they separated themselves from it and then they commenced to run scared and loose through downtown streets of Ketchum.
Shortly afterwards, Snapper was returned to me by a caring young lady. The puppy on the other hand was still yet to be found. As the minutes ticked by, I began to think that all hope of getting her back would be lost.
Then I remember something that another beagle owner once told me when I was at the Smoky Mountains National Park a few weeks earlier. He said that a beagle when lost will usually return back to a familiar location where their master was once at. So, I immediately drove to the first place we went to after first arriving at Ketchum. It was a field that was right next to the place we were staying at the base of Bald Mountain.
When I got there and sure enough, there she was sitting and waiting in the middle of the field. I couldn’t believe it, and I was truly relieved to see her there. Once again, we were a complete family. No one on this earth could have been happier then me on that evening in Ketchum, Idaho.
The next morning we would hike up Bald Mountain.
My first night in Ketchum, Idaho which is right next to Sun Valley was a memorable one to say the least. After some exploring of the nearby terrain, I walked the pups to a nearby store. I secure them to what I thought was a secure post and then I went inside. Moments later, the pups dragged the post off through the parking lot until they separated themselves from it and then they commenced to run scared and loose through downtown streets of Ketchum.
Shortly afterwards, Snapper was returned to me by a caring young lady. The puppy on the other hand was still yet to be found. As the minutes ticked by, I began to think that all hope of getting her back would be lost.
Then I remember something that another beagle owner once told me when I was at the Smoky Mountains National Park a few weeks earlier. He said that a beagle when lost will usually return back to a familiar location where their master was once at. So, I immediately drove to the first place we went to after first arriving at Ketchum. It was a field that was right next to the place we were staying at the base of Bald Mountain.
When I got there and sure enough, there she was sitting and waiting in the middle of the field. I couldn’t believe it, and I was truly relieved to see her there. Once again, we were a complete family. No one on this earth could have been happier then me on that evening in Ketchum, Idaho.
The next morning we would hike up Bald Mountain.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)