I went to Idaho to ride with Mill.

[Nice Goat]

Brian, thank you for the report and photos.  I have now added Idaho to my riding list!

[Brian A]

Thanks guys. I appreciate the kind words.

Still a little more to go before we rolled back into Mill's driveway.

Hope to post the final installments today or tomorrow.

[Brian A]

The brief stop to take the photo of the little lake had been in The Salmon-Challis National Forest.

The Salmon-Challis is 4.2 million acres of what-you-see-is-what-you-get wilderness. The Salmon River Canyon is one of the deepest gorges in the US. While not as wide as The Grand Canyon, and lacking the sheer walls, it is deeper than The Grand Canyon. Idaho's highest peak, Borah Peak, rises 12,662 feet and is inside the Salmon-Challis.

Our ride on down out of the mountains would take us back through a section of the Boise National Forest.

Looking back at my Garmin tracks, we had ridden though:

Boise National Forest
Salmon-Challis National Forest
Payette National Forest
Sawtooth National Forest
Selway-Bitteroot Wilderness Area
Frank Church - River of No Return Wilderness Area

(side note - it really frustrates me that we can manage essentially nothing of the sort here in Alabama. Really frustrating...)

We hit asphalt, Highway 21 - The Ponderosa Scenic Byway, and headed SW back toward Boise. Highway 21 was a spectacular road. And I mean really, really good. Apparently a large section had been recently paved, the surface was great and it was mile after mile after mile of curvy, twisty, awesome "sporty" riding.

We climbed in elevation then dropped down, then back up , then back down. I had a good time on the KLR, pretending it was more sporty than it was, and riding accordingly.

We stopped along the way at a small roadside pull-out with a restroom. Just past where we were stopped was this sign.



As we rode though the area past the sign and gate, the walls of the gorge were steep and close to the road. I saw several area where many trees were leaned way over, pointing downhill, apparently the victims of past avalanches.

It wasn't too long before you could begin to tell.... we were getting back to "civilization". Traffic grew heavier and the two lane highway became a divided four lane.

Not far from Boise we rode along the edge of Lucky Peak Lake. It is a man-made lake, with a big earthen dam used to hold back the waters of The Boise River.

Lucky Peak dam was built in the early 50's with its primary roles being flood control and irrigation. It is a pretty area and popular for all sorts of recreation.

The water was real low in the upper section of the lake. Looked like some folks had been having fun.







The four lane highway lead us on to an entrance ramp to Interstate 84, then Interstate 184, then an exit onto North Curtis Road and a few miles of surface streets before we pulled into Mill's driveway.

585 miles
Lowest Elevation = 2,394 feet ASL
Highest Elevation = 9,350 feet ASL

 
The trip to Colorado  a month earlier had been a load of fun. Great riding with great buddies.
But Idaho had been been different.

Just me and Mill.
Less "intense". 
Less challenging from a technical/skills demanding standpoint.

But, for me, I think it was more rewarding.
More impactful.
More intimate.

And there is always that Bucket List item. The one I hadn't realized was on my Bucket List.

Curious as I type this, I visited the Sawtooth Web Cam.

Sunset in Stanley. Sunday afternoon, November 8, 2015.
The Sawtooth Mountains.



It's early in the planning stages now, but I hope to ride in Alaska next summer. I have wanted to for years and I figure I ain't getting any younger so might as well do it. God willing and circumstances allow it, I'll be able to fulfill a dream next summer.


Dr. Thomas Gilovich is a psychology professor at Cornell University. His research is interesting and has served, on a personal level, to reinforce my views of myself and life.

"There's a very logical assumption that most people make when spending their money: that because a physical object will last longer, it will make us happier for a longer time than a one-off experience like a concert or vacation. According to recent research, it turns out that assumption is completely wrong.

"One of the enemies of happiness is adaptation," says Dr. Gilovich. "We buy things to make us happy, and we succeed. But only for a while. New things are exciting to us at first, but then we adapt to them."

"Our experiences are a bigger part of ourselves than our material goods," says Gilovich. "You can really like your material stuff. You can even think that part of your identity is connected to those things, but nonetheless they remain separate from you. In contrast, your experiences really are part of you. We are the sum total of our experiences." "

Or as I like to say.....

"Just go."

[Fencejumper09]

Thank you for taking the time to write up this amazing report! It is truly inspiring to see what is available within our own country! I know it is an excuse but once I get my student loans paid off I will be ready to head out on adventures like this!

I may not have met you yet but, after reports like this, I know I would enjoy riding with you!


Thank you!

[Brian A]

I know it is an excuse but once I get my student loans paid off I will be ready to head out on adventures like this!

Maybe not an excuse.
Maybe a legit reason.

Life has its share of obligations and responsibilities. I am a firm believer in owning up to those.

But, when circumstances allow, going and seeing and "living" is, to me, one of life's greatest rewards.

[Mulley]

Nice report. I enjoyed following along and seeing Idaho from your point of view. I had a very different trip there in a different part of the state. It's cool to see a new perspective. I did the more exhausting, higher difficulty trails and covered nearly 1900 miles in 8 days. Both are excellent rides and great experiences just different. I also didn't write a report. I almost never do and I always regret it.

[Brian A]

Both are excellent rides and great experiences just different.

Mine was better

I also didn't write a report.

Because you are a bum.

I almost never do and I always regret it.

You should regret it. You bum.


Srsly, I do think a lot of what determines the level of satisfaction one gets from most any ride has to do with expectations and desires going in.

As I mentioned earlier, by design, I did not want to spend a lot of time covering a relatively short distance in Idaho.
Mission accomplished.  It really was a wonderful, rewarding 3 days.

I also think there is something else applies that is kinda hard to quantify. Maybe best summed up as "mental state" or "frame of mind". Akin to expectations and desires but less tangible.

I think I was in the frame of mind to really appreciate what I saw and experienced in Idaho. In the wake of our riding in Colorado I was ready to take it all a wee bit slower.

In Colorado, riding was "the end". All else served as a means to get me/us to that end. We were there to ride. And we did. And it really was great. (Lest anyone think otherwise - we had an AWESOME time riding in Colorado and yes, I would go back.)

In Idaho, riding was the means to an end. Without any doubt the experiences - for me - would not have been nearly as rewarding had I not been on a motorcycle. But I was, and riding served to get me to the times and places that scratched an itch.

I hope the ride report served to give a decent glimpse into what that itch was.

[klaviator]

Wow, this is a really outstanding ride report!  You really captured some great stuff in your pictures but what really makes your report(s) stand out is your write up.  I really enjoy reading not only your description of the ride but just as important the thoughts you share with us. 

So, will your report motivate me to go out on my own adventure?  Will it inspire me to go to Idaho? 

I already have the ride/travel bug.  I will go on more adventures.  I don't know if a dual sport ride to Idaho is in the cards for me.  Maybe, but my bucket list is pretty long already.  I certainly will go there if the opportunity arises. 

What you report really inspires me to do is to do better ride reports myself.  Your photography and even more your writing are benchmarks I can aim for.  Like you I really like sharing my adventures with others.  I also enjoy having my trips recorded so I can look back at those trips in the future as well being able to share them with friends and maybe someday my grand kids.   

When I went out west this summer some of the places I rode where the same as a ride I had done about 25 years earlier.  It was amazing how much I had forgotten during that time.  A ride report really helps preserve those memories well into the future.

Maybe I'll make I'll get the chance to Dual sport Idaho and maybe not.  Either way I'll have had the chance to enjoy it through your pics and words.  Thanks for taking the time to do this report.

[Brian A]

Thanks. I understand exactly where you are coming from.

One's dream ride or adventure ride or whatever ride need not align itself with any other person's ride.
It need only be the ride for the one who throws his or her leg over the seat and twists the throttle, and when it is a ride that sears your brain with memories like a branding iron sears a bull's hind quarter, the results are the same: a permanent mark is made.

In the case of the ride and the memories, while there is a real financial cost associated with the ride, the value of the memories cannot be calculated.


I remembered earlier today that I have several video clips. Actually about a dozen or so.

I'll parse those down and put together a few minutes of video to share. Stay tuned.

[Brian A]

Work has been hectic so no video compilation yet,

But, I did run across this.
After two mornings getting up and going at Mill's place, I think he needs one of these.

[springer]

Work has been hectic so no video compilation yet,

But, I did run across this.
After two mornings getting up and going at Mill's place, I think he needs one of these.

There are days when I need that!  ;)

[Brian A]

Finally.

Finally I took the time to throw together a video of Idaho stuff.

I think most of the pics were in the ride report, but first time for sharing the video.

It's sort of a quick-and-dirty job.

Nothing flashy or high tech. Just good stuff.  A lot like Idaho!

[Brian A]

on a related subject....

I never did a ride report for the Colorado trip.

Here is the video from our week there. You can get a feel for the difference in what and how we rode.
(Watching the video reminds me... Colorado really was a good time!)

[KevinB]

"Let The Good Times Roll"...while riding a Kawasaki.




Good stuff Brian!

[Brian A]

"Let The Good Times Roll"...while riding a Kawasaki.

I never even noticed that.

But since you did.....