From Nevada into Idaho - May 5

 

Thursday May 5 we continued our trek north headed out of Nevada and into Idaho.  We were following Interstate 93 travelling toward Interstate 84 where we’d head west.  I84 is also called the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway and runs along the magnificent Columbia River.  In the early part of the day we saw flat lands with small scrub brush bookmarked by snow capped mountains on the horizon.  It was a bit hard to stay awake at times because there wasn’t too much of interest to see, until we crossed into Idaho and headed west onto I84.  *Click on any picture to see it larger

Interstate 93

We took a small rest break over lunch in Jackpot, Nevada where HeyZeus and Heffay got out for a walk.  HeyZeus absolutely LOVED this part of our travels, stopping and opening the door to somewhere new.  We could see the excitement on his face and in his body language, not to mention his voice!  It was so cute! 

By mid afternoon we crossed into Idaho where we had another new experience, stopping at a “boat inspection station”.  I realize there are parts in Canada that also have these inspection stations.  Idaho was the first I’d seen them though.  There were a few along the route, the first one we came upon indicated all watercraft must stop.  So, because we had our kayak on the roof of the truck we pulled over.  Sure enough, a woman came out and did a walk around of the kayak checking for any weeds, barnacles, standing water etc - anything that could possibly pollute or contaminate the waters in Idaho if we launched there.  After passing the inspection she “tagged” our kayak gave us a letter for any future stops and we were on our way.  

Well, almost on our way.  While she was doing the inspection Dan noticed a State trooper parked at the edge of the parking lot.  He was strategically set up there to catch any passers by who had watercraft but did not stop.  Figuring he was having a boring day, Dan he went over to offer one of his paracord bracelets.  He had made many different kinds including some that were law enforcement inspired - black with a thin blue line woven through.  I forgot to mention it in the last post but Dan also gave the kind trooper who let us off with a warning the day prior a ‘thin blue line’ bracelet as well. The officer this day was very grateful and thanked him for the bracelet.  In return he gave Dan an Idaho State Police challenge coin.  Very cool!  

The terrain and weather conditions changed as we entered Idaho.  From flat scrub lands to wide canyons as we drove through Twin Falls.  At times the wind was brutal though, creating a fair amount of stress.  At one point we were contemplating stopping for the day at an upcoming rest stop but decided to push on a bit farther.  No sooner than we passed the turn for that rest stop did we drive through a downburst that nearly blew us off the road.  The wind and rain in the burst made it impossible to see anything at all.  It was like we were in the midst of a tornado, even if only for a brief period of time.  That was a super stressful event and had only added to the stress of driving most of the afternoon in high wind conditions.  We were grateful that we weren’t in back to back traffic when the down burst hit.  I’m sure there would have been an accident had that been the case.  After that experience, we learned to trust our gut and stop when we first considered it instead of pushing on. Mother nature can sure be powerful!

Twin Falls, Idaho

Snake River, Idaho

We stopped for the night at the Black Creek Rest Area just on the outskirts of Boise at around 5:30 although if felt only like 4:30 to us as we’d gained an hour during this leg.  It was a smaller rest station, but still very nice.  I’m always so impressed with how well kept the rest areas are across the US.  

Sadly, the wind was too brutal and prevented HeyZeus from getting his walk.  No way we want to risk him getting spooked and managing to get out of his harness this close to a busy highway.  It’s easy enough for him to do if he’s panicked and with high winds, that alone can set him into a frenzied state.  

The next day’s travel would take us further west along I84 headed toward Portland and from there we’d head north toward the US-Canada border for the last leg of our journey.

Google Maps view of the Black Creek Rest Area

Black Creek Rest Area
Boise, Idaho

Our spot for the night.  
By the time it was dark the entire parking lot was full of truckers
along with a few other and RV’ers

Schellbourne Rest Area, Ely NV to Black Creek Rest Area, Boise Idaho

Total miles driven - 329 miles - a long day of driving!

Total cost of fuel - $153 US (29 gal) approx $200 Cdn

Until next time / Hasta la proxima vez!