Bear Lake, Utah to American Falls, Idaho

We had never heard of Bear Lake before but it looked like a good stopping place on our way to Craters of the Moon and the Sawtooths, so we gave it a shot. We came in on the southeast side of the lake and the first state park camping area was right there:  Rendezvous Beach.  This was our idea of exactly what we don't want in a place to stay:  millions of people crowded into what looked like party city!  We headed up to Garden City and pulled into a store that sold raspberry shakes.  Since it was hot and this place is famous for their raspberries, we partook! We swear it even beat a chocolate malt-it was that good!  Also bought some wonderful raspberry jalapeño jelly.  When we returned to Maxine and our Honda, we discovered that the Honda's battery was drained (something to do with the hookup procedure-silly mistake that we won't make again).  So, we unhooked, jumped the car and took off with me in the Honda and Jim in Maxine.  We do this when we are not going far and we were hopeful we'd find something on the other side of the lake.  At the north end is the Bear Lake Wildlife Refuge where we saw lots of water birds and an osprey.  Then we passed by the state park on the north side, which was not as bad as the south side, but too crowded for us.  We passed into Utah again and found a wonderful primitive, private campground and snagged a spot right on the lake-the angels were with us!

And, what do you know- this beach is known for their Cisco
fish, which is found nowhere else in the world-and, no, we
did not fish.  Our fishing license is for Idaho.  Who knew
we'd end up in Utah!  And, if only we had brought our
snorkeling gear!

Our campsite

My own piece of eye candy, as Erik Eslick calls Jim.

So amazingly clear and it looks calm but I had some
trouble getting in and out, balance wise.  It is a bummer
being an old lady!  But I can still swim with the best of them
once I get into the water.  Walking on these stones was
challenging.

This lake is known as the Caribbean of the West because
of its gorgeous turquoise color.  You can't tell from the
pictures, but the color is unbelievable for this part of
the world.  The mountains take on a pinkish hue at night.

Dinner for two-and Boo

 The weather was wonderful the whole time we were here.  It was warm during the days and cool at night.  And, yes, I am a nut for sunsets-these did not disappoint!

It may sound boring but we spent our time here swimming, reading, writing a bit and doing some painting.  The time flew by!

We stayed much longer than we had planned but wanted to get out of there for the weekend, as the campground host said it got very crowded, and that just isn't our style.

We traveled along parts of the California and Oregon Trails, starting at the National Oregon/California Trail Center in Montpelier, Idaho.  They do living history tours and have exhibits about the trails.  We were aware of the Oregon Trail, having bypassed it many times in our travels, but hadn't been that familiar with the California one.  Between 1841 and 1869 more than a quarter million people crossed the plains and mountains to look for gold in California.  Because of a depressed economy in the east and the lure of "Manifest Destiny", many dreamed of instant wealth and a lush California climate.  The California Trail eventually offered many different ways of crossing the west, as did the Oregon Trail and in some places they intersected.  The deserts, prairies, canyons and rugged mountains made the California Trail the most difficult of all the overland trails.  I was surprised to hear that there were guidebooks or "waybills" published as soon as the trail opened to guide the emigrants west.  Also, although this land was home to many Indian nations, there were very few altercations with them.  Mostly, Indians helped guide emigrants along the route.  Conflicts increased in the 1850s and 60s when the travelers and their livestock destroyed so much of the Indian food sources.  In 1869 the railroads connecting the east with the west signaled the end of wagon trails.  We have seen the ruts which have been preserved for 150 years.  A pretty amazing part of our history!

I drove and Jim researched RV parks along the way because we badly needed a little time for a billion loads of laundry we had accumulated and we wanted WiFi so I could catch up on the blog and he could do some banking and other "very important business".  So we came upon American Falls, Idaho, a huge reservoir outside of Pocatello.

The best part were the hollyhocks across the road from us
and a little view of the Reservoir.

We had a surprisingly private site at the end which had a
huge lawn area.

Only trouble was.....the trains ran every hour throughout
the day and night!  Thank god for ear plugs.

There were two dryers and one washer that were all occupied when I got there.  I staked the place out and got my stuff in there in a hurry when they cleared out, but it took a good part of the day. Luckily, there was a little Cafe on the site where Jim could hang out with his computer and I could come join him between washes, drying and folding.  I cannot tell you how many quarters I used-it is just unbelievable!

We walked down to the boat launch that evening, watched
the sunset and crawled into bed early.

I can't end a blog without a picture of the sweetest dog
in the whole world.  Here he is stealing my pillows
the minute I got out of bed.  And we always tell him,
"It's moving day, Boo!  Better pack up and get ready to
hit the road!"