| The view out our camper door this morning - the Salmon River |
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The first part of the day's ride was too good to be true, following the Salmon River with stunning scenery, a tailwind, and a 20mph average for the first 50 miles on the day. The road took me right through the "Frank Church River of No Return" Wilderness. I'm pretty sure that if I had my own wilderness area, it'd have to be the "Jim Carpenter River of No Return" Wilderness, just because that name is so cool.
| The ride following the Salmon River (I'm the dot in the lower right corner) |
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Once I reached Challis I turned Southeast and started the only climb of the day - but one that went on for over 30 miles and picked up over 2000 feet. Scenery was quite different with a huge open basin (with US 92 right in the center) and huge peaks on both sides.
| Riding along beside the chase vehicle outside of Challis |
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| Entering into the Grand View Canyon |
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| The Mount Borah massif - the highest point in Idaho |
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| Campsite with a view outside of Mackay, Idaho |
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On arrival at the Mackay Reservoir campground we naturally went for a swim - a super-cold one . . . the reservoir is at over 6000 feet elevation so the water probably never gets all that toasty.
Our neighbors were Jim and Margaret Sullivan, from Pocatello (or "Pokie" as Jim called it). We shared a beer and some conversation in their camper and they gave us some trout that Jim caught this morning. Of course we cooked them up for dinner and had a fine feed.
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