Upper Midwest Tour Day 34 and 35, Aug 12 & 13

The last post of our trip, mostly two days of driving.  We left Saturday morning from the hopping, busy town of West Yellowstone (evidently this is where tourists go if they can't get reservations inside the park) and drove, mostly on back roads, to Boise, ID.  Our only stop other than for gasoline was the Picabo Store.  The store is just before the turn north to Ketchum and Sun Valley.  It is mostly a fishing/hunting supply store, but Kirk Hall messaged us that they also make great sandwiches.   Since we were on our way to stay with Kirk and his wife, Betsy, we bought Kirk a sandwich.

We arrived at Betsy and Kirk's house around 4:30 pm, and, since we had been in the car all day, we unloaded our bikes for a 8.5-mile ride along the Boise River.  Kirk led the way, along the south bank, past Boise State University to the western edge of Boise.  The summertime "Boise Float" was in full swing and there were hundreds of people floating the river.  I am sure there was lots of beer drinking that added to the fun.  At the western end, we crossed over the river at a park with a standing wave pool -- youngsters were trying their hand at surfing the wave.  We cycled along the north side of the river, stopping at the Human Rights Memorial, which was relatively new, and sponsored by a friend of Betsy's.  I have attached a few photos.

An apt quote from a very smart man.

Anne Frank part of the Memorial.

One of two seating areas - beautiful stone work.

We had snacks and drinks after cycling -- to cool off and rehydrate. Then we walked to dinner at a neighborhood restaurant, sitting outside on the patio.  We had great conversations about all manner of stuff.  Kirk and I stayed up late trading our shared medical experiences.

Yesterday, after a leisurely breakfast, we said thank you to Betsy and Kirk, and drove home to Portland, via the Interstate.  Kirk recommended a short "off interstate" route to avoid the steep downhill and big semi trucks at Cabbage Hill coming off the Blue Mountains.  We took this route, stopping at the top, for a snack and great views in all directions..  Only two cars passed by on the road.  We had stopped in Baker for gasoline and, after filling up, drove along the main street, finding a wonderful bakery and cafe.  We bought some treats and I got a coffee.

The rest of the drive was uneventful.  On these last few days of driving, we listened to two more Walt Longmire audio books, which helped pass the time.  Craig Johnson, the author, is a great writer of dialog and his 16 books in the series may become the modern day classic for "cowboy" novels.  

We arrived in Portland about 4:00 pm, and unpacked the car in the heat -- 100 degrees.  Our timings unfortunate -- West Yellowstone was in the 70's.  It is Monday morning in Portland at 11 am and it's already 86 degrees,  heading for 105 degrees.