July 22-24, 2013 South Fork of the Salmon River, Idaho

With the group gone I had to entertain myself. I checked out the trail across the river and found this miner’s home ruin. It was in the 90’s, so I did not try to hike until after sunset. I spent the day soaking in the cool river, napping and reading. Not so bad.

Miner’s home ruins. Lush foliage by the river on the trail.

The setting sun turned the river gold. I found this skull next to a burnt tree. Ominous looking.

Golden water. The next day I drove up the east fork of the south fork of the Salmon river. Phew. John said there were lots of forks in Idaho. I as going to drive to Yellow Pine, a tiny town 15 miles up the dirt road. I forgot to check the mileage when I left. I thought I had gone way too far and turned around. I checked the mileage on the way back and I think I was almost to it. Oh well.

Another fire started up the east fork. the real reason I turned around, this smoke was hard to breathe. I found this memorial on the way back for a helicopter crash, it killed the pilot and 3 repelling fire fighters in 2006. Very sad. These people risk their lives so that fires like this one don’t burn me up.

A beetle eating a flower, a gone by scarlet gila, the fire scarred trunk of a ponderosa pine, a thistle, thimble berry, penstamen, deer horn clarkia, and a seed pod.

Fireweed in front of a fire scarred tree- fire weed is one of the first flowers to come back after a fire, golden rod, ladies tresses, ladies tresses close up, st john’s wort, cinquefoil, and lichen.

The Audubon guide book of the Rocky Mountains says about Idaho: there is an enormous core of remote wild country—deep river gorges, high granite ridges and cirques, and dense forests. coniferous forests blanket about 45 percent of the state. We are in the middle of that and it is beautiful.  The only problem is that lots of it is on fire now. Boo.

Back at the bus, I started the next masterpiece.  Smoke in the air around the campground.

Smoke in the air around the old burn. The completed first piece for the next masterpiece.

I cooked homemade mac and cheese  for dinner after the crew returned. Dinner at sunset-which this time of year is 10 pm. Wet boat gear drying in the back ground. On the way out on the 30 mile, narrow one lane, steep and windy road we ran into about 25 big trucks with fire support, not all at once. At this spot we could not back up, it was steep and there was a sheer cliff on our side of the road. They had to back up so we could squeeze into the tiny pull off where they are and they went by.

The bus at the McCall RV park. Very nice park, trees, green, lots of room, excellent private bathrooms with slate tile on the floor, walls and counters, wild animal metal art on the walls. The log cabin lodge at the RV park.