The Sawtooth Mountains and the Salmon River. Idaho

I got some good advice from a friend in Boise and traveled up RT 21 from Boise thru Idaho City, an old mining town and up a curvy road towards Stanley ID. There was lots of evidence of forest fires and I now have a whole new appreciation of what it must be like trying to fight them in that type of terrain. I crossed a couple of passes at progressively higher elevations with the highest at 7200 ft or so. The mountains that surround the passes go up to 10,000 ft or so. I had started in Boise at about 2500 ft (I think)

About 15 miles from Stanley you come out on to a high plain and there is some farming but it is sparse and looks very dry. Steve had suggested that I turn south for a few miles to Redfish Lake. It is apparently the spawning ground for the Sockeye Salmon and they are a protected species and have been since 1991.

The lake is beautiful and there were campgrounds and people in the lake swimming.
The drive from there to Challis ID where I spent the night follows the Salmon river or at least some of the branches of the Salmon river. At some points it is in a significant gorge and at others spreads out.




 

                                                        Note the lack of guard rail!!

The road passes thru Clayton ID with a claimed population of 23! Not much else to be said!

 












Coming in to Challis there is evidence of irrigated fields and I think they are growing alphalpha (how do you spell it anyway!). I have not seen any dairies (there are LOTS of huge dairies in Idaho) so maybe they are growing and selling to those dairies. I know in some places they export the alphalpha to Japan!

Challis is not a very exciting place but certainly the business center for the area and the county seat.

I took a walk this morning and it presented a couple of random photo opportunities. Enjoy

No doubt here as to what they mean!!

Idaho Travel Trailer