Idaho - August 2023
Potatoes.
When I told people I was going to Idaho, they’d ask, “What’s in Idaho?” and I’d say, “Potatoes.”
In reality, though, there weren’t anymore potatoes in Idaho than New Jersey. Maybe they tasted better? But more likely that was just psychological. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I was almost imagining we’d be driving and there’d be potato stands on the side of the road. You know, like how there are random farm stands on the side of the road in NJ. There were no such potato stands, and I was a little disappointed (even though no one told me they existed and I just made up this expectation in my mind).
Idaho is an underrated state. It has joined the list of My Favorite States and I would certainly go back. I think part of it’s appeal is that it’s relatively untouched. No one goes to Idaho for fun (except me and one other group of guys we met on the trail). In fact, everyone else we met on our trip was there to visit family or went to Idaho for school. Well, I went to Idaho for the mountains, and I’m here to tell you, you should too!
Honestly, I learned about the Sawtooth Mountains on Instagram. I love off the beaten path kinds of places and raw beauty, and this place had it. I hope that as helpful as social media was for me to find this place, that it doesn’t start to get inundated with tourists, because I’m not sure it has the resources to support that. The town of Stanley is the gateway to the Sawtooths, and according to a sign we saw while we were there, it has a population of 77 people. The town is made up of a couple hotels (more like motels), a bakery (the place for breakfast), a couple restaurants, a library, post office, a gas station and general store. That’s it. Oh, and a road that I rhetorically wondered out loud where it goes, and Kevin responded - verbatim, “It probably goes someplace else.” Thanks, Kevin.
Since we went backpacking in 2018, Kevin and I purchased gear in hopes of backpacking again soon. I think part of what took us so long is that it didn’t feel right to go without Ben. He was our leader the first time around and we wouldn’t have backpacked ever if it weren’t for him. It’s scary to go out there - literally into the wild - with no option to bail if you can’t hack it. He made us feel safe, (even though he chose an extremely challenging trail for us the first day) and we had so much fun.
I did a lot of research on trails for backpacking and day hikes, and other things to do that aren’t hiking. I learned that Idaho is known for hot springs
I found a trail that seemed doable for beginners - the Alice-Toxaway Loop. It’s about 18 miles, and I figured we could do six miles a day for three days, or extend it to four days if we were struggling. So, I started planning our adventure. It would be Kevin, Chris, Ariel and myself.
I’ve refined my planning style over time. I’m always the one that does the research and planning and others are along for the ride, which is fine. But, before, I used to plan what I wanted to do, and if it was a bust or too difficult, it would be my fault. Now I bring options and let the people choose - that way it’s their fault and not mine.
Itinerary:
August 11: Travel to Boise
There are no direct flights from Newark to Boise or even Philadelphia to Boise. Because Kevin and I would be flying from NJ, and Chris and Ariel would be flying from LA, we planned our flights to arrive in Boise around the same time. Kevin and I ended up flying out of Philly early in the AM, so we stayed in a Springhill Suites outside PHL the night before, which also allowed us to park our car there for free while we were away. We had a layover in Minneapolis-St. Paul - what a cool airport! We killed time bouncing around the different shops - good ones too. We arrived in Boise at 13:40 and Chris and Ariel landed shortly after us. We did our thing and met Chris and Ariel at baggage claim. After we had all twelve of our bags, we had to wait for our rental car to become available.
We got lunch at a sub-par pizza place, went to REI to purchase fuel for our camping stoves, got groceries and by the time we were ready to hit the road to Stanley it was 17:00. I had initially planned on stopping at a hot spring on the way, but because of the rental car wait, it was too late for that. We drove straight to Mountain Village Resort in Stanley. Upon checking in, I got Stevie Budd/Rose Budd Motel vibes. In small towns, things close early. Luckily, the restaurant affiliated with our hotel was still open, Mountain Village Restaurant.
At dinner, we discussed our plans for the next day. The options for day one was either a day hike to Goat Lake, or driving out a little and doing a day hike to Goldbug Hot Springs, both of which were four miles in and four miles out. The people chose Goat Lake, and we could also get the hot spring experience in Stanley. As it turned out, our hotel had a hot spring - I had read about a hot spring that is owned by a hotel and you need to stay there to use it, but didn’t put two and two together that we were actually staying there. Nice! We made a reservation to use the hot spring the next day after our hike. After dinner, we made some sammies, packed our day packs and got things ready for the next day.
August 12: Goat Lake
I know that best practice is to get to the trailhead as early as possible to 1) find a parking space and 2) beat the crowds. Getting people to wake up in the morning is one of the hardest tasks. Needless to say, we got a late start and parked a quarter mile away from the trailhead parking lot - which would later turn out to be to our disadvantage.
We learned there is a water fill station (potable water) behind the gas station across the street, so we filled all our water bottles and water bladders there.
Our first stop of the day was to Stanley Baking Co. I am a fan of pastries, and everyone recommended this place to fuel up before a day of adventuring. I got a blueberry scone and it was delightful. Iron Creek trailhead was about fifteen minutes from town. Like I said, we parked a little ways away from the trailhead. At the trailhead, you have to fill out a permit (no need to apply for permits ahead of time, but day hikers and backpackers are required to have a permit).
There are multiple trails that start from this trailhead, so be careful to follow the correct trail. We missed a turn and had to backtrack to get back onto the correct trail. There is a sign that points left toward Marshall Lake - we were supposed to turn here, and just after that is a water crossing.
Within the first mile, one of Chris’ hiking boots broke - the sole came off almost completely. He used the opportunity to change into his Tevas (we had all brought hiking sandals with us in case we jumped in the lake). As he was wrapping his laces to pack up his boots, he realized that the other shoe had lost its sole completely! It’s a good thing we had sandals!
The trail brings you past Williams Peak. Soon after this, the official trail itself veers to the right, but the trail to Goat Lake continues straight. There will be a large rock face on your right. Some blogs will tell you to climb it - we did not. We continued on the trail and went up and around the rock face. It is steep in some places and requires scrambling, but the 60-something year old woman in the group of women we befriended on the trail was able to do it. After the scramble, it becomes more exposed as you climb steeply up the scree. In my opinion, this was the hardest part. After this section, you have the option to climb the boulder field (which we started and did not like because it seemed really easy to get lost) or follow the trail to the left of the boulder field. Finally, you’ll start to hear water and see a stream on your right, indicating you’re almost there! Keep putting one foot in front of the other until the lake comes into view!
People backpack Goat Lake, and there are sites scattered along the lake. The water is incredibly blue and cold - it is an alpine lake.
We treated ourselves to lunch at the lake and just relaxed for a couple hours before heading back down.
Coming down was less challenging from the cardiovascular aspect, but more challenging from the coordination aspect. What I mean by that is that going down the scree when it’s steep is a little sketchy. I kind of “skied” down it. But the views are unbeatable even as you hike down - you can even see the town of Stanley and the White Cloud Mountains.
Goat Lake is one of the most popular hikes in the area. It is hard. Our muscles were fatigued and we’d be sore. Maybe not the best choice before backpacking, but I don’t regret it. We had made a reservation for the hot spring that evening, which was much anticipated to soothe our muscles. The hot spring is a ten minute walk from the hotel to a picturesque little barn overlooking the mountains and the town. With the reservation, we had it to ourselves for an hour.
We had dinner at the Mountain Village Restaurant again and loaded up on protein my body was craving. The corn bread here was also delicious. Considering how strenuous the Goat Lake hike was and how tired our bodies were, I brought a couple options to the team: 1) complete the 18 mile backpacking loop as originally planned (which would be counter-clockwise, and nine miles to Toxaway Lake/camp) , 2) start the loop as planned and, if necessary, just stay at that Toxaway Lake, 3) switch gears and go to Alice Lake instead which would be six miles (doing the loop clockwise, which is harder if you do the entire loop), with the option to continue to Twin Lakes (another couple of miles). I knew what my choice was, and I’m glad the others agreed.
After dinner, we organized all our gear and our backpacking food, packed our bear cans and out packs - well, three of us, anyway - one of us passed tf out.
August 13: Backpacking Alice Lake!
We did some final packing and weighed our packs. Your pack is supposed to be 20% of your body weight. My pack, Kevin’s pack and Chris’s pack were all about 10 pounds heavier than recommended. Ariel’s was heavier than recommended too, but not by as much. Since this was her first time backpacking, we wanted to keep her pack as light as possible.
We loaded the car and checked out of the hotel. We filled our water bladders and made an obligatory stop at Stanley Baking Co. before beginning our long-awaited journey. Tin Cup Trailhead is about a half hour outside of town, and because we got a late start again, the parking lot was filled. Kevin and I dropped off Chris and Ariel at the trailhead with all our packs and went to park the car, over half a mile away. While they were waiting for us, they befriended a couple older gentlemen from Minnesota. We would do the entire trail with them, leapfrogging most of the way.
We started the hike at about 10AM. The trail starts off hugging Pettit Lake for the first half mile. One mile in, you reach the permit station (again, permits are required for day hikers and backpackers, but are not reserved in advance). The trail had several water crossings - they weren’t deep enough that we were at risk of getting wet, we boulder hopped our way across just fine.
The first set of switchbacks were almost completely exposed. Since we were sore from hiking Goat Lake the day before, it made it that much more difficult. We worked our way up slowly but surely, and at the top, there is some good shade, where we met up with our trail buddies and had lunch.
There is another set of switchbacks that weave between fallen trees - I suspect an avalanche. Past this, the trail becomes more rocky, indicating we were almost there. There is one view point of the valley that lifted our spirits and gave us hope - just another mile to go!
It was around this time that we made the decision for Chris to go ahead of us slow pokes to scout out a campsite for us. There was one more water crossing - at this time of year, a trickle - but it made it appear that the trail ended abruptly. We debated what we should do. We knew we were close but didn’t know how close, and we weren’t sure if Chris knew which way to go (we knew because Kevin had trail navigation on his fancy watch). We put our faith in Chris and the three of us continued on together (it seemed like a worse idea for the three of us to split up). Shortly after we crossed, I saw water! I got excited - we’d made it! Until Kevin caught up and said this was just the first lake, not Alice lake. False hope. We trudged along some more until the next lake! Nope, not that one either. What the heck. At least the trail was pretty - if you take away my exhaustion and frustration from the fake lakes, the trail was fairytale-like with the evergreens, pine needles coating the trail and the lakes to our left. The trail became rocky once more. We were at Alice Lake, and campsites were sprinkled around the lake. We needed a break and I needed to poop, so before heading toward the campsites (which are near the lake), I headed away from the lake for Poop #1.
Break for a Lesson on Pooping in the Woods: Different areas have different specifications on what is allowed. In the areas that we have been, the requirement is to poop and pee at least 200 feet away from a water source, a trail or camp, in an area that is not likely to be traversed or encountered by another person. Cat holes should be 6-8 inches deep, and covered and disguised appropriately. Bury used toilet paper deep in your cat hole or pack it out (in the Sawtooths, you must pack it out). [See Leave No Trace for more information]
While I was away, Chris had found us. He had identified a couple candidates for our camp with the help from our trail buddies. We chose a site that was on the waterfront, on the far side of the lake, where it was much quieter. It was about 18:00, so a couple of us set up camp while others started filtering water for dinner. Our site was large - the “bedroom” fit both of our tents, there was a flat area next to the bedroom we called the “kitchen” (ideally, you’re not supposed to eat so close to your sleeping area), and there was an area down a small slope that I called the “living room” that had access to the lake.
Fires are not allowed in the Sawtooths, so we made our meals with our camp stoves. I had Backpacker's Pantry Fettuccini Alfredo with Chicken (meh - wouldn’t get again). Luckily, the weather was mild, so we didn’t need a fire to keep warm anyway. As we got ready to turn in for the night, we set up our “closet” on the furthest side of our area, where we laid out a tarp for our packs. While my three pals turned in for the night, I stayed out to appreciate the stars and tried to take some astro. I didn’t bring my DSLR or camera tripod with me because I couldn’t afford the extra weight. It turns out my phone has an astrophotography mode, but I didn’t know that ahead of time to download it. The pictures I took didn’t come out all that great, but it was still pretty incredible to see the stars so vibrantly.
August 14: A Day at Alice Lake
This was my favorite day. We woke up casually. Filtered some water for the lake in preparation for morning coffees and breakfast. I scouted where would be a nice place to swim with El Capitan in the background, and found an island I hoped to swim to. Hung out at the lake all day. By the time everyone was ready and we went to the spot I chose, other people had arrived and set up camp there. We swam nearby there, still with El Capitan, but didn’t swim to the island. Ate lunch (the four of us shared Peak Refuel Chicken Coconut Curry and Butternut Dal Bhat, with tortillas) in our “living room.” Swam again by our campsite and swam out to a rock in the middle of the lake (it really wasn’t that far). Sat on our “porch” overlooking the lake. Watched alpenglow creep up the mountains as the sun set. Had dinner (I had Mountain House Beef Stroganoff). It was a relaxing, wholesome lake day. Would recommend.
All day as we were hanging out, chipmunks kept running around our site. They were clearly not afraid of us (not a good sign - means that people have been feeding them). We started tossing pebbles around them when they got too close - not at them - to try to scare them away. We try to be as responsible as we possibly can with our food, meaning always putting things in the bear cans and closing them when we aren’t using them. When we came back from our first swim, we noticed that our bear can had some of the reflective tape chewed off - those persistent little guys! Obviously they couldn’t get into the bear can, but still! It wasn’t until that night when we were putting things away for the night that we realized why the chipmunks just wouldn’t leave us alone all day. There was a packet of food in Chris’s backpack that we must have forgotten to put into a bear can, and the chipmunks had eaten through the packaging! All day they must have been trying to get back in it. Use our mistake as a reminder to double check all your belongings to make sure your food is properly stored!
August 15: Hiking Out
We woke up, made coffee and casually had breakfast before starting to break down camp. It took us a while to get organized and get everything packed away. We used the tarp to lay things out, fold things and distribute weight.
We hit the trail at about noon. It was much faster going down, and we were much happier. Normally, going down hurts our knees but we didn’t have that problem this time. The last mile felt long though. Once we reached the permit station, we knew we were close, but it seemed like we were hiking along Pettit Lake forever - at least it was relatively flat!
At the trailhead, Ariel and I waited with the packs as Chris and Kevin went to get the car. We drove back into town and tried to find our vacation rental. We had a hard time finding which building we were in, but eventually found it. Right in that same area, the next building over, was the Stanley Supper Club. Hadn’t heard of it, but it was open (and wouldn’t be open the next couple days) and close so we decided to try it. It seemed like they were understaffed, and it also seemed like all the staff were women which is super cool. As we were being seated, I was pretty sure I saw a PNW Influencer that I follow having dinner with her husband, tucked in a corner - sure enough, a couple days later, she posted about the Supper Club and that she was in Stanley (it’s pretty common and I approve that influencers don’t post in real time for safety, so that people can’t stalk them). We were seated outdoors. The place had a vibe. We got a loaf of sourdough, a turnip cake, I got a pork shoulder steak as my meal. Chris and Ariel had the Fried Chicken meal for two, which came with apps and a broccoli salad. For dessert, it was Wild Card Night, and the dessert of the night was homemade coffee ice cream on top of babka. It was the best coffee ice cream I’ve ever had. Everything we had was amazing. We were sad they were closed the other days we’d be in town.
When we got back to our condo, we aired out our sleeping bags and quilts and Ariel started laundry (she insisted we all fly home with all clean clothes. At one point, Kevin was hiding clothes from her that he thought didn’t need to be washed. She obviously disagreed - “Come on, man!” ). We pitched their tent to air it out, but also to serve as a drying rack for the clothes.
August 16: Ketchum
Gotta Catch ‘Em All! (I’ve been spending too much time around Jen and Frank - just last week, Tifa asked me, “What’s your favorite pokemon?”)
The team voted to take an easy day and visit the nearby town of Ketchum, which is about an hour outside of Stanley, and near Sun Valley - supposedly a hot ski resort town for celebrities. Chris found an art museum he wanted to visit, which had some really impressive paintings and sculptures. We stopped for coffee at a coffee shop. As we approached the Visitor Center, the guide told us there was a farmers market happening, so we checked it out. The boys bought Idaho potato chips. Ariel and I bought a melon and a couple potatoes (Kevin had read that if you take a potato to the post office, you could mail it without packaging. I purchased my potato with this intent because it’d be funny for a potato to show up at work, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I wanted to eat the potato, but wouldn’t want to eat it after it’s beaten up in transit through the postal system). There was a brewery down the street, so we went there to hang out a bit. We were trying to kill time before dinner time and had hours to burn.
From here, we went to the library. Ariel loves libraries, and this one was really nice. They were having a lecture of some sort in a private room. Ariel was looking at children’s books, swapping the display books for ones with better representation. The boys found a game section and chose a game to play. I started reading Heart Bones by Colleen Hoover. As the library was getting ready to close, we decided it was time for dinner. Some intersections didn’t have crosswalk lights; instead, you take a green flag from the corner you’re on and cross the street with it, and leave it at the next corner.
We found ourselves at the Sawtooth Club, which is supposedly where Ernest Hemingway used to hang out. Our waitress reminded me of the Peterpauls, like she could be a cousin, by her appearance and her personality. I had halibut, Kevin had rainbow trout (he had trout whenever possible since fishing trout is big in that area). We wanted to have key lime pie, but we were too stuffed to eat it there. Our waitress packed it to go for us so we could enjoy it when we got home.
The Sawtooth National Recreation Area lies within the Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve. When we planned this trip, I planned it around the New Moon because my original intent was to take my camera backpacking (to the middle of nowhere) for astro, but decided against it last minute due to the weight. I still wanted to do astro though, and my pals agreed to go Milky Way hunting with me. We ventured toward Tin Cup Trailhead on Route 75. Those of us with Google Pixels had downloaded the astrophotography mode so we had three phone cameras and my DSLR going. We experimented with different angles and compositions, even adding ourselves in as subjects which was a fun twist that yielded great results. I think we spent about two hours shooting, before it got cold and too late (it was like 1AM).
When we got home, we had a sweet treat waiting for us - our key lime pie, which we enjoyed in the tent!
August 17: Redfish Lake
Another day of taking it easy, this time at Redfish Lake in Stanley. I had done research about kayaking and paddleboarding on the lake, but did not do adequate research on where to park. The parking situation was rough. We could not find parking where the rentals were, so we decided to find a quieter place, where we could just sit and relax. Parking, even for day use, requires payment of $10 at all the parking lots around Redfish Lake. We found a spot on the beach - one of the few spots with a little shade. The beaches are not like Jersey beaches. The sand is more like little rocks. The lake is big and people can boat on it, there are waves and the water is cold. We had lunch, took a nap and just hung out.
Before heading back into Stanley, we continued up Route 75 to visit another hot spring. Cove Creek Hot Springs is located just off the side of the road. There is a pull off/parking lot and a short trail that leads down to the water. There was one other car parked there, but those guys were fishing, so we had the hot spring all to ourselves. The hot spring is on the side of the river, so the river water cools some of the pools but not all of them. The pool that Chris tested was very hot. Kevin tested a pool to the left of that one that was cooler. I went over to the far left and dipped a toe - it was comfortable - until I saw a snake. We all observed the snake for quite some time, all of us refusing to be in the water at all. It seemed like it was guarding something, and wouldn’t leave that one pool for the river or for another pool. We decided to brave the really hot pool, the furthest one from the snake pool. The sand/silt was really hot but that water itself wasn’t that bad. We didn’t spend too much time here, the snake kind of ruined it, and besides, we needed to shower before dinner.
On Thursdays, one of the restaurants in town, the Kasino Club, has live music and it’s kind of like a block party. We went to check it out for dinner. It’s all open seating, first come first serve, and apparently the whole town comes. We had brussel sprouts and trout sandwiches which were quite good.
Once back at our condo, we packed everything up to get ready to head to Boise the next day, meaning we packed away all our backpacking gear and got things ready to fly home too.
We attempted to go shoot astro again, this time closer to Iron Creek Trailhead, off of Route 21, but it was overcast and we couldn’t see much.
August 18: Boise
The previous night at the Kasino Club, a solo traveler told us about Valley Creek Hot Springs, supposedly a local-kept secret. He described briefly where it was and later I had looked it up. It was right in town, not far from the Mountain Village hot spring we were at our first full day. I decided this would be a fun, last opportunity to enjoy a soak before we head back into the city and leave this beautiful state. From Stanley, we turned left onto Route 75 and made another left at the Stanley Museum, down the dirt road to a small parking lot. Then, on foot, crossed over a little bridge and the hot spring was to our left. There were a two women and two kids there already - I found it ironic that of all the hot springs we went to, people had written about the others and this one was supposedly known only to locals, but this is the only one where we encountered other people. Most people don’t stay at hot springs for too long, so we did have it to ourselves for a while between when they left and a pair of bikepackers arrived.
This was our cue that we should get going anyway. We went back and showered, loaded up the car, and made one final stop at Stanley Baking Co. Chris and Ariel got the paninis which were so good and worth the wait (I tried a bite). I didn’t have the patience to wait for it to be made, but I wish I did.
On our way out of Stanley, we made a quick stop at Stanley Lake. It was very quiet there, but also seemed like there wasn’t much to do and not a lot of space to hang out. We continued our journey onwards, back to Boise.
It was probably about 15:00 by the time we got to Boise. We went straight to REI to return one canister of fuel we didn’t use at all, and to donate what was left of our used canister to the staff (since you can’t fly with it). While we were in REI, Ariel called to make us a dinner reservation, and got one!
We stayed at the Springhill Suites in Boise because it was affordable. Since we were only there for an afternoon and leaving the next morning, it didn’t matter too much to us where in Boise we stayed. We checked into the hotel (we only brought up what we needed for the one overnight) and searched for bubble tea - am I the only one who starts craving Asian foods toward the end of a week away from home? Whale Tea was really good, I wish we had one here. We chilled there for a bit before heading into downtown Boise.
The Boise state capitol building is super fancy and looks like the white house. We took a walk through Freak Alley Gallery - which is exactly what it sounds like. There is a side street adorned with street art by different artists. It’s really cool. Some of it is pretty weird, but it’s awesome.
We were early for our dinner reservation at Fork, but they were able to seat us anyway. We ordered potatoes as an appetizer (when in Rome) and clams. Our server, Matt, was originally from Alaska, and said they make a mean salmon (ya gotta trust the Alaskan’s opinion of salmon), so Kevin ordered the salmon and not only did it live up to expectations, it inspired Kevin to learn how to sear salmon to get that perfectly crispy skin (the trip was a month ago and Kevin’s already done it and replicated it). Chris and I had the special - the short rib with smoked potato salad and mustard seeds. Matt said the restaurant had over-ordered or wholesale ordered for an event, and had excess short ribs. OMG it was so good, but so humungous. I couldn’t finish it. Ariel had a smoked salmon salad which was not as good as our other entrees.
At the end of dinner, we were stuffed and decided to walk it off. Unfortunately, our walk took us right by an ice cream place that was poppin’ and you know me, I can’t resist. We got one for the four of us to share, and it was also gigantic - I wonder if this is a thing in Boise, big portions?
We turned in for the night, watching a documentary about people who chase big surf.
August 19:
We scheduled our flights so that all four of us would be on the same flight to MSP, we would layover together and than part ways to go home. It was pretty cool to have someone to thoroughly browse the airport book store with (not that Kevin wouldn’t, but he’d be bored as I perused). It was pretty cool too that Kevin had someone to watch track with on Youtube. As much as I love traveling with Kevin, having additional travel buddies is a lot of fun.
Concluding Thoughts
The trail to Goat Lake is four miles in and four miles out. It took us six hours to get to Goat Lake.
The trail to Alice Lake is six miles to Alice Lake with about 1800 feet in elevation gain. It took us eight hours to get to Alice Lake (we were tired and sore from Goat Lake the previous day) and about four hours to get back.
One of the luxury items we all brought was a camp chair - they add about a pound in pack weight but came in clutch to be able to sit comfortably while eating and while just hanging out by the lake during the day. At one point during our hike in, a rogue branch tried to snag Kevin’s chair off his pack. Luckily I saw it happen. He would have been so miserable if he had lost his chair.
Idaho is definitely worth a visit. If not for the potatoes, then absolutely for the mountains and lakes and stargazing. The three of them saw shooting stars while we were out there.
If you’re in Stanley, make sure you’re there when the Supper Club is open. It’s so good.
I brought LMNT electrolyte packets with us backpacking and they were great to refuel.