Unbeaten Paths: Idaho Exodus
The weather in Ketchum was growing worse and worse, with a winter storm warning threatening the next few days. Although we advocate taking the “hard path” and want to be tough guys, the reality is that part of this journey is based on escaping winter because it’s just not comfortable for either of us – or for the Beauville. We decided to get in as much activity as we could for a couple more days before the temperatures dropped and then flee south. So, after breakfast at Java on Fourth (finished off with an amazing gluten free brownie) we headed out on my favorite ride of the trip so far at Adam’s Gulch trailhead just on the edge of town.
We headed over to the Adam’s Gulch trailhead on a Sunday and rode up Eve’s Gulch just past the trail sign at the peak. Even though it’s mid-September, the trails were still firm and tacky. It’s about a 9-mile, often steep, grind from the lot to our turnaround point but well worth it. The switchbacks are challenging, equally beautiful, and the trail is quiet once you pass Forbidden Fruit junction.
In a futile attempt to escape some cold temps that night, we found a camping spot halfway down Highway 21 toward Hailey and opted for another hike the next day based on the morning’s cloudy and cool skies. It started sprinkling a bit on the way up Hyndman’s Peak, but soon turned to snow as we got closer to the 10,000 foot summit. I desperately wanted to get to the top but we turned around early due to the conditions – probably smart as we may have lost our trail on the way back down and I may have lost a few fingers.
Spurred on by the day’s snowfall, we bailed that night (post-tacos, of course) and headed toward Bishop, CA, which was not in any way part of the original itinerary, but hey, we chose a mobile lifestyle for this exact kind of scenario. I was inexplicably excited to spend my first night ever in a Walmart parking lot that evening a couple hours down the road in Twin Falls. In the morning we resupplied, hit up a Starbucks for some office hours and continued on searching for warmer temps fueled by our favorite road snacks, peanut M&M’s.
Another few hours down the road brought us to Ely, where we hoped to squat for a couple days and find some mountain bike trails we had heard were in the area. It turned out camping was cheap and awesome, but the primitive (aka, way too frustrating for me to get through) state of the trails suggested that we were perhaps the first people in a long time to ride any of them. Ely seemed like a funky, cool little town but the winter storm warning was still a threat and thus chased us out of Ely and on into California.
Highlights
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Adam’s Gulch ride.
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Summiting Hyndman Peak through snow.
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Blue-eyed encounter.
Until next time, get dirty and feel good.
Paul’s rambles in normal case. Susan creates elegant text in italics.
