I'm sorry I wasn't able to blog yesterday, but there was no cell service at my remote campground. Yesterday, I was still in McCall, ID, a gateway town to outdoor recreation. Those of you who know me know how much I love my national parks, but often there are state parks or national forests that are just as pretty and worthy as some of the national parks but without all the crowds. Such was the case here in and around McCall, where I arrived on Thursday night at Ponderosa State Park for the past two nights. Yesterday, I decided that I had reached the midway point of my trip and as far west as I was going ot go on this vacation. Thus, int he morning, I spent some time doing all those mundane things that you need to do on a long trip. I got the oil changed int he van, went food shopping, and did my laundry--all before 11 AM. Then I drove back tot he state park and did a short hike to a place overlooking Payette Lake called Osprey Cliff. After four days of 90-degree weather without a shower (it's not as gross as you think because I wash off every morning with a wet cloth), I decided to take a dip in the lake and enjoyed hanging out on the sandy beach there. Then I drove a little north of town to the Brundage Mountain Ski Resort, took the lift to the top and had panoramic views of the entire surroundings. To the east were the Sawtooth Moutnains where I had spent much of my Thursday, to the west the Hells Canyon area, and to the north I had views of Payette Lake.
While I was in Omaha earlier on the trip visiting my friend Nicole, she had a house guest who had a cousin who lived in Boise. She told me if I was traveling out that way I should contact her, so I did and I shared this campsite int he state park with her, her husband, and their dog. They rolled in late Thursday night and had to do business on Friday, so I didn't get to connect really with them until Friday evening after I cooked a real dinner. We shared some beers and stories around the campfire late into the night. A true friend of a friend of a friend, but it's always great meeting new people on my travels. So many of them are really nice people on their own interesting journeys through life and it reminds me how at the core of it most people all share the same sorts of dreams.
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