When I put my shoes on the morning we took this walk, I was rather upset to find that they were smaller than when I wore them last. While driving, I stored them beneath the bench seat that folds out into a bed in the bus. Apparently it gets hot under there. Because of the heat shrinkage, I had to keep my tough little loafers wet on this walk, because they fit better that way.
The smoooshing of a wet shoe can be quite musical.
Let it be known, M is from 200 feet above sea level in the hottest part of the Mojave Desert of Arizona. When I was planning our trip, I wanted to take her someplace beautiful, pristine, unspoiled and perhaps a tad snowy. This said, marching her up to Alice Lake at 8596 feet above sea level may have been an abuse of my trip planning powers.
However, I was pleasantly surprised when she managed the six mile hike up to Alice Lake like a trooper. And, as we all know, what goes up must come down, especially if it wants its dinner. Right? Of course right. I didn’t have to leave her up top with the mosquitoes, bears and mountain lions — she trotted right back down the mountain into a bottle of beer and a barbecued pork chop (the pork chop was donated to us by our campground neighbors who were really and truly, very hilarious).
In point of fact, we acquired our pork chops when one of said campground neighbors leaned out of his camper and bellowed,
“Hey! Want a pork chop?”
And so began a night of hilarity, half cooked s’mores created by the blondest little daughters I’ve ever seen, a cocktail, a bonfire, too much caesar salad and a Facebooking slum lord. Yes. That all really happened in one evening. Oh. And there were tricks on moving bicycles too.
Aw. How cute.
I’m passionate about the Sawtooth Range.
The front, rising up out of Stanley, is spectacular and perhaps one of my very favorite range views of all time. Once you’re up in them, the granite spires rise like cathedrals, nearly vertical in many areas, to cut away at blue sky.
It’s a magnificent, awe inspiring, humbling and purifying place to be, like so many places in Idaho are.
I.
Love.
It.
So did M.
I even made M bushwhack on a few creek crossings.
Favorite quote of the day, while crossing a furious stream:
“Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh! It’s so cold!
It’s like I have a toothache in my knees!
How can you stand it???“
Quite easily, in fact.
I am all things Arctic.
Of course, we chatted while we walked, opined,
photographed and even applied some salve to a few wounds.
Hey M,
thanks for coming out.
This morning, your absence has fallen on my home like a cloak of silence.
I just washed your breakfast dishes from yesterday
and it’s almost like you were never here.
Come back soon.
xx
J
so much power here:
the power of friendship.
the power of nature.
the power of porkchops.
how heavenly to love a friend so much that she tolerates a toothache in her knees for you….
Love that smiley pic of you both; you look like high schoolers at summer camp. So vibrant, happy, and young.
I always think of you this way.
It was an amazing week.
Can't say much else about it yet. I'm still letting the experiences wash over me.
And I'll be back… oh yes! Remember, I have a gallery showing 😉 HAHAHA!
Although we have gorgeous landscapes here in Finland, I can´t believe these picstures are real. Like looking into an imaginary wonderland.
Absolutely wonderful.
xxPiia
That is unbelievably beautiful back country. I've only seen the smallest bit of Idaho – now this will have to be added to the list.
Valerie
I want to go there. I want to be there. I crave Arctic cold waters around my legs. Someday.
x
p.s. Absolutely gorgeous photography, J.
I love your pictures as always, picture nr 2 was just amazing!!! This seems to be a great trip!
beautiful photos 🙂 glad your visit was so magical.
xo
Thank you for sharing these beautiful images. Very special.
Before I compliment your writing and photography until my face turns blue, I wish to tell you that I enjoy your vacation posts quite a lot. They're so full of fun and happiness. It's such a joy to read your adventures~
I love all the shots of water, especially the one of the lake in this post. Might I also take this time to add that those mountains look completely different from the ones here in the south. Those look like ancient crags from an epic fantasy novel, while the ones here fade away into the blue sky like a perfect painting.
Your writing is as super and well-penned (or typed, as it were, haha) as ever. I've never been much into writing journal-like things, but I am trying to come out of my shell~!
&I can just see your camping neighbors calling out about those pork chops. xD Makes me laugh.
WOW!! the crystal clear water is amazing!!!! I can almost feel the bone chilling temps…
I think I need to come to you…
I absolutely love the photo of you and M…This looks like a wonderful hike. Pork chop sharing campers…Very interesting!
Happy for your call…This year seems nicer for/to you, is it?
xo
ahhh, can i catch up here with the posts?
I'm so taken aback with each and every photo…as if i was right there with ya in those hills.
such a brillant adventure.
love it all, love to you.
Fox: I wish I could tell you how much "the power of pork chops" made me laugh!!! You delight me. And M is remarkable. You'd cherish her to smithereens if you could meet her.
CRM: I love that picture too….
M: Actually, that's OUR showing. Remember? We're collaborating. Yeesh.
Piia: Everywhere is beautiful. And that's the simple truth. I hope you get to walk the mountains of Idaho someday. 🙂
Valerie: True! TRUE!!! Trust me when I say, it will scrub your soul clean. Thanks for being here today!
Doro: You flatter me. Thank you. Sending ice and snow, xx
GNIST: Thanks, chickadee! It was a great trip. Going to the Sawtooths is always a GREAT trip.
Twiggy: Me too!!! I had excellent company!
Sandy: My pleasure! Thanks for being here!
Elizabeth: Gosh. I'm red in the face. Thank you for your kindness! You know, about your mountains being softer than ours, I think the Rockies are newer than yours. But, the mountains here in Pocatello reach 9000+ feet in height and are VERY soft looking, compared to the Sawtooths.
Also, the pork chop situation was truly hilarious. Truly. Every time I think about it I laugh out loud.
Sierra: Sometimes, when I think about it, I find it fascinating that your name is Sierra and you live in Hawaii…you know….because the Sierras are the opposite of the tropics. I just thought I'd tell you that…but, mountain water is VERY different from the water you snorkel in. I hope you get to swim in some, one day. x
Andrea: I'd take you in! Gladly. And this summer HAS been easier for me. I'm no longer sick. I don't feel like I am dying, every single day, like I did last summer. I have energy and so I'm having adventures. It's pretty wonderful. Thanks for noticing. I feel like a new critter.
Lu: HEY!!! So nice to have you here. Thank you. xx
We have randomly met some wonderful people in campgrounds. Last summer, we had pulled into a KOA type campground simply because we couldn't drive any longer. It had internet and so it almost didn't count as real camping, but the people in the site next to us were playing silly Disney trivia games online. They got stumped on some question and I shouted the answer across the hedge to them. A few questions later, I helped them out again. We ended up playing all these silly games with them until late at night, while drinking beer that they had brought from their local brewery.
Just…magic!
Have so much enjoyed reading these posts of your trip, makes me want to learn to drive and buy a camper van and disappear into some mountains for a while. Your photographs are stunning (as always) i just want to dive into that cool crystal water, i'm not a huge fan of the heat, we have some here in the UK at the moment, and i just want to lie in the shade, perhaps i should move further up north where the air is cooler, and the scenery more spectacular ha ha xx
i would particularly like to be floating on and along that which is pictured in the second shot.
The second pic down literally took my breath away.
Sometimes I just scroll through your pictures when I don't have time to read your equally beautiful words, and it reminds me of when my dad used to "read" us National Geographic magazines as kids. He'd just flip through page after page of beautiful photos and make up stories about them all… your photos are stunning. I love looking at them at the end of my day.