What's our definition of fun?

After four nights of boondocking with the ground squirrels interrupting our sleep, it's time to leave our free camping spot near Redfish Lake in Idaho. That was not our definition of fun! But it was a sad farewell to the Sawtooth Mountains as we headed south on Highway 75 towards the other end of this national recreation area.

That would include a slow drive with 30 mph curves over Galena Pass.

From the top of the pass we could look down on the meadows ringed with the last of the Sawtooth Mountains. This recreation area is made up of four different mountain ranges, and we are heading down into the Boulder Mountains now.

We had planned to camp in another disbursed camping area that Mark had read about. But in the middle of the Labor Day holiday weekend, every one of those spots were already occupied. So we parked in the visitor center parking lot that was also closed for the holiday. (This mention of Labor Day obviously proves how very far we are behind in writing blog entries.) Then we took off for a hike in the Boulder Mountains that now surround us.

We are on the Chocolate Gulch Trail that starts right out of a residential area in Ketchum, Idaho. The Sawtooth National Recreation Area runs about 60 miles from the town of Stanley in the north, to the town of Ketchum in the south. After seeing both, we would have to agree with the ranger in Stanley who told us that the prettiest mountains were in the north end. After the bare jagged peaks of the Sawtooths, the rounded treed tops of the Boulder Mountains are just not as spectacular.

We have to say that the town of Ketchum is bigger and has more amenities than its smaller northern neighbor of Stanley. Perhaps Stanley is the place to be for hiking and lakes in the summer, and Ketchum is the place for snow sports in the winter. The town of Sun Valley is also here in the south, and we can tell that this is a busy ski area in the winter.  This weekend, these towns hosted the Wagon Days Festival (where none of the parade entries could be motorized) and the Off the Wagon Bike Race (also where none of the entries could be motorized).

We were at the finish line today to see people that had just ridden 102 miles up and down mountains on gravel roads in this national recreation area. This isn't in our definition of fun at all! The amazing part is that they paid to do that grueling workout!

More than a thousand bikers participated in this race today, and they were resting just on the other side of the finish line. Since Denisa hates biking uphill so much, she can't even imagine why these people would think this is fun.

But then again, some people might think that some of the hikes we do wouldn't be fun. Or some people think that camping with the ground squirrels wouldn't be fun. Or some people might think that wandering God's wonders wouldn't be fun. But we think it's great fun!