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Exploring Southwest Idaho, Part 4: Boise

By Alan K. Lee

During our exploration of southwest Idaho, my wife and I used Boise as our base and did day trips to Thousand Springs, Balanced Rock, Bruneau Dunes, and the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, as I’ve documented in the past few posts.

Boise is Idaho’s capital and largest city, with a metropolitan area population of around 750,000. It’s large enough to have many of the amenities of a big city, but small enough to still retain something of a small town feel. And it’s a surprisingly modern and cosmopolitan city, blending elements of both West Coast and Rocky Mountain cultures.

My wife and I are both art lovers, and Boise has a vibrant arts community featuring both visual and performing arts. The Velma V. Morrison Performing Arts Center on the Boise State University campus is home to the Boise Philharmonic, Ballet Idaho, the Trey McIntyre Project (modern dance company), and the Boise Shakespeare Festival. The Gene Harris Jazz Festival is held each spring, also on the Boise State campus.

The Boise Art Museum in Julia Davis Park, just south of the downtown center, features permanent American, Northwest, Native American, and Asian Art collections, and rotating temporary exhibits. In addition to the Boise Art Museum, there are a number of notable art galleries in the downtown area, including the Art Source Gallery, Capitol Contemporary Gallery, the Delia Dante Gallery and FireFusion Studio, and MING Studios.

There is also an interesting street art scene in Boise, featured prominently in the building murals of the outdoor gallery known as Freak Alley in the downtown center.

Many fine Victorian houses and architecturally interesting buildings can also be found in the downtown area.

Other points of interest in the downtown area include the Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial and the Wassmuth Center For Human Rights, the Idaho Black History Museum, the Idaho State Museum, the Basque Museum and Cultural Center, and the Idaho Discovery Center, a hands-on, interactive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational center.

If you want to take a break, grab a bite to eat, and have a glass of wine or a pint of beer, there are plenty of places in downtown Boise to do just that. Moon’s Kitchen Cafe, Wild Root Cafe, and the vegan High Note Cafe are all within a few blocks of the capitol building. Goldy’s Corner is a small cafe and bakery that features a take-a-book/leave-a-book free library. Also near the capitol are Ten Barrel Brewing Boise, Prost German Pub, Edge Brewing, and Bavarian Brewing. Near Julia Davis Park you’ll find Boise Brewing, White Dog Brewing, and the Double Tap Pub. Downtown wine bars include Coiled Wine Bar and Bodovino. I’m sure Boise has an interesting night life scene, but we didn’t explore that aspect of the city on this trip.

We did explore a number of Boise’s many parks and natural areas. The nearly 25-mile long Boise River Greenbelt has many miles of trails along both banks of the river.

Anne Morrison Memorial Park on the south bank of the river, and the Julia Davis Park, just south of the downtown area on the north bank, are large urban parks with a variety of open spaces and tree lined paths along the river.

Julia Davis Park is also home to the Boise Rose Garden and Zoo Boise. Idaho Botanical Garden, a mile or so southeast of downtown, is also definitely worth a visit.

Kathryn Albertson Park , across Americana Blvd from Anne Morrison Park, is a nature park with several large ponds that is home to a variety of wildlife and provides the visitor with more intimate natural areas to explore.

I hadn’t been in Boise for quite a few years. The last time had been for an environmental conference and I didn’t see much of the city on that trip. And, honestly, we didn’t come to Idaho to explore Boise on this trip. But I found it surprisingly beautiful and interesting on a number of different levels. It’s definitely not the cowboy town I remember visiting in my younger days. Boise has grown up a lot (and maybe it was never as much of a cow town as I remember it being).

We had a great time exploring Boise, but there is far too much there to experience it all in in the short time we had on this trip. We’ll almost certainly be visiting Idaho again in the near future, and I’m sure we’ll spend another few days exploring more of what Boise has to offer. We may even see what Boise nightlife is like on our next visit.

Boise is definitely worth visiting, and southwest Idaho has many truly unique, beautiful, and enjoyable places to visit, all within a short drive of each other. For more on those, check out my other Exploring Southwest Idaho posts:

Thousand Springs

Balanced Rock and Bruneau Dunes

The Snake River Canyon and Birds of Prey

Posted January 17, 2022

All photos © Alan K. Lee

Exploring Southwest Idaho, Part 3: The Snake River Canyon and Birds of Prey

by Alan K. Lee

The roughly 100 mile (as the crow flies) stretch of the Snake River, from south of Boise to just west of Twin Falls, is a geologically interesting area, wildlife is abundant, the scenery is outstanding, and there’s plenty there for those interested in the history of the American West, as well. Thousand Springs, Balanced Rock, Bruneau Dunes, and the Snake River Canyon are all beautiful, unique, and well worth visiting.

Snake River Birds of Prey

People from all over the world come to the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area to view, photograph, and study the hawks, owls, eagles, and falcons that make the Snake River Canyon home. And Boise is home to the World Center For Birds of Prey, the home base of the Peregrine Fund, a non-profit environmental organization that played a key role in bringing the Peregrine Falcon back from the brink of extinction. The Peregrine Fund now runs raptor recovery and protection programs around the world. The canyon is not just for hardcore birders, though. It is spectacularly beautiful for one thing. And there are cultural and historic attractions as well.

There are two primary access points to the Snake River Canyon in the Birds Of Prey NCA – Swan Falls and Celebration Park. Our first stop was the Dedication Point Overlook on the rim of the canyon above the Swan Falls area. The canyon here is about 600 feet deep, with sheer vertical walls several hundred feet high below the rim. There was a group of photographers there attempting to get photos of raptors. We saw a few hawks soaring overhead, but too high to get decent photos. It’s a scenic spot, though, and we hung around for awhile, before heading down to Swan Falls.

The falls are long gone, flooded by construction of Swan Falls Dam in the early 1900s. Swan Falls was the first hydroelectric project on the Snake River. A fish ladder was constructed, but was largely ineffective, and the dam effectively blocked salmon and steelhead passage. That was a different era, and the fish ladder was never made functional. Newer dams were built both upstream and downstream with no fish ladders at all. Electricity was the point. The fish didn’t matter. But it’s a historically interesting and beautiful area, so it’s worth a visit even if, like me, you’d rather see the dam gone.

A new power generation facility was constructed at Swan Falls Dam in the 1990s. The dam’s original power plant is now open to the public, with some of the century-old generators and other equipment still in place. There are also displays depicting the history of the area, and the construction and operation of the dam. We walked across the dam after visiting the power house museum, then drove down the canyon a ways. The road was too rough for the car, though, and we turned around and drove back up to Dedication Point, and then on to Celebration Park.

Celebration Park is Idaho’s only archaeological park. Petroglyphs dating back as far as 10,000 years can be found there. Visitors can learn about the Native American “lifeways” at the visitor center, try their hand at throwing a spear with an atlatl, and explore the petroglyph area on a self-guided walk. There is a picnic ground, and a small tent campground. The visitor center is open from 10:00 to 2:00 daily, except holidays. Check the park website for more information and possible Covid-19 closures and restrictions.

A short ways downstream, the Guffey Railroad Bridge provides pedestrian and equestrian access to the south bank of the Snake River and the Guffey Butte area. The bridge was built in the late 19th century and carried rail traffic until the 1940s. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Guided tours of the area highlighting the area’s early mining and railroad history are conducted periodically.

Hikers will find trails on both sides of the river. On the north side a trail follows the river upstream for about five miles to the end of the road from Swan Falls Dam. A side trail leads to Halverson Lake, nestled against the cliffs of the canyon wall.

We didn’t have time to do any hiking at Celebration Park, but the trail to Swan Falls would be an interesting outing, and a good place to do some serious raptor watching, if you’re so inclined, away from most of the human influences in the Conservation Area.

Back in Boise, we toured the World Center For Birds of Prey the following morning. The staff there are friendly and knowledgeable, and dedicated to the mission of educating the public about birds of prey and protecting the vulnerable populations of raptors around the world. We sat in on a talk given by two of the staff that was fascinating, informative, and entertaining.

There are a number of raptors from around the world on display there, birds that for one reason or another could not be returned to the wild. Being able to see these magnificent birds up close was a highlight of our trip. The center is also home to a pair of California Condors, North America’s largest bird, that are part of the captive breeding program that has helped save the species from extinction.

For more on Boise, a lively, surprisingly cosmopolitan city that still has a small town vibe, look for my next post, coming soon.

Originally posted June 20, 2019. Updated and re-posted January xx, 2022

All photos © Alan K. Lee

Exploring Southwest Idaho, Part 2: Balanced Rock and Bruneau Dunes

by Alan K. Lee

Southwest Idaho is full of interesting and unusual places, Balanced Rock and Bruneau Dunes prominent among them. They’re a couple of the most unique places you’ll find anywhere, and stunningly beautiful, as well.

Balanced Rock

After touring the Thousand Springs area (see my previous post ) at the beginning of an extended Memorial Day weekend trip to Southwest Idaho, my wife and I took a short side trip to Balanced Rock, a rock formation sculpted by wind and the freeze/thaw cycle of countless millennia.

Balanced Rock is located about twenty miles west of Twin Falls and ten miles from Buhl, the nearest town. The area around Buhl is flat, featureless farm land that looks more like Kansas than the pictures I had seen of Balanced Rock, which had more the look of the Arizona or Utah deserts. But after a few miles, the road began to drop into a canyon and the view and landscape changed radically.

Balanced Rock is nearly fifty feet tall, weighs forty tons, and is supported precariously by a stem of rock less than three feet in diameter. It is, to say the least, a striking sight. We climbed up to the rock and hiked along the hillside above the rock formations (there’s quite a lot more than just Balanced Rock). It’s not a large area, and the trail is short and not difficult. It’s easy to explore in an hour or so, and I found it definitely worth the time and effort. But you can still get a good view of Balanced Rock and the other rock formations from the parking area if you don’t want to, or are unable to, climb up to them.

Bruneau Dunes

The second day of our Idaho trip took us to Bruneau Dunes State Park, about fifteen miles south of Mountain Home, and about forty miles northwest of Balanced Rock. The 470 foot tall Big Dune at Bruneau Dunes is the tallest free standing dune in North America.

The dunes are impressive and certainly the main attraction here, but the park also has two small lakes, marshes and wetland areas, and open desert areas to explore. The marshes and lakes are full of waterfowl, and coyotes, jackrabbits, lizards, and gopher snakes can be found in the drier areas of the park. In the spring, desert wildflowers are abundant.

For hikers, there’s a six mile loop trail that takes you over the top of the dunes. There is also an equestrian camp and a ten mile long horse trail, two campgrounds, a picnic area, and a visitor center. We didn’t do the six mile hike, but did climb the Small Dune, hiked around the smaller lake, checked out the picnic area on the Big Lake, and, of course, spent a lot of time photographing the area.

Bruneau Dunes is also an outstanding “dark skies” area, and the Boise Astronomical Society has constructed an observatory at the park. On weekends, visitors can view the depths of space through the observatory’s 25 inch telescope.

The weather was better than it was for our Thousand Springs and Balanced Rock visits on the previous day, and the sunshine made for some good photo ops. But it got a little warm on the dunes after awhile, and there were swarms of mosquitoes by the water where it was cooler. Still, it was a nice morning’s outing. The dunes and the small lakes between them are incredibly beautiful, and climbing the dunes was a fun adventure.

Bruneau Dunes definitely exceeded my expectations. The dunes are huge, much bigger than I expected, and the area around them is interesting and very beautiful. The park is small enough that it can be explored in half a day, which is what we did, but there’s enough there to keep you occupied for a few days, at least. It’s also a place where you can slow down, relax, and spend some time just enjoying the views and the peace and quiet, which won’t be marred by the presence of dune buggies and trail bikes. They’re prohibited in the park to protect the dunes.

We returned to Boise that afternoon and spent some time exploring the downtown area and the parks and paths along the Boise River Greenway. The next day it was on to the Snake River Canyon, the Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, and the World Center for Birds of Prey. I’ll cover those areas in the next couple of posts.

Originally posted June 20, 2019. Edited and re-posted January 2, 2022

All photos © Alan K. Lee

Exploring Southwest Idaho, Part 1: Thousand Springs

by Alan K. Lee

In eastern Idaho, northwest of Idaho Falls, the Big Lost River, Little Lost River, and other smaller streams sink into the lava fields and disappear. That water re-emerges a hundred miles to the southwest, from springs on the north side of the Snake River west of Twin Falls – the Thousand Springs.

I can remember seeing part of the Thousand Springs somewhere along US Hwy 30 on a family vacation when I was a kid, back in the late 1950s. We didn’t stop back then, but seeing all that water gushing out of the canyon wall obviously made a big impression on me, as I have retained that memory for more than fifty years. And I had a chance to chase down that memory a couple of years ago when my wife and I spent five days exploring southwest Idaho. We spent the first day at Thousand Springs State Park, which consists of seven separate units spread out along the Snake River.

The Malad Gorge unit was our first stop. It’s the most accessible of the seven sections of the park, just off I-84. In what the signs still call Malad Gorge State Park, there is a short trail from a parking area near the park entrance to a viewpoint on the rim of the canyon overlooking the narrow gorge and the 60-foot waterfall and plunge pool known as the Devil’s Washbowl.

The trail continues across a foot bridge 250 feet above the river to another viewpoint a short ways downstream. The road through the park continues from the first parking area to other viewpoints, a large picnic area, and a campground.

Near the campground is another canyon called Woody’s Cove. Although not as impressive as Malad Gorge, the springs at the head of Woody’s Cove were the first of the Thousand Springs that we had a chance to see. (The source of the Malad River is in the Sawtooth Mountains to the north, near Sun Valley, not the Thousand Springs).

There are no trails to the bottom of either Malad Gorge or Woody’s Cove, but the views from the rims of both make the park well worth the five dollar entrance fee. On the other side of I-84 from Malad Gorge is the Kelton Trail section of the park. Here there is a section of the historic Oregon Trail where the wagon wheel ruts can still be seen.

Two of the park’s units are along Billingsley Creek. The lower unit, Billingsley Creek Wildlife Management Area, just north of the town of Hagerman, is an area of marsh and open water that is prime waterfowl and wildlife habitat. Upstream, a few miles east of Hagerman, the Vardis Fisher Day Use Area runs along Billingsley Creek in a narrow valley. The unit is named for the Idaho author of the novel Mountain Man, which was the basis for the 1972 movie Jeremiah Johnson. The ruins of the Fisher home are located in the park unit.

A few miles to the south is the Ritter Island unit of the park. The island was once home to the historic Thousand Springs Dairy Farm run by a locally famous woman named Minnie Miller in the first half of the 20th Century. Ritter Island was also the site of the Payne Lewis Ferry Crossing on the Kelton Road from Boise to Utah. This was an important transportation route in the 19th Century prior to the coming of the railroad.

Ritter Island Unit, Thousand Springs State Park

Some of the structures from the farm and ferry crossing are still standing. There are several miles of hiking trails on the island and, according to the park literature, an abundance of wildlife and wonderful views of the Hagerman Valley. It’s also a good place to kayak, according to the reviews I read. Unfortunately, the island is only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and we were there a few days before the island’s opening. It was disappointing that we couldn’t get onto the island, but the springs here made the area worth visiting, regardless.

There are literally hundreds of springs midway up the canyon wall above Ritter Island, and Sand Spring Creek emerges full blown from the cliff face. Much of the water from the springs and the creek have been diverted to a hydroelectric generating plant, and some of the spring water is also diverted to the Ten Springs Fish Hatchery. But there is still lots of water pouring down the canyon walls to a side channel of the Snake River.

The outfall from the fish hatchery tumbles over the cliff face in an impressive waterfall. And below the hatchery there is a Nature Conservancy preserve that has a nice trail along the river below the canyon walls.

Our next stop was the Box Canyon unit of the park (officially the Earl M. Hardy Box Canyon Springs Preserve), a couple of miles south of Ritter Island. The springs at the head of the canyon flow at an impressive 180,000 gallons per minute.

Like at Malad Gorge, there is no trail to the bottom of the canyon here. There is a trail to a viewing platform that overlooks a small waterfall, but that trail was closed when we were there. But the views from the canyon rim, here too, were impressive enough.

The final stop on our tour of the Thousand Springs was Niagara Springs, eight miles southeast of Box Canyon. The springs are on the left side of the access road just beyond a fish hatchery. If you have your windows rolled down, you’ll probably hear them before you see them. The roar the springs make is no doubt the inspiration for their name.

There is a short trail to a viewing platform directly below the springs, which flow out of a 150 foot wide section of the canyon wall at a rate of almost 2,000 gallons per second. Just beyond the springs there’s a picnic area and a small tent campground on the right side of the road adjacent to the fish hatchery.

About a mile beyond Niagara Springs you’ll find Crystal Springs and Crystal Lake, which is a popular swimming and fishing spot. But we were there on a Thursday and it was quiet and peaceful, almost deserted. The only swimmers were a pair of white pelicans.

After leaving Niagara Springs and getting a bite to eat in Buhl, we took a short side trip to the rock formation known as Balanced Rock. After climbing up to the base of the rock, we resumed our journey back to Boise, where we were staying. The road from Balanced Rock took us back to Hwy 30 and the Snake River, not far from the Ritter Island area..

I was curious if I could find the spot along the highway that had made such an impression on me on that family vacation so long ago, and I think I did. I’m pretty sure what I saw back then was the springs above Ritter Island. The highway is on the opposite side of the river, but if the hydroelectric plant had not yet been built and none of the spring water was being diverted, there must have been an incredible amount of water pouring out of the canyon wall and tumbling down to the river. No wonder it made such an lasting impression on me. Even with the water diversions, the springs there are still quite a sight from the highway. That was the end off our first day’s outing. Not a bad start, to say the least.

Our trip continued in the following days with visits to Bruneau Dunes State Park, the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, and the World Center For Birds of Prey in Boise. We also spent time exploring downtown Boise and the parks and trails of the Boise River Greenbelt. Look for more on our trip in the coming weeks.

Originally posted June 16, 2019. Edited and re-posted December 26, 2021