Day 4 - McCall to Jackpot, Nevada
Highways today were south on State 55 (Payette River Scenic Byway), east on County Road 17 (Banks/Lowman Road) to Lowman, a little side step south to Idaho City and back, then continuing north on State Highway 21 (Ponderosa Pine Scenic Route) to Stanley and south on State Highway 75 (Sawtooth Scenic Byway) to Shoshone and US 93 to Jackpot. Google Map
Granny's Attic - McCall, Idaho
We stopped at this charming quilt shop before leaving town. This is not a big shop but it certainly has a big story. They host quilting tours all over the world. The owner designs and publishes her own quilt patterns. She has lost track of how many but her husband says it's over 90 patterns. The decor includes dozens of traditional Star Blocks - some with the most unique variations we've ever seen.
Payette National Forest
We continued south on State Highway 55 (Payette River National Scenic Byway) in the Payette National Forest. In 1944 the Weiser National Forest and the Idaho National Forest were combined to create the Payette National Forest. The land area consists of approximately 2.3 million acres. The Payette National Forest is named for François Payette, a French-Canadian fur trapper and later the manager of Fort Boise for the Hudson's Bay Company from 1835-1844.
Boise National Forest
Boise National Forest was created on July 1, 1908 from portions of the Payette National Forest and Sawtooth National Forest. Trappers and fur traders arrived in the area in the early 1800s. By 1840, the fur trade was coming to an end, but the westward migration on the Oregon Trail, which passed south of the forest, was beginning. The first settlers moved into the mountains in the 1860s after gold was discovered. Three of Idaho's scenic byways - Payette River Scenic Byway, Wildlife Canyon Scenic Byway and the Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway are all within the Boise National Forest.
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| Guard Station c 1933 |
Civilian Conservation Corps in Boise National Forest
Nine camps and eight sub-camps of the Civilian Conservation Corps were set up in Boise National Forest.
The CCC constructed many structures throughout the forest from 1933 until 1942, including fire suppression, fish habitat improvement, and construction of guard houses, fire lookouts, campgrounds, roads, and trails.
Lake Cascade
Lake Cascade (formerly Cascade Reservoir), is on the North Fork of the Payette River. Located in the Boise National Forest, it has a surface area of 47 square miles and is the fourth largest lake or reservoir in the state. Following a delay due to World War II, the earthen dam built by the Bureau of Reclamation was completed in 1948. The term "Lake Cascade" came into common use in the 1990s, with the federal name change made in 1999.
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| Cougar Mountain Lodge - Smiths Ferry |
Smiths Ferry, Idaho
Smiths Ferry, population 75, is situated where the North Fork of the Payette River briefly calms and widens.
A ferry at the river was established in 1887 to transport livestock to summer pasture in the Round and Long Valleys across the river. The ferry was sold to Jim Smith in 1891. Smith's Ferry became a vital crossing when the first bridge was completed in 1919.
County Road 17 - Wildlife Canyon Scenic Byway
This 33 mile scenic byway follows the old miner's supply route from Banks to Lowman alongside the churning waters of the South Fork of the Payette River. It goes through a canyon cut deep into the heart of the Idaho mountains.
Stitch n' Snip - Crouch Idaho
This tiny community, population 162, has numerous businesses for tourists and residents including a wonderful quilt shop full of ideas to tempt you. Stitch n' Snip is where I signed up for the BOM - Vintage Trucks Thru The Year by Buttermilk Basin. Stitch n' Snip
Lowman, Idaho
Lowman, established in 1907, got all its supplies once a year from a large freight wagon over a state road built in 1894 to provide access to North Idaho. The highway followed in 1939. Eventually a one-room schoolhouse was moved here from Garden Valley. It still serves Lowman. Lowman - Historical Marker Database
State Highway 21 - Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway
At Lowman we turned north onto The Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway. The route, also dubbed as "the Highway to Heaven" climbs to the Banner Creek Summit (7056 feet) and enters the Challis National Forest before it begins the descent into Stanley and the junction with State Highway 75.
Challis National Forest
The Salmon–Challis National Forest at 4,235,940 acres is one of the largest national forests in the lower 48 states. Also the land area of the Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness is the largest wilderness area south of Alaska.
Borah Peak, (elevation 12,662), the tallest mountain in Idaho, is also found here. The Wild and Scenic Salmon River weaves through the rugged terrain of the Sawtooth Mountains while it flows for over 75 miles through the forest.
Highway 75 - Sawtooth Scenic Byway
State Highway 75 travels through the Sawtooth Valley. It provides access to Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The highway primarily follows the main Salmon River in the north and the Big Wood River in the south, divided by Galena Summit.
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| Galena Summit c 1940 |
Galena Summit - Highway 75
Galena Summit is a high mountain pass at an elevation of 8,701 feet. The pass is located in the Boulder Mountains within the Sawtooth National Recreation Area of the Sawtooth National Forest.
The summit is the highest highway summit in the Northwest. Galena Overlook offers views of the Sawtooth range and the headwaters of the Salmon River in the Stanley Basin.
Sawtooth National Forest - Highway 75
The Sawtooth Forest Reserve was established in a proclamation issued by President Theodore Roosevelt on May 29, 1905. The Sawtooth National Forest covers 2,110,408 acres. On August 22, 1972 a portion of the forest was designated as the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.
The Sawtooth Mountains, primarily within the Sawtooth National Forest, reach a maximum elevation of 10,751 feet at the summit of Thompson Peak. The mountains were named for their jagged peaks. There are 57 peaks with an elevation over 10,000 feet. Another 77 peaks fall between 9,000 and 10,000 feet.
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| Sawtooth City |
Ghost Towns, Mines and Explorers
A series of historical markers dot the highway between mile marker 167 (Sawtooth City) and mile marker 112 (Wood River Mines).
The entire area is rich in mining history, railroads, explorers, settlements and stories of prosperity, murder and doom. Many of the areas are not accessible but we stopped and read the markers. Idaho Historical Marker Guide
Ketchum, Idaho
Originally the smelting center of the Warm Springs mining district, the town was first named Leadville in 1880. The postal department decided that was too common and renamed it Ketchum after a local trapper and guide who had staked a claim in the basin a year earlier.
Sun Valley, Idaho
Sun Valley is a resort town adjacent to the city of Ketchum. The first destination winter resort in the U.S., it was developed by W. Averell Harriman, the chairman of the Union Pacific Railroad. The success of the 1932 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, spurred an increase in participation in winter sports (and alpine skiing in particular). During World War II, the resort was closed and converted to a convalescent hospital for the U.S. Navy. It re-opened to the public in December 1946.
Bellevue, Idaho
Bellevue was settled and chartered in 1882. Bellevue grew as a mining town. Between 1881 and the 1893 silver market crash, the mines near Bellevue produced more than $60 million worth of silver, lead and gold.
Bellevue has a bit of an "explosive" history. A devastating fire engulfed the city's business district in 1905, started when the Seymour Saloon's bartender lit a match to investigate a gasoline leak. In 1957, windows in Bellevue were shattered and the city was rocked when 8 tons of dynamite and 56 rounds of artillery shells accidentally detonated at a mine west of the city.
Timmerman Junction Oregon Trail Rest Stop
This rest stop, at the junction of Highway 75 and US 20, has a historical marker kiosk. Five panels in the kiosk, erected by the Idaho Department of Transportation, walk you through the Oregon Trail history in Idaho. The panels, titled Idaho's Emigrant Trails, Emigrant Travel, Craters of the Moon, Fur Hunters, and Goodale's Cutoff give an extensive documentary and pictorial history of this area's portion of the Oregon Trail.
Shoshone Ice Caves - Not even a chance!
No! Not even virtually. I'm not going in an underground cave. Can't do it. I'm quite happy to sit above land reading my book while Karen does the tour.
About 15 miles north of Shoshone are the Shoshone Ice Caves. The caves are hollow underground lava tubes that stay cool enough for the ice inside them to remain frozen throughout the summer. In the days before refrigeration, this feature made Shoshone popular with travelers as "the only place for hundreds of miles where one could get a cold beer."
US Highway 93 - Shoshone to Jackpot
We left Highway 75 at Shoshone and headed south on US Highway 93. Ironically, this is another part of the same Montana highway between Kalispell and Elmo we drove on day two. This stretch though, almost the entire way to Jackpot, is straight over flat desert. Not much to see except for a few small towns with gas stations along the way. The good news is we are used to it and just bear down and make up some time - although I'm not sure why as it really doesn't matter what time we get there.
Jackpot, Nevada
In May 1958, the settlement was first recognized by the Elko County commissioners as an unincorporated town named "Horse Shu" despite a protest over the name by Cactus Pete's. Because the club owners could not agree on a name, the county commissioners renamed it a month later as "Unincorporated Town No. 1." The clubs compromised on the name "Jackpot" in 1959.
Cactus Pete's - Jackpot, Nevada
After Idaho outlawed all forms of casino gaming in 1954, "Cactus Pete" Piersanti moved his slot machine operations from Idaho to the new townsite just inside the Nevada border.
We are staying at Cactus Pete's - as we have for the last 20 years. This wonderful hotel keeps remodelling and renovating and feels just like a new hotel. Cactus Pete's
By the time our day was over we had travelled on four Scenic Byways, passed through four National Forests, hit an elevation of over 8700 feet, endured miles and miles of desert, shopped at two quilt stores, and had lunch at the Ram restaurant in Sun Valley where I probably had something "beef" and Karen probably ordered "chicken quesadilla with green onions, tomatoes, and lots of cheese.
We also backtracked 114 miles or so to take a different route in order to avoid driving on I-84. Well, you know, you can do that when you travel virtually! If you don't like where you're heading - delete it!
We booked into our room and headed to the buffet were we ate way too much (as usual) then browsed through the gift shop. Before calling it a night, we spent our $20.00 in the slot machines. Once again, we're exhausted.
 Post Note - Day Four:
My resolution to keep this show moving didn't work out so well. Once I hit all the historical mining ghost towns and spectacular views over the mountain scenic drives, I got derailed again. (Also, Karen is probably stopping to take at least a thousand pictures, so I wont take all the blame.)
I changed routes mid-stream. Highway 21 was my undoing. I wanted to drive it but also wanted to avoid travel on I-84 so I (virtually) deleted everything from Lowman to Idaho City, turned around and drove the Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway to Stanley instead. I'm still not sure if I'm happy with the route but we are in Jackpot now - so too late.
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