August 24, 2013

After about eight hours of travel, we arrived at the Boise, Idaho airport to start our eight-day adventure in the state. In the end, we'd put more than 1,400 miles on our rental car. We checked into our hotel near the airport, put on our sunscreen and headed out to our first experience.

We arrived at Barber Park and rented two intertubes to float down the Boise River. The trip would take three hours and traverse six miles before ending in downtown Boise. The water was a chilly 58 degrees but on a warm day it felt refreshing. Our legs and butts were in the water, but the rest of our bodies stayed warm in the hot Idaho sun which was a bit by hazy smoke from the fire at Yosemite in California. We were enjoying the view of the nearby mountains when we quickly got separated. Colleen was floating faster than me. She was able to stop herself on some rocks on the side of the river. We were reunited and then held hands the rest of the way down the river. The river was packed with people on rafts, tubes and kayaks. This clearly was the thing to do in Boise. The float was great, but at some times scary. We struggled to stay in the middle of the river and often found ourselves on the edge of the river brushing up against trees and rocks and ducking under branches.

We warned each other of shallow sections we spotted by yelling "butts up." At one point we floated down a branch of the river that didn't seem to re-connect with the river, so we had to backtrack to the river by walking. 

 
We even got up close and personal with a bird that turned out to be a swan, but looked very different than the ones we're used to seeing. 

I'm told this is what the baby swans look like before turning white. 

 
The river was mostly shrouded in trees, so we didn't see to much along the route in terms of buildings, so we wondered if we were really in a city. Eventually we did see the huge light fixtures of Bronco Stadium where Boise State University plays football. We'd soon learn this team is a big deal in Idaho. The float was full of laughs and relaxation. It was a great way to start our trip.

 

After our float, we grabbed dinner at Bittercreek Ale House. Our waiter accidentally spilled wine on Colleen's sneaker, but we quickly forgot about all that when we saw a bar full of people come down the street on a bicycle. 

All the patrons cycle while the bartender serves. I'd never seen anything like it before. Several police officers arrived to check out the bartender's paperwork. It must have checked out because eventually the bar was full again and the bicyclists were on their way again.

After dinner we walked around downtown. It reminds me of a mix of Burlington, Vermont and Denver, Colorado.  

 
We took some photos of the Idaho State Capitol and then returned to our hotel for some needed rest after a long day.

River Float:  A

Bittercreek Ale House  A-

Bar on Wheels  A

-- POSTED BY JON