Resting in the Middle of Nowhere

The middle of Nowhere

It's sometimes challenging to find affordable campgrounds on one's desired route that are both convenient and affordable. It then becomes necessary to decide which is more expedient. This week we chose affordable over convenient.

We were looking for something near Mountain Home, Idaho, which is right off I-84, about an hour's drive southeast of Boise. What we found was an RPI park off US 20, about thirty miles north of Mountain Home, called Fort Running Bear RV Resort. 

The campground is about as remote as they come, but it is a lovely little park, fairly small and cozy, but with full 50 amp hookups. Our RPI membership got us a very affordable rate of $13/night. Fort Running Bear is located a further three miles north of US 20, along a gravel road in the middle of pretty much nowhere. If you didn't know it was here...well, you'd never know it was here. (Even the mail won't deliver to this place.)

We arrived early in the afternoon and had our choice of two campsites. Mark's primary consideration, almost always, is a site's suitability for satellite reception. As is often the case with gravel parking pads, the ground was a bit bowed so that if we parked too much to the right or left, we would end up having to deal with side-to-side leveling issues. The particular spot he settled on had a better sight line to the sky for the satellite dish, but it had some overhanging tree limbs--primarily pine tree limbs. Nevertheless, we didn't think they would present any problems.

This is AFTER they trimmed the low branches

We were wrong.

It was a back-in spot, and I was doing my best to help him back straight in, but we were having some minor communication difficulties. Suddenly I got the hair-brained idea that maybe it would be easier for me to just do it myself. (This is my age-old problem.) So I said to Mark, "Let me do it. It would be good practice for me."

In I jumped, while he tried to direct me. After less than two minutes behind the wheel jockeying that over sized motorhome back and forth at least twice, I managed to get it too close to the pine tree with the very low-hanging branches. I knew I was in trouble. Mark took over and did a fine job of putting it where it needed to be--without my "help."

Once parked, he climbed the ladder to check for damage, and sure enough, that pine branch turned out to be tougher than our roof. It had ripped a fair sized hole in the surface of the roof, exposing the plywood frame. The worst part is that just weeks before, at Willow Bay, we watched a big motorhome encounter a similar situation where they got too close to a pine tree and ended up with a pine branch impaled into their roof air conditioner. (A woman was driving in this case, too. Make of it what you will.)

A hole in the roof

I knew then and there that I should leave the driving to Mark. If I can't even park it without hurting it, how can I expect to take it out on the road among other vehicles?! No thanks. Maybe after an intensive driving class, I'll consider reconsidering.

The next day, we made a trip to Walmart and purchased some repair materials so Mark could fix it.

...And the temporary patch

If you don't look too close, it looks as good as new. I just hope it survives the next rainstorm. We'll be having it examined by a professional when we get to California.

The rest of our week has been very relaxing and enjoyable. The park maintenance guy came over and trimmed the worst of the low branches, which we appreciated. We took a few walks around the park and out onto a short path with a bench where we sat and enjoyed the rustic view.

"Blaine's Lane" walking path

View of the hills

On Saturday, the park hosted a potluck dinner, which we attended. We sat and visited with a very nice retired couple from Arizona. Labor Day weekend will be packed out, but this week the park was sparsely populated-- a welcome reprieve from the party atmosphere of Willow Bay.

By the way, if you've never had an opportunity to view the stars at night from 5,000 feet and no light pollution, you have missed a rare treat. There are no light poles in this park. When it gets dark, it is completely dark, and the stars are so numerous you can barely see black between them. It is a breathtaking sight that causes me to well up with praise to God. I wish my camera could capture the image.

When I look at the night sky and see the work of Your fingers--the moon and the stars you set in place-- what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?...O LORD, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! --Psalm 8:3-4,9

 Praise the Lord from the heavens! Praise Him from the skies!...Praise Him, sun and moon! Praise Him, all you twinkling stars!  --Psalm 148:1,3

Tomorrow we're on the move again. Earlier this week we happened to watch a documentary on Idaho and learned about the Craters of the Moon National Monument, which is straight east of us on US 20. Originally, our plan was to take I-84 to I-15 and then south to Salt Lake City. But we have decided to stay on US 20 ...for a side trip to the moon.

Safe travels to one and all!

Long Stay, Short Visits

Sun through the smoke at Willow Bay
(Fire season!)

It seems we never have quite enough time for visiting when we come to Spokane. Part of that is the fact that our Spokane kids are "working stiffs." Part of it is that we can't seem to find good RV campgrounds close enough for regular visits. We hope to rectify that next year by doing some work-camping. Mark has submitted an application to work-camp at Ponderosa Falls, and if they hire him, it will be a three month instead of a one month stay.

But, we did get in a few nice visits with the kids. We hung out with Josh, Nicole, and Adam at their apartment a couple times.  Adam gave me some good cuddle time, and Nicole cooked us a nice dinner on one of our visits. Josh came out to our campground a couple times to help Mark with some RV repairs. On one of those visits, it rained all day, and we ended up just cooking him breakfast and visiting inside a while.

Unfortunately I didn't capture too much of our time there in photographs.

Adam is a "man's boy." He took to Mark right away.

Me getting acquainted with Adam.

Josh...glowing in fatherhood

Liz and her family came out to Ponderosa Falls for a cookout during our last week, but most of my visits with her and the granddaughters were at Liz's apartment. It was fun catching up on news with the girls. They are growing so fast! Savannah is 17 and Leah is 14. They're going through that self-discovery phase of life where they're trying to figure out who they are, what they think and believe, and what they will do in adulthood-- a daunting and sometimes overwhelming period in life for sure. We had some good discussions, but I would have loved to have had more time for those nitty-gritty talks that build relationship. Maybe next year.

Leah, showing off her beautiful smile

We managed to survive our two one-week stays at Willow Bay without sewer, during which we practiced water conservation skills that will assist us in our upcoming one-to-two week dry-camp rallies with our fellow Alfa owners. The first is in January--Quartzsite, Arizona. I doubt we will ever return to Willow Bay, however-- not because they have no sewer, but because they have no rules. There were no real defined camping sites, and people were setting up tents or chairs around us in such close proximity we felt like intruders. Added to that was the noisy partying that extended into the wee hours of the morning almost every night. (Oh, to be young.)

Busy weekend at Willow Bay

Camper crowding

There are certain considerations for one's neighbors that are necessary to maintain civilized society-- a very important one is "common" courtesy. Suffice it to say, I don't think we can call it "common" anymore.

But enough of that. We hit the road again last Monday and are on our way south--ultimately to California. On the way, we will be seeing the sights of southern Idaho, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada. Among them we're planning to visit Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon (north and south rims). I'm excited. I've never been to either place.

View from our campsite at Fort Running Bear (Idaho)

This week we are in a campground about thirty miles north of Mountain Home, Idaho. It's very remote, but we are fortunate enough to have both phone and internet service-- something we really didn't expect. The name of the campground is Fort Running Bear RV Resort. The temperatures are in the 80s and 90s during the day, and high 50s/low 60s during the night. We're at about 5,000 feet altitude and the air is dry. As a matter of fact, the whole place is dry, including the nearby reservoir, which is very low. It's a pretty park--small but homey and comfortable. It even has a pool! But we haven't been in it yet because it isn't heated and the waters are a bit chilly. The park has a few full 50-amp hookup sites, one of which we managed to get.

In the next post I'll tell you how I put a hole in the roof... yes, me!

For now, God Bless! Stay safe-- and happy camping to all!

Psalm 148
😍

More pictures...

Josh doing his "fair share" :-)

Adam, joining us at the dinner table

Face time with baby

A view of the Spokane River gorge from the North Hill

View from a rest area on the Snake River.
(I got 8 mosquito bites just taking this picture.)

Three miles up this road (off U.S. 20) is our campground.