Boise, ID – Boise came next and I realized again that life in the desert revolves around water.  The river runs through downtown and everyone who is anyone floats it.  Little breweries dot the banks along with bike paths and I made use of both with gracious friends.  I thought it was a little white for my taste until we visited the lake below the reservoir where all walks of life cool off under the shade trees and in the fountains in the water.  A kids area even sports fountains they can turn off and on.  Behind the lake, different colored rocks on the slope state, “Keep our forests green.”

We thought we would go for ice cream in Idaho City but were turned around just past up from the reservoir because the Lucky Peak Fire was flying up the hill.  Orchestrated planes from the Air Force Base in Mountain Home followed chaser planes and dropped swathes of fire retardant just over the hills.  We could see flames making it over the hills.  The helicopters dropped 55-gallon buckets of water which seemed like a small amount compared to the size of the burn.  We talked to the horticulturist who grows the trees to replace the ones burned in fires.  It turns out he was from Mount Vernon, WA, too and we caught up on local politics.

For ice cream, we settled on a brewery, the Bittercreek Alehouse.  They make their own ice cream (highly recommended) and beer (of course).  When it came time to leave, I was sold on Boise after a gentleman at REI helped me call three different stores to find a replacement pump for my stove.