McCall Trip part 2...07/09/11...5am...42°...Sunny

School similar to the one I attended

As we left Roseberry, I looked across the valley to the west mountains...Evidence of the new ski area "Tamarack" stood out, where the lift lines and ski trails had been cleared of timber...I start that way and Herb senses that we are taking a side trip, while he, is ready to start our journey home...He is good about this being my day though and I continue on to "Lake Cascade" as it is now called...It was just "Cascade Reservoir" when I was growing up...A popular fishing place but no thought had been given to turning it into a "Lake" and a new resort...Payette Lake in McCall was "the" place to go, with vacation homes and cabins dotting its shore...Rich, affluent people from the Boise Valley, made it their summer playground and like all tourist towns, the local people went along for the ride...Putting up with the tourists and making as much money off of them as possible, to help the local economy...McCall was a mill town and when the timber supply was exhausted, tourists became even more important and for several years it struggled to keep afloat...Now it has grown and if motels and churches are signs of progress, it has made it big time!

Back to "Lake Cascade"...driving along the shore, several campgrounds and State Parks line the shore...a good idea in my estimation as more people from all walks of life can enjoy this beautiful spot instead of just a few rich people with their million dollar homes, blocking the view...I navigate two "round-a-bouts" and go on up the hill...We are soon in a rats maze of winding roads, with "courts" (another word for cul-de-sac) going out in all directions...Huge homes and condo's at every turn as far up the mountain as the eye can see...Herb remarks that it looks like Telluride in Colorado, only a smaller version...We catch a glimpse of the lift line but can't see the ski runs or what the mountain really looks like as we are in the middle of it surrounded by buildings...Oops, maybe I better turn around before I am hopelessly lost...would hate to spend the last years of my life trying to find a way out...I sigh a big sigh of relief as we exit through the round-a-bouts and I'm in such a hurry that I take a corner way too fast and notice Herb hanging on, but happy to be headed in a homeward direction!

Views from the Loop Road

We stop in McCall for dinner, then Herb takes the drivers seat and we leave for home...My mind needs a rest, so I doze off and on for the next 100 miles and then come wide awake as Herb spots a bear crossing the road in front of us...try to get a picture but no luck...I'm awake now and enjoy the rest of our trip home up North Pine Creek, through Ollokot, up Gum Boot, over Lick Creek, Salt Creek Summit and the Imnaha highway to Joseph.


We arrive safe and sound, but on the tail end of a wind storm, that has left tree limbs on the ground and deck furniture blown into the yard, but the roof is still on the house...We are home and all is well.

Yesterday, Herb mowed lawns, I worked in the flower beds, but spent most of the time editing my manuscript...Have the first two pages done, only thirteen to go...~OWAV:))