Swiftwater RV Park, White Bird, ID

Today's Photo - A Floating Generator on a River















I woke up this morning with the patter of rain on the roof. Luckily, it stopped by the time I finished breakfast. I did get my shower & laundry done, however it was at the Pizza place in Stanley yesterday afternoon. Although they did fix the water problem at Elk Mountain RV Resort, they wouldn't have hot water until morning & I wanted to get a somewhat early start.

The drive to White Bird, ID on ID 21, ID 55, and US 95 was wonderful. Almost the entire was was driving along pretty mountain streams, filled to capacity (or more) with spring runoff. The photo above shows an interesting power generator. It is a funnel on a set of pontoons that feeds the river water through a turbine & generator. An interesting idea - I have no idea how much power it generates, but it would be useful for locations on fast moving streams. If you look closely, you can see they also had a solar panel...

I'm in Swiftwater RV Park, site 13, a well kept and very pleasant campground on the shore of the Salmon River. It is nice to see the "other" Salmon River. it is bigger than ours in Oswego with about 20 times the amount of flow, and at present, is full of rafters.


I lost an hour - I'm back in the Pacific time zone I have a steak & corn on the cob to cook for dinner - I probably should think about cooking.

Till Tomorrow -

Stanley, ID

Today's Photo - The Stars at Craters of the Moon















I tried again for some nighttime star photos. The short exposure (well, 15 seconds) came out OK, however I also tried a star trail, leaving the shutter open for around an hour. Only problem is a few campsites over from mine they decided to use their flashlights at 12:00AM, and the image was ruined. I'll try again if I get to a dark location.

I continued west from Craters of the Moon to ID 75 & ID 21, stopping for the night just outside of Stanley at the Elk Mountain RV Resort. Not quite a resort, but the price is right - $27.00 for full hookups. There is one problem - I chose the campground because AAA listed it as having showers & a laundry. Well, they do, but they also have a water problem, and as of 3:00, there is neither and no bathrooms. Hope they get things working soon.

Other than that I'm spending the rest of the day reading & since I have a pretty good internet connection, catching up on some of the RV sites I follow.

Until Tomorrow -

Craters of the Moon 2 & The EBR-1, ID

Today's Photo A Lava Field at the Craters of the Moon National Monument, ID














I set up the camera to take a series of 15 second exposures starting at midnight. I checked them out a little after 12:30 & I didn't get quite what I wanted, but here is one of them. I'll try some more tonight as well as shooting a star trail, a long exposure that makes circles out of the stars because of the earth's rotation.

Today's plan was to drive through Arco and visit the EBR-1, the world's first power plant that produced usable electricity. After that I'd return to Arco, do laundry, get a haircut, and pick up something for dinner.

I figured I should check out the EBR-1 since I live in a town (Oswego, NY) that has three nuclear power plants as well as a large (over 2 Gigawatt) formally coal, switched to oil, then switched to natural gas power plant - which, for some reason only runs a few hours per year when the temperature is under -10°F, as well as a couple of hydro plants on the Oswego section of the Erie Canal.

The EBR-1 started producing electricity in 1951, and powered the town of Arco, the first city to have "Atomic" power. I've toured one of out local "Nuke" plants (long before 911 - you can't get near them now) and it is interesting to see the similarities & differences. I added a group of photos at today's Lakeshore Images Journal Page. I love the image of the turbine & generator with the names of the persons at the plant when it was first started.

Outside the EBR-1 building are two huge nuclear aircraft engine prototypes. I never knew it, but in the mid 1950's there was a plan to build a nuclear powered bomber that was capable of staying in the air for over a week. For a number of reasons it was never built, but the prototype engines were built & tested.


Although not the most important National Historic Landmark of the trip, it is definitely worth a stop if you are heading towards Craters.

As to doing laundry, well, the only laundromat in Arco (or within miles) is closed. I had to go to Moore, about 7 miles north of Arco to find a place that takes drop in haircuts, but had a good time talking with the barber - the first time a man has cut my hair since I was in high school.

Till next time -

Craters of the Moon National Monument, ID

Today's Photo - The Tetons, WY
















As the title says, I'm at the Craters of the Moon, Site 38. If you have never been here, as its name implies, it is a strange place. All the campsites are carved out of black pumice, with rocks the size of basketballs that you can hold in one hand. Most of the sites are fairly small, although a few are large enough for a 36' Class A or large 5th wheel. There is water available (although no hookups, and no dump station). I'm in the back section which is only for small trailers or tents. Very quiet, and I hope it will be dark enough for some star pictures tonight. The skies are clear...

On the way out of the Tetons I made one last stop at Mormon Row - better lighting, but not quite what I was looking for. Oh well, maybe next time...

I'm not sure how long I'll stay here - I do want to see some of the caves, the cinder mounds, etc here in the park so it will probably be two days unless I get tired of not having electricity (or worst, at least for others, a shower!)

Till Next Time -

The Grand Tetons & Yellowstone, WY, Day 2

Today's Photo - A Mormon Barn, The Grand Tetons National Park, WY













I'm posting today's journal from the Jackson Albertsons parking lot. A good cell signal as well as a open local WiFi. An early morning - outside temperature was 37°F while it was 48 inside the trailer until I turned on the heat. A quick breakfast & it was off to see the Tetons. Although I made most of the stops along the way, my main goal for the day was to hike to Hidden Falls. It is a 3.5 mile hike mostly around Jenny Lake. A big advantage (that I took) is there is a $7.00 boat ride back that saves 3 miles of walking.

The falls is actually a cascade, and it is running very strong with the spring snow melt. Strong enough that only one of the three bridges across the stream are usable.

After the boat ride back I went to Mormon Row to photograph some of the barns that Ansel Adams made famous. I hope to get back tomorrow morning - the afternoon light was quite harsh & unforgiving, but I'm including a couple of images anyway. Check the rest of the day's photos at Today's Journal at Lakeshore Images.

After that it was off to Albertsons for dinner supplies and a few new books. I'm just about out, but my favorite authors have come through with new summer books.

Till Tomorrow!