Making our way West on the Oregon Trail

  We left Tetons and travelled west to south central Idaho where we parked for a couple of days to recoup.  On Saturday we met our new good friends from last summer, Leonard and Denise. They are using their Forest Ranger skills as they volunteer  in the Sawtooth National  Forest. We talked and laughed and agreed it was amazing that we were able to plan an enjoyable lunch visit in the middle of Idaho.  We find in them kindred spirits for mountains, RVing and enjoying the great outdoors.

The next day Ava and I worshipped in Jerome, Idaho in a log cabin church that Sojourners helped build almost 20 years ago!
 I had to include this photo taken at a Rest Area somewhere in Idaho.  Seems the Snake river we followed through the Tetons and across Idaho was the exact route taken by those hardy souls on the Oregon Trail.  Ava was reading a diary of that trip and we could match up our ease to their incredible hardship through many of the same mountains, passes, rivers and fords.  You can see it goes through SW Wyoming and across southern Idaho up into NE Oregon.  There we left it and crossed the Columbia River into Washington.




Following  the Yakima River we camped below the pass leading through the Cascades and marvelled at the abundance of cherry orchards, apples, peahces and pears - as well as scores of vineyards.  These cherries were "pick all you want for a $1 a bag!




Our campground was on a "working ranch" - and I wondered at the stock I was seeing - all bulls!

Then I found out the rancher leased his pasture out to a man who provided bulls for Bull Riding in Rodeos!  If I was even thinking about crossing the fences that thought was now banished!

Next stop - the NW Washington coast!