530 miles
Day 40 $0: Arrowback Reservoir Dispersed Camping (Boise, ID)

Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The first three of many states on the drive east.

Making the final U-Turn is always the saddest part of my summer trips. For some reason, when it comes to summer, I’m a “half-empty” kind of person. But I’ve vowed to make the most out of the the last two weeks.

The drive east on Highway 12 follows the valleys between Mt Rainier and Mt St. Helens.

One last look back.

I thought I might like to sleep in the Grand Tetons tomorrow night, but I think there are just too many miles to cover. And I need to arrive at the campground early to have any chance at a walk-up site.

So, I split the drive roughly in half, and maybe I’ll stay near the Grand Tetons tomorrow night.

The KOA in Boise did not look promising when compared to some options just a few miles down the road. I never trust a KOA that only has one or two campsite photos on their web page. And a note to management: this sad photo of a dark workout room is not doing you any favors.

About 13 miles of the main highway is the first of two camping options: Macks Creek Park Campground. It looks OK, but the online photos of the dispersed camping 3 miles down the road had me curious. It warned of a rutted dirt road, but that has never stopped me.

It is always worth it to drove the extra 3 miles. Always.

Worth it?

Since the reservoir is low, the boat ramp is very long (and paved). Folks must camp a lot along the shore. There were fire rings and a relatively level, smooth, packed shoreline to drive onto. There was one other trailer camping near the water’s edge, and a few fisherman. By sundown, it was just one pother camper, and me.

And of course, it wouldn’t be my blog if I didn’t stay up a bit past my bedtime to take a starry night shot.