Beat the Heat! Five alternative, off-the-beaten path destinations for SUP'ing and kayaking in SW Idaho

Low-key SUP adventure at Discovery State Park 

Hi all,

The weather is heating up, and we'll be hitting 100 degrees in Boise several days in a row next week! 

Time to cool off in the river! Where to go? 

Everyone will be flocking to Barber Park to float the Boise River or to Quinn's Pond to go Stand Up Paddle Boarding (SUP), hanging out on the beach or kayaking. 

Quinn's Pond has been the go-to destination for SUPs in Boise, and often times, it's challenging to even find a place to park at Esther Simplot Park to get easy access to Quinn's Pond. However, the old Bob Rice Ford parking lot is a great alternative, with plenty of space and a new and improved boat launch from that side of the pond. 

To find a little more elbow room, here are some suggested alternative destinations to go SUP'ing, canoeing or kayaking.

You also can inquire with the experts Idaho River Sports and Alpenglow Mountainsport (both of whom have tons of SUP and kayak rentals available) for ideas, or consult my guidebook, Paddling the Payette, which has more than 15 fantastic flat-water and moderate, swift-water destinations for SUPs and kayaks. 

Be sure to wear life jackets, helmets and safety gear on rocky moving water like the Boise River and Payette River. Stay away from the river banks when possible as well to avoid getting caught in debris, downed trees, etc. 

1. Discovery State Park - Located at the foot of Lucky Peak Dam, Discovery Park is a great place to paddle in the Boise River below the dam. The shady park is a great place to hang out, so bring a picnic, and there is a great spot for off-leash dogs to run around. You can paddle towards Diversion Dam, or just paddle around next to the park. 

Paddling SUPs at Discovery Park. 

Arrowrock Reservoir near full pool. 

2. Arrowrock Reservoir - Quiet and uncrowded. Lots of places to launch by campgrounds or other dispersed sites along the west side of the reservoir by the Middle Fork Road. Could be windy in the afternoon, so be aware of that. 

3. Mores Creek arm of Lucky Peak Reservoir. Put in at Robie Creek Park. Quiet and relatively uncrowded.


Video courtesy Idaho Caller 

4. Payette River - Montour reach near Sweet. Moving water but no rapids. Multiple sand bars as the river level drops. Put-in at the Montour IDFG Wildlife Managemennt Area by the river bridge. Easy bike shuttle possible by planting a bike at the beginning of Black Canyon Reservoir. 3.5 miles. 

5. Centennial Park to Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls. World-class paddling experience in the giant Snake River Canyon. See post in Southern Idaho Tourism for details and directions! Fabulous trip!(Video courtesy Southern Idaho Tourism)

Have fun and stay cool close to the water! 

- SS 

Plan a fall trip to Priest Lake, and go camping, boating, SUP'ing, fishing, biking or hiking!

Riding the shady Lakeshore Trail on a warm summer day at Priest Lake. 

Hi all, 

It's no secret that Priest Lake is one of Idaho's crown jewels, nestled in the Idaho Panhandle. A recent trip to Priest Lake reminded me what a truly special place it is! For one thing, it's a BIG lake! Almost 20 miles long and 4.4 miles wide, with lots of coves and bays. Just a gorgeous place to be.

I went swimming, mountain biking and fishing on this particular trip, which was mainly a work trip. The boating is fantastic on the lake, and a newly deepened Thorofare channel provides clear and easy access for SUPs, kayaks, canoes and power boats to Upper Priest Lake.

The Thorofare Channel provides an intimate experience on the way to Upper Priest Lake.

But my oh my, Priest Lake has definitely been discovered! I couldn't believe how booked all of the lodging properties were at Priest Lake when I inquired in mid-June about 2 nights in late July. Nothing. Zilch. Everything was booked solid through Labor Day weekend. 

This September or October would be a great time to plan a road trip to Priest Lake. Try to reserve a spot at Beaver Creek Campground, book a spot at one of the State Park units on the east side of the lake, or reserve a cabin/room at Hill's Resort or Elkin's Resort. Beaver Creek CG provides excellent access to the Thorofare channel, as does the Lionhead unit of Priest Lake State Park. However, it looks like only on the Indian Creek unit of the park will be open this fall because of road construction.

Some things I'd recommend doing while you're visiting Priest Lake: 

• Go mountain biking on the Lake Shore Trail. It's a 7-mile intermediate ride along the west shoreline of Priest Lake to the northern end of the lake. The singletrack trail winds through the dark shadowy cedar forests above the lakeshore and then drops down to the lake, where you can take a swim, and then climbs again into the trees. The trail is pretty smooth with some roots and rocks. Super fun! 
• At the end of the Lake Shore Trail, you can keep going on the Priest Lake Navigation Trail, a singletrack which continues in a northerly direction and connects to Upper Priest Lake. The Navigation trail runs for about 5 miles to a dead-end at Upper Priest. Turn around, and retrace your tracks to the trailhead. Take your time and enjoy it! It's just so unusual to be able to ride along the shore of a beautiful lake, without it being a suffer fest like so many other Idaho mountain trails!

  

  The newly deepened Thorofare channel is popular with all kinds of boaters.
  

  
  
  
• Paddle or SUP the Thorofare to Upper Priest Lake. It's only about 2.5 miles to the upper lake.  
  

A kayaker comes equipped to go fishing at the tip of the new Breakwater feature.

Priest Lake Flickr page shows the Breakwater feature prior to the lake refilling this spring.

• Go boating on Priest Lake. For folks who have their own power boat or sail boat, it's a big lake to explore! With 80 miles of shoreline, the lake also has many sandy beach type areas where you can pull up, hang out and go swimming or whatever.  

  

  Craig Hill of Hill's Resort tows a waterskier on an early morning sheet of glass on Priest Lake.
  

  
  
• Stay at Hill's Resort or Elkin's Resorts and live it up a little! Both provide comfortable lodging,  outdoor dining and boat access to the lake. Hill's also has golf. 
• Bring your fishing pole. Priest Lake has a mix of warm water and cold water fish species that you can catch including cutthroat trout, small mouth bass and lake trout. Thanks to IDFG for the information. 

  

  Upper Priest River Trail (courtesy Dave 'n Kathy's Vagabond Blog)
  

  
  
  
• Hike or bike the Upper Priest River Trail - This is a 16-mile out-and-back trip or 20 miles total to a natural waterfall and pool at the Canadian border. The Upper Priest River Trail is also the northern-most section of the Idaho Centennial Trail. It's a super cool hike/ride through cedars and rotting old-growth trees on the ground that have blondish lichens growing on them. Sometimes I thought I was seeing a grizzly out of the corner of my eye when I rode that trail. 

That ought to keep you busy for a while! Have fun!
- SS

Summer vacation is on the wane! Two weekends left before school starts!

Steve backpacking in the Red Mountain Lakes area.

Hi all,

Sad but true, summer vacation is on the wane! There are only two weekends left before Boise Schools start up on Monday, Aug. 19. How have you done on your summer outdoor punch list?

Taking a look back at my many recommendations for summer, let's review your options for what to do!  

1. Float a river (day trip) - we're blessed with so many options here, but have you floated the Boise River? How about the Payette River -- there's the Main Payette, South Fork Payette or Cabarton run on the North Fork. Check with Cascade Raft, Idaho Whitewater Unlimited, Bear Valley or the Payette River Company about guided trips. The Payette's calmer sections are great for stand-up paddle boarding (SUP), sit-on-top kayaking and canoeing.

Float a river! This is on the Cabarton stretch of the Payette River. 

2. Climb a mountain - The pinnacle is to climb Mount Borah, but there are so many other options in Idaho, with dozens of peaks over 10,000 feet and 8 peaks over 12,000 feet. See Idaho mountain expert Tom Lopez's list of recommended mountain peaks. McCall mountain expert John Platt also has an extensive list of peaks and mountains that he's climbed.

3. Ride the ski lift to the top of Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain or Sun Valley and go hiking or biking from there. Bogus is going to give away a free season pass to whoever is the 100,000th person to ride the mountain coaster this weekend. Sounds like a reason to go! Brundage recently opened a new intermediate-level mountain bike trail. They've also got Emily Tipton playing Friday night as part of the TGIF concert series and a Caribbean dinner planned. Hope the Netheker fire burning near Burgdorf doesn't create a lot of smoke! #prayforburgdorf!

4. Take your kids fishing - See the list of Idaho Fish and Game's Family Fishing Waters to find some great recommendations close to home.

Go hiking in the Sawtooths (photo courtesy Michael Lanza/The Big Outside)

5. Go backpacking in the Sawtooths, White Clouds, Pioneers or Big Lost Mountain Range. See Michael Lanza's recommended hikes in the Sawtooths in his blog, the Big Outside. See a recommended major loop in the White Clouds in Backpacker mag. For a great hike in the Pioneers, see my blog post about hiking Broad Canyon. For the Big Lost range, see this overview in Summit Post.com. 

6. Sleep under the stars in a dark sky venue like Bear Valley, the Owyhee Canyonlands or outside of Stanley.

Catch a trout on the Middle Fork Salmon River. 

7. Fly into the Middle Fork of the Salmon River and go fly-fishing for native cutthroat trout. Air taxi services in Boise, Cascade or McCall can take you into the Middle Fork in less than an hour. All fishing is catch and release.

8. Go mountain biking on a classic loop trail like Fisher-Williams in the White Clouds, Loon Lake north of McCall or Around the Mountain at Bogus Basin. 

Climbing up a short hill to finish the Fisher-Williams Loop (courtesy Salsa cycles)

9. Go SUP'ing, boating or swimming in a refreshing, natural Idaho mountain lake like Payette Lake, Redfish Lake, or Priest Lake.

10. Go see an outdoor concert! See a summer roundup in the Idaho Statesman for a full rundown of outdoor concerts planned in the summer of 2019.

For further enrichment on Idaho bucket list trips, see an Idaho bucket list post from Boise State radio, and a post that I did listing another 30 bucket list trips that they didn't cover.
- SS

Hot weather means it's time to go paddling! Five flat-water paddling tips for the weekend!

New boat-dropoff by Quinn's Pond

New sandy beach next to Quinn's Pond 

People were paddling kayaks and SUPs at Quinn's Pond today 

Dock for swimming and whatnot ... 

Beach will be popular this summer

Greenbelt provides access to the pond, plus you can get there via Whitewater Blvd. 

Hi all,

Just as we turn into June, after an incredibly nice May, a warm front comes our way and brings 95 degree F temps for the weekend. Bam! That means it's time to go swimming and paddling to stay cool ...

Quinn's Pond on Whitewater Boulevard in Boise just re-opened after some renovation work, and it looks great! The new west shoreline of the pond is sloped with a sandy beach and grass for hanging out next to the water. Dogs are allowed. It's also got a primo concrete boat ramp for launching anytime of paddle craft, and next to the Greenbelt, there's a little drive-up drop-off circular drive where people can drop off their boats. Nice planning!

So my top recommendation for the weekend is to visit Quinn's Pond and go swimming, boating or hang out. You can paddle a kayak, an inflatable kayak or a Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP). Rentals and lessons are available at Idaho River Sports. See their lesson calendar. It's packed with opportunities almost every day. Alpenglow Mountainsport also rents SUPs and paddling gear on Bogus Basin Road.

More destinations for flat-water kayaking, canoeing or SUP'ing:  

#2 - Discovery State Park - At the foot of Lucky Peak Dam, the park is a nice place for a picnic and paddling. Launching a SUP or kayak works fine there, too.

Payette River in Cascade 

#3 - Middle Fork Payette River, Tie Creek section - This is a fun paddle on a moving stream. It's 8 miles from the boat-launch at Tie Creek Campground, north of Crouch, to the town of Crouch. You could do a bike or car shuttle. Plus, there's several great places to eat and drink in Crouch afterwards.
This trip is featured in my book, Paddling the Payette.

#4 - Montour section of the Payette River - 3.5 miles, float time: 1.5-3 hours. Bike shuttle works good. Put on the river by the bridge as you enter Montour Wildlife Management Area. The turnoff is 9.3 miles west of Horseshoe Bend on Highway 52. The river moves slowly through a wide river in this section, with cottonwood trees on both banks of the river. When the river flows are lower, the river can get braided in some sand bars before you get to Black Canyon Reservoir. Take out at the little park at the head of the reservoir. Featured in Paddling the Payette. 

#5 - Cascade to Cabarton - This is a super sweet paddling trip that a lot of people don't know about. It's nine miles of moving flatwater on the Payette River, from the ID 55 south bridge in Cascade to the Cabarton boat launch for the Class III whitewater run. Float time is 3-5 hours. Take your time and enjoy it. You'll see kingfishers, great blue herons, bald eagles, and West Mountain looming above as you float through pasture land. Now is a nice time to go, but anytime all summer works. Featured in Paddling the Payette. 

Stay cool out there!
- SS  

Whoa baby! Here comes the heat! Here are 13 tips on how to stay cool close to home ...

Lake Cascade 

Boating at Lucky Peak 

Floating the Salmon River

Floating the Payette River 

SUP'ing on Payette Lake ... Photo courtesy Lolo Nelson 

Redfish Lake near Stanley 

Round the Mountain Trail, Bogus Basin 

Hi all,

Well, I see the summer heat is going to hit us right between the eyes -- all too soon -- here in the last week of June. I just finished a 6-day trip on the Main Salmon - River of No Return, and the temperatures were most pleasant, with highs in the mid-80s to low 90s. But looking ahead to this week, we're going to get hit with temperatures in the triple digits for the next week! Yikes!

Here are 13 recommendations on how to stay cool:

• Start super early if you'd like to go hiking, biking or trail-running in the Boise Foothills. That means get out before 7 a.m. 
• Go to Bogus Basin and start your hiking, trail-running or biking trip up there. It should be 15 degrees cooler. Hike or ride the Around the Mountain Trail, Freddy's Stack Rock Trail, Eastside or Sweet Connie. This weekend, Bogus is hosting a trail-running event on Saturday. 
• Float the Boise River - Put on plenty of sunscreen, wear a big goofy hat, and float the Boise River with your friends and family. See info. at Ada County Parks & Waterways. Take your time, hang out by the water and stay cool. 
• Go swimming, tubing or water-skiing at Lucky Peak, Arrowrock or Anderson Ranch. 
• Go swimming or SUP'ing at a local park or pond. See Boise Parks & Recreation for ideas close to home. 
• Hire a guide or rent a boat and go float the Payette River. The Main Payette River from Banks to Beehive Bend is best for those breaking into the sport. If you'd like to crank up the adrenaline meter and float the South Fork, put a bunch of friends together and hire a guided service. Bear Valley, Cascade Raft and Kayak, and Idaho Whitewater Unlimited all provide quality guided trips on the Payette River.
• Go swimming or SUP'ing at a local park or pond. See Boise Parks & Recreation for ideas close to home. 
• Go camping, fishing, swimming, water-skiing or SUP'ing at Lake Cascade State Park in Cascade or Donnelly.
• Go swimming, tubing, surfing or water-skiing on Payette Lake. Find a place to stay overnight in McCall or go camping in the Payette National Forest. 
• Go camping, fishing, swimming or SUP'ing at Redfish Lake or Stanley Lake in the Sawtooths. Go to recreation.gov to make reservations.   
• Drive to Riggins and hang out on a big beach on the Salmon River. Go swimming, camping and fishing. Get there early. There will be competition for the primo camping spots.  
• Plan a personal trip on the Salmon River or book a trip with an outfitter, if you don't have your own gear. Here's a few notes from my trip last year on the Salmon. It's a trip-of-a-lifetime to vacation for a week on the Salmon River, but since we live in Idaho, we can do it every year! 
• Backpack or day hike into a high mountain lake and stay cool in the alpine forest environment. See my blog about five of my favorite kid-friendly hikes near Stanley and McCall for ideas. 

There you have it! Have fun! 

- SS