Day 14: To Hayspur Fish Hatchery campground

September 10, 2008

The overnight low was 47F. Unusually warm for this elevation. I think it's because the dark lava radiated stored heat all night. At 7 AM construction workers started up their noisy excavating equipment 200 feet away. So I got up early. The workers shut off the nearby water faucet very early as well. But I was able to fill water bottles at the visitor center.

First I rode the 7 mile loop road at Craters of the Moon National Monument. The loop road was freshly paved but two of the four spur roads were closed for repaving.

Craters of the Moon. Edge of the lava flow where vegetation has colonized some areas.

I stopped to hike to the top of "Inferno Cone", the largest cinder cone in the area. It has a 360-degree view of the lava field. 750,000 acres of lava from a fissure called "The Great Rift" that was active 15,000 to 2000 years ago. It has splatter cones and cinder cones but no big volcanoes. Mostly just piles of lava rocks.

Cinder cones, miles and miles of barren lava.

Then onward, through increasingly barren lava to the spur road to the Lava Caves, the most popular tourist attraction. A paved foot path goes 1/2 mile across the lava to three accessible lava caves. The black lava absorbs the sun's heat and there is no shade. I'm glad to be here in the morning when it's still cool.

Craters of the Moon has some rare swirling "Aa" lava.

Most lava is the "Pahoehoe" type which breaks into sharp pieces.

One lava tube has a metal stairway and a partially collapsed roof that allows light to get in. It's neat to stand inside a long tube 30 feet high and 60 feet wide, once filled with flowing lava.

Back at the campsite I made lunch, broke camp, and got on the road at 1 PM. Backtracking west on US 20 with a headwind, but dropping 1000 feet elevation in the first 15 miles. I stopped at Wild Rose hot spring for 45 minutes, enjoying a final up-close view of the lava.

The sky was blue when I stopped, but by the time I started on the road again the sky ahead had turned to yellow. Dust storm, and I'm headed directly into it with a strong headwind. Progress was very slow into the headwind. 5 miles before the town of Carey I got into the worst of the dust cloud. 5 miles to Carey in the dust, with a 30 mph headwind. I stopped at the grocery store to buy a few things and the cashier remarked that it often "rains dirt". After Carey was the big hill to Picabo. The wind and dust subsided after the hill. Riding was much more pleasant then. It made me appreciate the mountain views like this:

Side road north of US20 after the dust storm.

My original planned route was to backtrack west and north to Ketchum, then pedal west on an unpaved forest road over Dollarhide summit to Featherville. That forest road passes 8 hot springs but the road has been closed for several weeks due to forest fires. Instead I will continue west on US20, then turn north to Featherville on a county road that passes only one hot spring. That route is paved but the US20 portion of the detour is less scenic.

I camped at the only campground I could find. Hayspur Fish Hatchery campground four miles west of Picabo. It's not shown on my Benchmark Idaho atlas but it is signed on US20. The campground is a giant field with a few tables and a few trees. No drinking water. The place was packed with trailers. A guy said most people are here for a big dog show nearby. I found a spot with a table in a place that will get early morning sun. I went to bed early because it was so cold (4800 feet elevation). At some point the wind started to howl and dust blew through my tent for two hours (the inner tent is mostly mesh). That was no fun. It made me want to bike the Interstate to Boise, rent a car, and drive home.

Distance: 47.1 miles (75.4 km)

Climbing: 1366 feet (414 m)

Average speed: 9.2 mph (14.8 km/h)

Maximum speed: 34.5 mph (55.2 km/h)

Hiked 2.5 miles (4 km)

Today's ride: 47 miles (76 km)
Total: 623 miles (1,003 km)

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