Day 12 - Pendleton OR to Arco ID
Day 12 - 28 June 2006 - Wednesday
--- Starting in Pendleton, Oregon ---
In the morning we took a look at the old cars in the parking lot
next door:
We then drove a long way on I-84 through some very barren volcanic
landscapes. We went past a big Ore-Ida factory, which was right
near the Ore-Ida border in Ontario (some
people had a big revelation about where the name came from :P).
We then crossed the Snake river
and entered Idaho.
--- Entering Idaho ---
We stopped in Boise for lunch, and got additional batteries for our
camera. In Boise we passed near the Micron plants where a lot
of computer RAM is made.
We stopped at
Malad Gorge State Park near Hagerman, ID. The actual park can
be seen right from the highway. The gorge itself is impressive:
The main attraction is a waterfall called the Devil's Punchbowl, unfortunately
it was dry:
This area is full of springs, and despite the falls being dry,
not very far downstream the water bubbles up and makes a very
pretty blue river:
We then drove on to
Niagara Springs State Park. Here there is a spring that pours out
so much water it looks like a waterfall:
There are rivers to the North that just disappear to the ground,
and there's some speculation that the springs like this in the area
are where the missing rivers come back to the surface. Below the springs is a
large fish hatchery (The water was icy cold to
wade in).
After spending some time here, we had to rush in order to get to
our next destination before the Visitor's Center closed.
Continue on to the second part of day 12