Hank – The last three days were pretty intense physically so we were needing a break. Plus, I’ve been feeling like we’re missing out on things because we spend so much time on the road and don’t stop and smell the roses so to speak. So we decided we’d travel the 30 miles to Buhl today instead of going to Twin Falls. Then tomorrow take an easy day going to Twin Falls and have plenty of time to see Shoshone Falls, which are taller than Niagra Falls.

While packing, Kathy was going through her panniers looking for something.

“What the heck is this?” It was a package of four large sugar cookies with icing. Kathy and I made these cookies for our send-off party we had back in April. Jan took the cookies home from the party, froze them, and then snuck them into Kathy’s pannier during our visit. It’s been two days and Jan was wondering when the cookies would be discovered. Busted! Kathy complained that was at least an extra pound she was hauling. 🙂

We checked out of the motel and went to the Oxbow Cafe for breakfast. Then we coasted down River Road into the canyon down by the Snake River. We ran into Norm–he got his own blog post–while he was out for a walk. After merging back onto Highway 30 we made short work of the trip to Hagerman. We hoped to visit the Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument Visitor Center (stop and smell the roses, right?) but it’s closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Just our luck. We pressed our faces against the windows and got a good view of everything, but it would have been better to go inside.

On to Buhl we went. We followed the canyon some more, cross the Snake again, and then hit the big climb for the day. Kathy and I dropped down to the granny gear and spun for about two miles to the top. From there it was a gradual climb to Buhl. The day was hot again and we finally found a shade tree to take a break–right next to a dairy farm. We did our best to ignore the smell while we ate a snack. Then a vehicle pulled up. Rich and Tina Baker of Hagerman saw our bikes lying on the side of the roadway and stopped to check on us. We assured them we were fine and thanked them for being so considerate as to check on us. They were excited to learn of our adventure. Tina shared that she spent three years traveling Europe and staying in hostels back in the 60’s. How cool is that?

The weather was threatening when we arrived in Buhl. We checked in at the Buhl Chamber of Commerce RV Park, which I’d swear offered tent camping on their web site. They don’t. But Michelle took pity on us and let us camp on the grass for ten bucks. A windstorm hit while we were setting up the tent. We got everything anchored down and the panniers tucked away and then crossed the street to the laundromat. After getting our clothes all lemony fresh we settled into the tent with some wine and cheese while the rain fell.

Kathy – We debated to head on to Twin falls today, but after the past few long days of riding and the 32 miles and 1,200 feet of elevation today I am happy we decided to call it a day in Buhl, Idaho.  We enjoyed our travels today and the people we met.  I am getting stronger each day as the last two large climbs we have done I did not need to stop as we were traveling up the hillside (mountainside).  Just took it slow and spun my way to the top.  I awoke this morning with a bit of overall soreness but once I got moving all was good…well, except on the climbing where occasionally my thighs remind me of my pain.

It was good to chat with Norm, the 89 year old man walking this morning.  I enjoyed our conversation with Tina and Rich as they were nice enough to turn their van around and drive back to check on us during our break-time.  And, while we arrived at the laundromat to do a quick load of bike clothes I found a wallet on the ground.  Inside the laundromat I asked a gal if see lost her wallet and in a panic she said yes.  I was hiding it behind my back and made her describe it as she did before gave it to her.  Once I did this I quickly remembered all I really needed to do was open it up and look at the drivers license picture  to ensure it was her.  So, just to be on the careful side, I asked her to show me the license picture and yep it was her.  🙂  She was SO thankful for me being honest.  Too bad she didn’t offer us some of her big bottle of laundry detergent instead of us having to pay $2.50 for a small box from the vending machine.  😉  It was a good day and I am thankful for an easy and enjoyable day.