McCall, Idaho is another beautiful lakeside town that is known for its outdoor adventure scene. People come here in the summer to swim, fish, boat, hike, and mountain bike; in the winter, Brundage Mountain offers skiing opportunities. Because of the year round tourist season, the downtown area is built for tourists – art galleries (including member-owned cooperative Gallery Fifty-Five), candy and ice cream shops, souvenir shops and seasonal clothing stores line the main street. The buildings have cute facades, and there are great photo opportunities with the collection of bear themed statues throughout the town. Parallel to the main shopping area, Legacy Park offers a marina, small sandy beach, and pavilion for easy access to the lake. 

Just outside the downtown area, Ponderosa State Park encompasses a 1,500 acre peninsula. The loop road takes people all the way to the end of the peninsula and the elevated Narrows Overlook.  While the nearby wildfires made the sky hazy during my visit, I was still able to see a good amount of the shoreline of Payette lake from this small lookout. 

Next I found a spot at the one of the day use parking lots where I went on a short hike through the towering ponderosa pines. Where other trees grow wider trunks as they mature, Ponderosa pine trees grow up. A mature tree can reach 150 feet in the air.  Along the path I also encountered some berries. I am a huge fan of trail snacks (wild berries), but I only eat the ones that I know for sure are edible. I had just learned about huckleberries a few days earlier, but still didn’t feel confident going after those as they look fairly similar to some poisonous varieties of berries.  When I came across these berries that looked like large raspberries, I felt like they might be edible, so I did a little internet sleuthing and was happy to learn about the native thimbleberry.  After working up a little sweat, I found a small swimming beach and took a nice refreshing dip in the crisp lake water and a relaxing break in the shade. 

I went for two hikes outside of McCall during my stay. The first was an easy ramble along the Bear Basin Grand Traverse trail.  This 4.8mile loop trail is both a hiking and mountain biking trail, so the paths are well worn and easy to follow. In the “marshy sections” (it was a dry summer), boardwalks curve around the trees.  While there aren’t any water features or unbelievable views on the trail, I enjoyed focusing on the abundant wildflowers. I was also drawn in by the remnants of forest fires. Considering that there were currently wildfires raging nearby, the charred remains of tree stumps and black dirt were apt reminders of the power of fire. 

The next day I took on a more strenuous but breathtaking hike. The Boulder Lake Trail 4 mile loop ascends 800 ft to Boulder Lake, which sits at 7,000 feet above sea level. On the ascent to the lake, a reservoir, waterfalls, and large fallen trees offered interesting reasons to take a short break. Surrounded by pine covered mountain peaks, Boulder Lake offers serene and beautiful views. I hiked this in the morning, so I wasn’t in need of a swim, but I can imagine spending the day here, picnicking and swimming among the trees. 

Another tranquil place in the area is the privately owned Charlie’s Garden. Created by landscape architect Charlie Davidson after his retirement in the 1950s, the lush and well maintained gardens are laid out around water features, stone paths, and sitting areas.  The vibrant colors of the flowers reflect Charlie’s interest in irises, lilies and peonies.

Broken Horn Brewery sits outside the main drag of McCall, but this means that it is a hub for locals over tourists – my favorite kind of place.  The easy going open air brewery offers about ten draft beer options and a few wines. There was an open invite jam session playing in the back patio, and it didn’t take long for some locals to welcome me to their table for a conversation about life. It was the perfect end to a day in McCall. 

On the way to Boise from McCall, I made two stops. The first was in Roseberry, Idaho. Back in the late 1800s, Roseberry was a bustling town, but when the railroad was built a few miles away in 1905, people migrated to be nearer to the tracks, and the town became a semi-ghost town. In the 1960s, local Finnish residents Frank Eld and Margaret Klient wanted to honor the history of the Finnish heritage of the town so decided to buy, move, and replicate history buildings in the area.  Now the small heritage area includes a general store, school, barn, and set of homes that reflect life in the early 1900s.

My next stop was a little more modern and lively. Kelly’s Whitewater Park in Cascade, Idaho is a series of water rapids in the Payette River.  It opened in 2010 as a memorial to Kelly Brennan: a young nature and adventure enthusiast who lost her life in a car crash.  The rapids are open to both casual tubers and skilled kayakers to enjoy some water adventures. The visitor center on site offers a large pavilion to watch the action as well as exhibits about the history of the area.