Day 16
Saturday, 20 Jun 2015
Hagerman, ID to Twin Falls, ID
61.2 miles, 5h46m, 10.6 mph
Elapsed Time: 7h07m, Max speed: 28.5 mph
Total Climbing: 2497ft, Max elevation: 3833ft
Total mileage: 943.7
I went for a walk through Hagerman at about 6:30am looking for
breakfast. I had to settle for mini-donuts from the gas station.
I hit the road by 8am. There are a lot of rocks in Hagerman as a
result of the Lake Bonneville flood from way back when. Makes it
hard to mow the lawn I bet.
I flushed a herd of geese as I rode along the Snake. And this
turned out to be another dam photo.
I figured I had to actually enter the boundaries of the Monument
for it to count as a visit.
The only fossils you can see in the monument are in the visitor
center...which is technically not inside the monument. But you can
see
spectacular views of the Snake River and the bluffs where all the
fossils are hidden.
And you can get a look at the Oregon Trail. It's down in that
little valley somewhere.
I chose to ride the Thousand Springs Scenic Byway to get to Twin
Falls. I didn't see anywhere near 1000 springs, but I did see
these
waterfalls that come right out of the rock.
And this one. I forget its name. A little ways up the road I was
surprised to encounter a touring cyclist heading in the other
direction.
It was Hans, from Germany. He started in Atlanta and has toured
the southwest. Now he's heading toward Alaska, and he's
going to catch a freighter to New Zealand from Los Angeles in
September. Quite an adventure.
I stopped in Buhl and had an ice cream for lunch at the local
creamery. Chocolate Peanut Butter.
Eventually I reached Shoshone Falls State Park, just east of Twin
Falls. I had to ride down into the gorge. There were lots
of people there. And a wedding. They call it the Niagara of the
West.
Looking downstream from the falls down the canyon.
Looking back from partway up the Canyon Rim Trail. Notice the
construction equipment. They are planning to mess around with
the falls to make them more scenic. Probably to offset the
decrease in spectacularity caused by the water they take for
hydroelectric power generation.
I rode up the Canyon Rim Trail, which took me back up the canyon
on ridiculously steep slopes.
And finally, what I came all this way for--the ramp that Evel
Knieval used for his attempt to jump the Snake River Canyon in
1974. It's now owned by the
city of Twin Falls.
From the top you can see what Evel was trying to do. I guess he
was just trying to land over there anywhere.
Originally Evel was planning on just running up the ramp and
flying over, but somebody convinced him that wouldn't work.
So instead they built a launching gantry on the ramp...I assume on
these concrete slabs.
I looked for an easy way to get from the ramp to the city, but in
the end I had to drop back into the canyon and climb back out the
way
I came.
After much sweat, I got another angle. The you can see the ramp in
the upper right. There's no way Evel was going to make it. Look
how far that is!
Turning the other direction, the spectacular Perrine Bridge.
Apparently, this is the only place in the US where
BASE jumping is allowed year-round without a permit. I'll be
crossing it tomorrow. But not jumping off it.
I couldn't be bothered to read the dedication of this statue. So I
don't know what it's about, but I think it looks neat.
Next to the Perrine Bridge is a monument to Evel and his attempt.
Now that the city owns the site, maybe they will move it to the
ramp.
Some BASE jumping dudes were packing their chutes in the park next
to the bridge.
They sure are proud of their bridge.
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"Northwest Tour 2015" Copyright © 2015 By Bob
Clemons. All rights reserved.