Jeepers!!

At the beginning of August, Josh unexpectedly purchased a used Jeep Wrangler from a neighbor. I've always loved Jeeps--in fact, on my original list of qualities in someone I want to marry (that I made when I was a teenager), I had included the item "owns a Jeep Wrangler". Josh is a motorcycle guy--but in the past couple of years, he's been wanting to branch out to Jeeps, so that he can take me into the mountains with him. He bought an old Jeep Cherokee last summer, but we only made one trip into the mountains before the transmission had issues and had to be fixed. He later traded it for a smaller car, which he later sold (and got gypped on, but I've already gone through that in an earlier post...). So when this Jeep was suddenly listed for sale, he immediately took it. He didn't consult with me first--but he surprised me with it as an early birthday gift, so I couldn't stay mad for too long ;).

Our maiden voyage in it was to UP Lake (pronounced YOU PEE, not "up") in the mountains above Salmon in August. It was a very rocky, steep, terrible road in some places, but we managed to make it there and back with everything in tact! It was an adventurous trek that left us wanting more!!! It was so beautiful and serene there; we were the only ones and it was so peaceful and quiet! It was my first time there; Josh had ridden there on his motorbike. Although the road gave me anxiety at certain points (during which I actually got out of the Jeep as he crawled along the rough terrain), it was definitely worth the drive! 

Our next excursion was a shorter one up the side of Baldy. The roads were much better than the UP Lake trail, but we didn't go all the way to the top. We took some new roads, and enjoyed the scenery, and stopped a couple times just to enjoy the overlook of town and the surrounding area. The short jaunt was a refreshing one, and I loved being with my husband! It was on this ride that I forgave Josh for not talking to me about purchasing it before he bought it! I loved what it brought into our life, as well as the sights I was able to now see with my husband that I hadn't had the chance to before. 

Josh was itching to do one of the trails along Discovery Hill, so that was our next afternoon trip (not a "day trip", because it only took a few hours). I had never been on any of the trails above the fireworks lookout point, so this was all new to me. It was beautiful! We roamed over hills, meandered through sagebrush, saw cliffs and interesting rock formations, and at one point had a great view of the Salmon River! We came out at Carmen Creek, and rode the highway back to town just as the sun was setting! 

Over Labor Day weekend, we decided to take the twins on a ride to Freeman Peak. Josh loaded up their motorbikes on a trailer and hauled it behind the Jeep. We unloaded at Freeman Creek. We thought it would be fun for Josh and I to ride along in the jeep, and the boys ride their bikes to a certain point, and then we'd all stop and Josh and the twins would hike to the top of the peak while I stayed and waited. It didn't turn out quite as we had planned, because there was a lot of shale along the way, and the motorbikes were too high-powered and kept quitting. So, ultimately they had to ride most of the way up the narrow, bumpy road in the back of the Jeep (which unfortunately does NOT have a backseat). We had to stop along the way and move some trees and slowly work our way around huge boulders, but we made it to the point that Josh had hoped we would, and he and the boys hiked as I sat reading in the meadow at the base of the mountain. It was a glorious afternoon, and I quite enjoyed myself, and they had a great hike as well. They weren't able to make it to the very top, but they made it to the peak that's next to Freeman Peak, so it wasn't a complete disappointment! 

This was the point that we left behind the bikes. Surprisingly, the Jeep made

it around that giant boulder--just barely!

They saw mountain goats on their hike!

A view of Salmon in the distance. 

So close to the top of Freeman Peak!

This was the meadow that I sat and read while waiting for them. 

I think nature is remarkable! I'm always amazed when trees grow out of sheer rock!

One of Josh's signature images!

On our way back down the mountain...

While I was on Harvest Break at the end of September/beginning of October, Josh took me on an afternoon trip to Geertson Creek. We rode up as close as we could to Sacajawea Peak. Neither one of us had been up the road before. At the pass before Sacajawea Peak, there's an old Mail Truck that wrecked many years ago and the remains are still there. We got out and explored for a while. It was probably my favorite trip we took this year. I liked that we were there alone, and that we took our time roaming around on foot, exploring the area. It was fun for me to spend time with Josh on my vacation time from school!

Overlooking Kirtley Creek and the city of Salmon in the distance. 

A distant lake at the bottom of Sacajawea Peak

Supposedly it's named "Sacajawea Peaks" because of the shape of the mountaintop.

It's either a profile of her face or her body--we can't decide, sometimes

we see both. 

There was a ton of carvings all over in the truck,

so Josh added a tiny one for us, too!

We put its winter clothes on the Jeep on the last day of my Harvest Break at the beginning of October. It was the first time we'd done it, and it was a little bit tricky and took some finagling to figure it out, but we finally got it's soft top on for the winter! Then, of course, we had to try it out, so we went on one more excursion to wrap up our adventure drives for the season! We drove up to Lover's Lookout and looked at the fall foliage in the valley, and then up above Sunset Heights to an old mine site. 

Because of how long it took the burn on my leg to heal, we took a lot less motorcycle rides this summer. However, the Jeep was a fun alternative, and we were able to take more rides than I thought we would! I look forward to our driving adventures in it next summer!