Josh and I went to SO many hot springs in the summer of 2023; it was the 3rd year of my 3-year goal to go to 100 hot springs in Idaho. We had been to 60 hot springs combined in 2021 & 2022, and we were determined to complete the last 40+ hot springs in 2023, so our summer plans were consumed with traveling around the state and soaking in both natural & commercial hot springs! It was truly a memorable, delightful summer accomplishing this goal. At the beginning of September, a friend asked me which one was my most memorable hot springs trip this year. There were so many wonderful excursions we had, and I stood there speechless for a minute; I felt stumped trying to think of which one was the most memorable one. This particular trip we took in July was the first one that came to my mind. Not because the hot springs themselves were super amazing (they weren't really bad either!), but because it was the one that I felt the most happy throughout the entire trip because this particular overnight excursion included alone time with Josh, road tripping in rural Idaho to places I hadn't seen before, visiting beloved family, and eating yummy summer food, in addition to soaking in several hot springs!
When we hosted the BH Tolman reunion back in June, several members of the Jack Tolman family were there because they were hosting their own reunion in Salmon at the Cockrell campground at the same time (we refer to them as the "Jerome Tolmans" because that's where they were raised and most of them still live). We love their large family! When we were hanging out with them, they told us that Janae (their youngest sister who is Josh's age) couldn't make it to the reunion, because she was already planning to come to Idaho a few weeks later for her daughter Lissy's wedding reception in Burley. Josh and I knew we wanted to go visit her, because we hadn't seen her for several years since she moved to Texas. The reception was in cousin Ronda's backyard the 2nd weekend of July, and Josh and I decided to make a weekend trip of it and cross a few more hot springs along the way.
We left the morning of Saturday, July 8th and drove to American Falls first to go to Indian Springs Resort. My friend Kimi had gone there multiple times throughout her childhood and adult years to go to family reunions hosted there, so I'd heard about it, but neither Josh nor I had ever been there. It's a seasonal campgorund/hot springs location south of the town, and it was bigger than I'd imagined. It was very family-friendly, and I could see the appeal to having a family reunion there. They have a huge campground and lots of trees and gathering areas, in addition to the outdoor warm pool. We only soaked there for a half hour, but it was a welcome retreat from sitting in the car after driving several hours.
From there, we drove south/west towards Almo, a tiny town outside City of Rocks. We went to the privately owned "Durfee Hot Springs", a small outdoor location set right next to the highway between the rocky hills and flat farmland. They have a small store with bathrooms, outdoor changing rooms, and 4 pools: a large warm one, and 3 hot pools with varying temperatures. It was a really cute place, and we both enjoyed it. We tried out the 3 hot pools, and soaked for an hour altogether. It was sunny and warm when we got there, but by the time we were leaving, storm clouds were rolling through and it got a little chilly.
After the hot soak, we were both interested in a cool treat, so we drove about a mile to the nearby "Tracy General Store". It was a cute old building that had been refurbished with a store and ice cream parlor inside. We each ordered an ice cream cone, and ate it as we walked around the store. I bought a souvenir T-shirt. I loved the feel inside that cozy store!
From there, we headed north, and drove through Albion--a town in Idaho I'd never been to before. We drove past the historic "Normal School" (an original College for Teachers in the West), which I found fascinating. I'd never even heard of it before then! Then we made our way to Ronda & John's house in Burley. Josh and I hadn't been there before, but it was a very nice home with a large backyard. It was a lovely venue for a wedding reception, and the weather cooperated which was a bonus. We stayed for several hours, visiting with cousins, eating, playing games, dancing, celebrating the married couple, and I got to hold my new favorite baby! Janae's daughter Shyanne came to Salmon for the Tolman reunion weeks before, and I got to hold her baby daughter Emberly several times then, and I just fell in love with her! I love that little baby so much! And I got to hold her again for a long time when we were at the reception, which made my heart overflow with love and happiness! We stayed at the reception until it was over, and we helped clean up before heading to a nearby hotel for the night.
 |
| Josh talking to cousin Shanda's husband Nate. |
 |
| Sindy's daughter Jamie & I wore the same color dress! |
 |
| Lissy dancing with her dad Rex |
 |
| cousins Shanda & Kayla prepping the food |
 |
Group selfie!
Tanisha, Kayla, Brittany, Carrie & Shyanne |
On our way to the hotel, we were both craving a snow-cone. It had been a hot evening, and cleaning up after the reception we'd worked up a sweat! We weren't familiar with the town of Burley, so we drove up and down the Main Street, trying to find a place that was still open to buy a snow cone at. We got lucky! We found a Sno-Cone shed in the grocery store parking lot, and we had THE BEST snow cones of the entire summer! I don't even remember the flavors we got, but they added cream to the cones, and they were just absolutely divine! We sat at a little counter there, eating the cones and watching the evening traffic drive by, and I just felt so utterly and completely content in that moment! It had been such a fulfilling day, and this was the best way to end it!
On Sunday morning, we drove to Nat-Soo-Pah Hot Springs south of the Kimberly/Jerome area. It was about an hour from Burley. We drove the scenic route, winding through some farms to get there. It was very similar to Indian Springs Resort--a campground with gathering areas and a large warm pool. The pool was bigger than Indian Springs, though, and it had a large waterslide, a hot tub with jets, and a hot soaking pool, too. We swam in the warm pool and also soaked in both hot pools. We stayed for about 45 minutes before leaving and making our return drive to Salmon.
So...nothing spectacular or out of the ordinary happened on this particular weekend getaway, but I just absolutely loved the entire trip! I'm so glad we made the trek to cousin Lissy's reception; it was the perfect opportunity to spend time with family that we love while also crossing off 3 more hot springs!
No comments:
Post a Comment