Wednesday Sep 20, 2023 - Redfish Lake ID to Elko NV

Well the party had to stop sooner or later. We knew it was coming and today the music stopped. Sadly we left the newfound beauty of the Sawtooth Mountains and entered Nevada.

But first we stopped in Ketchum, ID to check out the hip city with the big fancy lodge and two ski areas. We found the Java on 4th coffee shop downtown and ran into the couple that camped next to us last night. They're from Reno and are fountains of information about nice spots, campgrounds, and hikes. They told us to check out the Ruby Mountains near Elko, NV. 

We found the Sun Valley Lodge which is a big beautiful complex with manicured lawns and an outdoor skating rink. The doorman told us to feel free to wander around the lodge. All of the hallways are full of photos of famous people who visit Sun Valley and presumably the lodge. It is indeed beautiful, but we both agreed the Redfish Lodge is the real deal as far as ambiance. Did not see any famous people...

Then south to Shoshone where Rt 75 becomes Rt 93. South of Ketchum the mountains get smaller and rounder until it is pretty much open plains and kind of dry but not yet desert. That was a quick transition. We passed through Twin Falls which has an amazingly deep chasm with a golf course in it. Might be something interesting to come back and visit there.

We crossed the Nevada border in the town of Jackpot, and the casinos smacked us in the face again, like crossing into Nevada from California back at Lake Tahoe. We stopped for a bathroom break and kept going.

So on to the town of Elko, when a big thunderstorm came rolling through. We could see it off to the south roaring away over the Ruby Mountains where we wanted to go. So Deb found a rare cheap but well kept motel in downtown Elko, the Esquire Inn. We hadn't done a motel since Palm Springs so hot showers tonight!!

Elko is founded on gold mining and it seems to still be a mining town but we couldn't find the mine, so it must be in the hills nearby. There is definitely a mining theme to this town of 20,000, but also a heavy cowboy theme as well, which is really fun. We found a Basque restaurant called The Star Hotel which is really old and offers big family style meals. All meals included bread, cabbage soup, salad, green beans, pasta, and pinto beans along with the entree. So much food! We sat with a young couple from Los Angeles who were driving to Montana for a family get together. It's always interesting to talk to strangers and these two were very interesting. So back to the motel, a little TV (Gunsmoke of course) and a couple shows on Deb’s laptop.