Dallas, TX to Johnson Creek, Idaho 2004 by Doug Reeves
Day Three
Day three finds us waking to 38 degrees F, a nice change from Dallas' temperatures! Since this was primarily a 'scouting mission' for Jay and me, we didn't put too much thought into food. I don't drink coffee and had forgotten tea bags, so I was looking at ice cold Dr. Pepper for breakfast. I had the usual assortment of Pop Tarts and cereal bars...not exactly a five star meal.Enter Dick and Nancy Duricka of Troy, ID. They were camped next to us and started our day with an invitation to come eat some of their 'emergency supply' of food that they wanted to cook/eat instead of haul back to their home base (I think they saw the Pop Tarts <g>). We were told to show up in 45 minutes. We were treated to pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, English muffins and orange juice! They probably had the best campsite on the strip, with the creek running right below the tent. We exchanged stories and contact information. New friends - another great aspect of this hobby!
[ed. A note from John Galban, who camped near us. dr]
"I completely forgot to mention the wildlife incident until I saw today's story on the new website. There are bears at Johnson Creek.
On Sunday, Ceci and I had walked down the approach end of 17 and I started hearing noises coming from the west side of the canyon, about half way up. It sounded like someone heaving boulders down the canyon. I had my spotting scope and watched a large slide area with big gray rocks. Eventually I discovered the source of the noise. A black bear was pulling up rocks trying to find insects underneath. Once pulled up, he'd let it
roll down the canyon out of his way. Ceci tried to get video, but by the
time she was ready, the bear had moved into the trees. He kept rolling
those rocks down for about a half hour.
Don't forget the .44 Mag next time :-) "
John
===========================
John Galban -
jgalban at cox.net -
N4BQ (PA28-180) -
(Flying web site)Following breakfast we put on the hiking shoes and went for an exploratory stroll around the strip. On the north end there is an old dwelling that's about to slide down the hill. I can't imagine how hard a life it must have been during cold winters. Jay found some pieces of an aircraft engine...something that reminded us again of the unforgiving nature of mountain flying! I spotted some sort of fish trapping device in the middle of the creek. I don't know what it's for, but it looked like an easy way to get food!
After the hike I strolled on down to the showers and ran into Cody and Gene, the caretakers of Johnson Creek. Cody has trained some of the wildlife to run up her leg for a peanut, something I was lucky enough to catch with the camera. They live here year round and run a RV park nearby (web site). While it was quite pleasant during our stay I can only bet it gets REALLY cold when it snows. Poking around their web site some shows some of the snow pictures...some of which contain bears!
This would be a good time to talk about the Johnson Creek webcam. A local ISP put it in (I think) so pilots can check the windsock: (link to airport webcam)
Pic of Cody & Gene | Snow pic | Bear pic
The airport van runs shuttles into Yellow Pine during the yearly harmonica festival (web site). Around 4pm Jay and I got in and enjoyed the ten minute ride into town. Do you remember that show 'Northern Exposure'? It kinda reminded me of that, but with music. That combined with 'Gunsmoke'. If I understand this right there are 43 permanent residents of Yellow Pine. Harmonica players from around the country come to compete. There must have been 2,000+ camped in the surrounding forest. Definitely an atmosphere you don't experience in the city!
Back to the airstrip, a hot shower, and a phone call to the family. Time for bed. I decide to sleep with a sweatshirt wrapped around my head (got to remember the sock hat next year).
Flight time today: zero. Fuel used: zero. Deer seen: one.
Tomorrow morning I begin the 1,250nm flight back to Dallas (Jay will stay in Vail for a few days visiting a cousin). When I wake up it will be in the mid thirties and the planes will be covered in frost. When I land back in Dallas it will be in the high 90's.
More to come...
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