When I departed Victor, Idaho I drove to Butte, MT and camped up on Homestake Pass, about 5 miles east of town, just off I-90. I was camping with fellow boondockers, members of Escapees RV Club and other campers we happened to meet there. It was a pleasant 2 weeks, and I got several things done, such as re-stocking the RV with food and water, plus doing the laundry.
But I had enjoyed the area around Victor that I wanted to return and explore some more, so I packed up once more and headed south, planning to camp somewhere around the area between Ashton, ID on the south, to West Yellowstone on the north(-east). I ended up dry camping in a treeless area just a mile east of where the north end of the Mesa Flats Scenic Byway meets back up with US 20, about 20 miles north of Ashton. It sounds a bit drab, but I’m quite near the Henry’s Fork River, and even heard some Sand Hill Cranes rattling call last night, and Harriman State Park is just a couple miles away to the west.
Last week I stopped at a roadside display that explains some of the history of this area, and lo’, I’m camped in a caldera, the John’s Fork Caldera, which was created when the Yellowstone super volcano exploded 1.2 million years ago, blasting some 67 cubic miles of rock and molten lava into the sky. Parts of eastern Idaho were buried under as much as 1,000 feet of ash. The Henry’s Fork Caldera is one of the largest and most symmetrical calderas in the world - 23 miles in diameter. And from my campsite, I can look to the west and see the rim of the caldera, just a few miles away.
Caldera Rim
I recently read about a company called 460 Bread, located in Driggs, Idaho where they are making some tremendous breads.
Of course, I remembered this after I got to Butte (below), so I very much wanted to visit them when I returned, but a phone call revealed that they are strictly a wholesale business, but that I could get some of their product in local stores.
Jerod, the owner, has been accepted as a competitor for Team USA in the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie, which is held every three to four years in Paris, France. So I was impressed!
I drove south about 50 miles to get a couple baguettes and brought them back, and tried them and was blown away! I’ve long heard about how great French baguettes are, but holy cow! Crisp, crackling crust, incredibly chewy interior, fantastic flavor - this bread has it all.
When I leave here, I plan to head south just so I can get several more baguettes, plus other breads from this company.
I had read about a place up near Big Springs, ID - about 20 miles away - called Johnny Sack’s Cabin. Big Springs is located where the eastern edge of the Henry’s Fork Caldera is covered over by the western edge of a more recent lava flow from the Yellowstone super volcano, and the rains and snow melt that fall on that old lava flow, now highly fractured, seep down until they hit an impermeable layer, then flow laterally, emerging along the western edge of the Yellowstone Plateau at Big Springs. The springs flow at the rate of 120 million gallons per day of stunningly pure and clear water, thereby creating the headwaters of the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River. And it was here that Johnny Sacks, settled down.
Johnny was born in Germany about 1883, and came to the South Bend, Indiana with his parents when he was 6 years old. When he grew up, he worked for a time at the old Studebaker Wagon Company, but in 1909, at age 26, he decided to go west. He arrived on the first train to travel the newly laid rails into Island Park, Idaho, arriving in June - to a raging blizzard! He was talented with tools, so started making some furniture, and soon had enough to lease a small tract of land from the Forest Service ($4.15/year!) where he built his log home overlooking these fantastic springs.
I got some few pictures, but found even better ones at the link, below:
https://www.tasteandtellblog.com/johnny-sack-cabin-big-springs-id/
Oh, yes. This talented fellow stood all of 4’ 11” tall!
This is a beautiful area. I hope you get a chance to see it some time.
Bill
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