Southwest Idaho
photo by Michale Vogt
You might expect to see sand dunes at the ocean, but in inland Idaho, it’s nothing but a geological puzzle. onetheless, there it is: at 470 feet, the tallest single-structure sand dune in North America at Bruneau Dunes State Park, 65 miles southeast of Boise. In fact, the Bruneau Dunes are the only ones of their kind in the Western Hemisphere.
Geologists believe the dunes began forming about 15,000 years ago with material from an Ice Age flood. The dunes sit in the middle of a natural basin where the wind is equally distributed on all sides, causing the dunes to be stable and unlikely to shift or move.
Bruneau Dunes State Park is open year round, and on any given day from March through October you’ll see people climbing the dunes and often sliding down the tallest one on plastic snow saucers. But these great sand structures aren’t the park’s only attractions.
Bruneau Dunes is also home to Idaho’s largest public observatory. Every weekend night from mid-March to mid-October, it hosts a “star party” for visitors, who get to peer through a 25-inch reflector telescope or other smaller telescopes.
“It’s a great place for viewing because of our dark skies,” says assistant park manager Steve Russell. “We don’t get a lot of light pollution here.”
Besides exploring the dunes, the park’s most popular activities in daylight hours include hiking and fishing for bass or bluegill in two small lakes. The fishing is particularly good in spring and early summer, when “trophy” largemouth bass measuring more than 20 inches have been caught.
photo by Michale Vogt
Hikers like the Dunes 6-mile hiking trail, which begins behind the visitor center and follows a circular path in semiwilderness desert terrain with lakes and marshland near most of the trail. Temperatures often top 90 during summer, and the rocky terrain can be tough on feet—water, sunscreen, a hat and sturdy shoes are essential. If horses are your thing, Bruneau Dunes has an equestrian facility featuring two horse corrals, more than a dozen semi-primitive camp sites for riders and a nine-mile riding trail around the park.
Two other camping areas—Eagle Cove and Broken Wheel—offer hot showers and electrical hook-ups, and two cozy cabins are for rent. Camping is permitted year round, but water is available only from March through October. No matter where you camp, you’re never far from the yell of a coyote or hoot of an owl.
This destination park’s most popular season is from mid- March to mid-June. For more information go on-line at
parksandrecreation/idaho.gov/parks/bruneau-dunes or call 208-366-7919. For information about visiting Idaho, go to
visitidaho.org
photo by Cheryl Wanner
A protected wilderness since 1996, Opal Creek, in the Cascade Mountains above Salem, is a conservation success story. The Opal Creek Wilderness and Scenic Recreation Area includes 50 waterfalls, five lakes, 13 hiking trails and some of the clearest waters and finest old growth stands in the Pacific Northwest—all for hikers to respect and enjoy.
An old mining road into Jawbone Flats joins the Opal Creek Trail, a popular trail for day hikes. The road climbs through moss-draped forest along the Little North Fork Santiam River, crosses a bridge 60 feet above Gold Creek and passes a boarded-up mine and the remains of Merten Mill.
A short side trail leads from Merten Mill to 30-foot Sawmill Falls on the Little North Fork. Upstream, hikers can cross the bridge to the Opal Creek Trail or take the road to the old mining camp.
Jawbone Flats, an anomaly of level land on a steeply pitched mountainside, is owned and operated by the Opal Creek Ancient Forest Center. The organization maintains a small year-round residency and includes a summer store, rental cabins and a variety of educational opportunities. See opalcreek.org for more information about the non-profit and their activities.
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photo by Deddeda Stemler, Tourism Victoria
New hotels appear every day. Restored grand hotels arrive only a couple of times in a lifetime. In Victoria, the reemergence of Oak Bay Beach Hotel not only returns the beloved Snug Pub to the locals, the 100-room property pronounces Oak Bay a legitimate, exclusive destination.
Long considered one of the capital’s quieter municipalities, Oak Bay has moved to the forefront of Victoria’s great neighborhoods. And there are so many ways to explore it: you can bike, stroll, browse the shops, paddle, sip and eat. In fact, its thriving popularity as a destination is in part because of its booming, hyper-local food scene. The Penny Farthing Pub—this genteel neighborhood’s first—launched Oak Bay 2.0. The “Penny’s” dark stained woods and brass finishes fit the neighborhood as tautly as a tea cozy embraces a Brown Betty teapot.
Once tucked behind Victoria’s old-guard “Tartan Curtain,” today’s Oak Bay shops take contemporary life and locavore culture to a refreshing, new level. For an insider’s view of what and who are putting the contemporary Oak Bay food scene on the culinary map, take the “Epicure in the Village” tour with local gastro-savant Karma Brophy. The Whole Beast cures award-winning meats provided by the Village Butcher, a separate business that shares the same roof. Breads emerge fresh from Ottavio, the Italian bakeryfromagerie-café,
photo by Idaho Tourism
Cataclysmic geological forces formed the dramatic Snake River Canyon and the extraordinary geography of south-central Idaho. The Thousand Springs Scenic Byway traverses much of this geography through Hagerman Valley on U.S. 30, providing access to numerous natural sites and parks. Among them is Thousand Springs State Park, a series of five park units with multiple areas, all a short drive from one another.
At Thousand Springs, you can canoe, kayak, hike, bike, horseback ride, fish, view wildlife and historic areas or just picnic. Explore Malad Gorge (the location of the park’s headquarters), Kelton Trail, Crystal Springs and Niagara Springs. Equestrians can access the riding arena at Billingsley Creek. History buffs can visit settlers’ structures at Ritter Island and Bonnieview. Nature lovers can indulge in wildlife watching amid stunning scenery at Earl M. Hardy Box Canyon Springs Nature Preserve.
From the scenic byway, you can clearly see Thousand Springs with its giant natural founts pouring from the the canyon’s rim. The constant temperature of this highly oxygenated water is ideal for trout. In fact, local hatcheries produce 70 percent of the nation’s trout.
Year-round scenic, lunch and dinner cruises are available in Thousand Springs; go to 
photo by Charles Knowles
Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery, on their journey west, viewed massive fields of abundant blue blooms which from a distance they mistook for a body of water. What they actually saw were camas lilies, a plant Native Americans used an important food source.
A 15-mile long field of camas, known as Camas Prairie, flanks both sides of Highway 20 near the town of Fairfield in south-central Idaho. In mid-May, the prairie explodes with color in what locals call “The Big Bloom.” More than 3,100 acres at the prairie’s west end comprise the Camas Prairie Centennial Marsh Wildlife Management Area, worth a visit for outstanding viewing of camas lily, migrating birds and even antelope. The Soldier Mountains rise nearly 5,000 feet above the valley, giving the prairie a dramatic backdrop.
The best time to visit is typically during the last ten days of May. If you arrive too late in the season to see the blooms, the Fairfield Ranger District of the Sawtooth National Forest has excellent trails for hiking and bicycling, or you can check out one of the area’s campgrounds.
Camas Prairie is about 2 hours from Boise on I-84 East and U.S. 20 East. You can buy recreation maps from the Fairfield Ranger Station in Fairfield during normal business hours and from the Caboose Visitor Center on weekends. For more information, visit 
photo by Don Frank, Seaside VCB
Immerse yourself in Oregon Coast scenery and charm by taking a bike ride through the historic town of Seaside. With an easy 7.81-mile route, three possible starting points and a maximum elevation of 16 feet, the Seaside Bike Tour is a ride doable for all ages and skill levels.
A stop at the estuary allows time to do some bird watching or a moment of relaxation. Steps also allow riders to go down to the sand at the water’s edge. Ride across the 12th Avenue Bridge and keep an eye out for people crabbing and fishing, and watch for the salmon mural displayed at the west end.
Pedal along the famous “Prom,” home to the Seaside Aquarium and the statue of Lewis and Clark. Here, the route brushes downtown where you can check out the local food scene.
Watch the waves roll by at the cove along Beach Drive. And, if the time of year is right, you might just spot a whale.
If you didn’t bring your own bicycle, you can rent them for the whole family at Wheel Fun Rentals, 407 S Holladay, Seaside; 503-738-8447. For more information about the Seaside Bike Tour and a map, go to