Day 33 – Twin Falls, ID

After our walk this morning, Don was watching the guy next door getting his nice new ForeTravel 38 footer ready to go.  He had a very comprehensive departure checkoff list, including all tire pressures, oil and coolant levels, and many other details.  It took at least a half hour to complete, and Don and I agreed that he would get underway confident that every thing he could check was OK.  Don was out cleaning our windshield when he finally put the rig in gear and hit the go pedal.  Well, the coach could barely move, and the Jeep that they were towing was digging its tires into the gravel with terrible scrunching noises.  They didn’t go very far.  The guy and his wife immediately bailed out of the coach, to find that the parking brake on the Jeep was still set.  Oops!

We actually got going a little earlier than usual, after Geri and Don tried their hard won apple fritters and found them to be very disappointing.  We cruised down the I-15 to Highway 86 westward, then caught Highway 84 to Twin Falls.  We pulled into the local KOA RV Park a little after two, to find that the office was closed until three.  Fortunately, one of the workers was able to assign us a site, which turned out to be quite nice, with good healthy grass next to it.  We got set up for living, found that the office was open, Geri got us signed up, and we jumped in the truck for an excursion.  We headed into Twin Falls proper, and soon were crossing a bridge over a spectacular chasm, the canyon of the Snake River.  There was a Visitor Center just across the bridge, and we pulled in there to obtain the obligatory sheaf of tourist information for our tour planning.  The guy in the Center was very helpful and friendly, and gave Geri and Don lots of suggestions on what to see and where to go.  He told us about the Base Jumpers who, almost daily, leap off the bridge into the canyon.  Turns out, this is the only bridge in the country that doesn’t require permits or any advance permission to jump off of it.  The Jumpers just show up and jump!  The words were barely out of his mouth before a gaggle of young men showed up at the Center and started packing their parachutes for a jump. 

We walked along the edge of the canyon to take some pics and enjoy the beauty of the scenery.  I was careful to stay away from the edge, ‘cause the rocks looked like they might be a little slippery, and if I fell in the canyon, I might miss dinner.  We got back in the truck and drove to the other side of the bridge, as that was the side the jumpers would be on.  We waited for quite a while, and Don noticed that the wind had come up to the point that it would be too dangerous for them to jump.  We could see them still standing outside the Visitor Center, apparently waiting to see if the wind died down.  We finally came to the decision that the jump was off, and headed into town to see what Twin Falls looks like. 

Snake River Canyon with Golf Courses

Da Bridge!

Jumpers preparing their chutes

Waiting for the Jumpers (still waiting)

Don had noticed in Idaho Falls that the older residential section of the town was laid out with the streets running at an angle to the downtown streets and the newer sections of town.  He read that this was done to try to equalize the sunlight on all sides of the houses.  Here in Twin Falls, the entire downtown area, including the business district, was laid out that way, and the newer parts of town had streets running north-south and east-west.  Makes for some interesting traffic patterns.  The business area downtown seems to be doing pretty well, lots of specialty shops and restaurants, apparently doing a good business.  Better than Idaho Falls, anyway.  We saw some dog grooming places, and I hope they find one for me soon, ‘cause I’m starting to feel a little grungy.

We rolled back to the KOA, and Don started dinner while Geri and I took a stroll.  We met another Goldie, a lady called Moab, who was very perky and friendly, not to mention beautiful!  We found out from her humans that she was 14-1/2 years old!  Looking good, and not just for her age!  This is a nice Park, with a lot of areas to wander in and visit, and I think we’ll all enjoy it here.  Dinner turned out to be hot dogs and baked beans, a simple meal that leaves only some bean plates for me.  But they were good!  We’ll be touring extensively tomorrow, and I’ll have a full report for you.  Sayonara!