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Mountain Meadow Picnic
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The Mountain Medow Picnic Menu
The fruit, cheese, and salad fixings should
be kept on an ice pack to keep them cold. A cloth for
a picnic blanket is nice. A pocketknife is handy. A
few matches and a space blanket in case it happens to
rain (which it rarely does) is a good idea. Though we
haven't used it since June, insect repellant is a good
idea.
If You Go:
If you are headed to Yellowstone and Grand
Teton National Parks from the west, the Big Hole Mountains
make for a nice, quiet, day-long, diversion. Take the
road from Idaho Falls to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Highway
26. Turn left to the little town of Ririe and then right
to Heise. Cross the Heise Bridge and turn right again
on the river road. Past Heise Hot Springs, the road
will fork with the left fork heading up Kelly's Canyon
and the other paralleling the Snake River.
There are numerous trailheads above Kelly's
Canyon and plenty of roads to explore through pine-filled
canyons and along high ridges. The other fork, South
Fork Road, is very picturesque framed on one side by
the river and on the other by high lava cliffs. Watch
for moose along the water's edge, deer in the evening,
and eagles perched in the cottonwoods.
The roads along both forks are gravel but
usually in good shape and passable for an RV or trailer.
Where the river road is crowded by cliffs along the
river, the road is only one lane and you may need to
stop to let someone by before proceeding through a narrow
stretch. The road ends at Black Canyon, about an hour
up the road. If you would like a loop route, on the
way back from Black Canyon, take the cut off to Table
Rock and then up to the Kelly's Canyon Road.
If you go hiking, get a map on line
or from the forest service. Carry a compass, matches,
and a space blanket. Insect repellent is a must in the
early season. Unless you are experienced in backwoods
travel, stay on the extensive trail system. As with
all backcountry travel, keep your bearings. The Big
Hole Mountains seem to flow in every direction, and
without major peaks to use as landmarks, it is easy
to get turned around. Moose, elk, and deer are abundant
but bears are scarce.
 Dennis
Weaver -- having burnt food from Miami, Florida
to Point Barrow, Alaska -- is RTA's road food expert.
He has logged thousands of hours on the roads, trails,
and waterways of America including many of Alaska's
wilderness rivers and has consistently been elected
the trips' "chief cook and bottle washer."
Dennis is currently general manager at The
Prepared Pantry, a company in Rigby, Idaho,
that produces ready-to-eat meals and baking mixes
packaged in Mylar. Weatherproof, bug-proof, and
critter resistant, they're ideal for both roadtrips
and back woods camping. Dennis may be reached at
dweaver@preparedpantry.com. |
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