Karma and I rode our dirtbikes into Loon Lake this weekend. I hadn't been in there since I was a kid & it had changed quite a bit. The fires of 2007 took a major toll on the landscape and it was surreal riding between burned snags and downed timber. On the way in we saw five airplanes following eachother. The cloud cover was very low and I think they were working together to get out of the area to find a safe place to land. We went on a "pre-ride" the day before to get used to the trails being a bit more technical than they are around Boise. Here are some photos of the trips.
Karma getting ready for the ride.
We rode up to Picnic Point the first day. While we were up there the sun came out and a super bright rainbow appeared above Payette Lake. It was just starting to fade by the time I snapped this photo.
We rode in through Ruby Meadows and the trail has changed a lot since I was younger. We stopped at the intersection with the trail coming from Chinook Campground. There is a new bridge going over to the Victor Cr. trail & I had remembered a small cabin at this site before.
We made it to the lake. We left the bikes at the camping area and hiked down to the lake so that we wouldn't disturb anyone if they were down at the lake. It was really foggy and Enos Peak was obscured by clouds. The entire ride in reminded me of photos I have seen of tropical rainforests in South America with the clouds hanging on the tops of the mountains. We could see pieces of the airplane on the other end of the lake from this vantage point. We opted not to go around the lake, partially because the weather was deteriorating, & the last time I had visited the lake many parts of the plane had been scavanged & I would rather remember the site from when I was young. I used to come up to this lake by myself quite a bit when I was younger and camp at the inlet. I also spent some time with Tucker Anderson up at the lake. I remember both of us drinking out of the inlet & Tucker getting giardia later in the week. I also spent a lot of time up at the lake with my Dad fishing and camping. My Mom & Doug & Gusti & Andy Laidlaw & I were some of the first people to mountain bike into the lake. It was when mountian bikes were just being introduced into the area & we were exploring a lot of the hiking trails on mountain bikes.
This trip was great because we got to share it together. Karma thought she had been to the lake with me due to the many stories I have told her about it in the years we have been together. While riding up the trail she realized we had never actually been there together until now. It was an amazing day!
~Tad Jones