A couple weeks after Mike's birthday, it was finally time to celebrate his 28th birthday. We were going to get the coveted Ducky and see what Tuttle, Idaho had to offer. I had called Wayne, the owner of the duckies and High Adventure River Tour, a couple weeks back to ensure the ducky's were still for sale at $200 a piece. He let me know we would be good to go an and was kind enough to work with me when we pushed back the pick up date. He let us know we could also set up camp at his RV park for the night. We were also going to be picking up two additional duckies, one for Ryan and Kenzie, the other one for Jake and Netti. We had stopped by an additional time with Ryan and Kenzie to view the ducky's as we made our way to the Oregon Coast last year. Ryan was also sold on the idea of the ducky and was glad we would be able to secure him one of the ducky's. With three duckies on the line, you better believe Mike would pick out the very best one.
We arrived late Friday night. Wayne was kind enough to show us where the showers were located along with possible camp spots. We set up camp and would go exploring the next morning. Wayne was a great host and gave us several different options in the morning of things to do. Of course we were looking to try out the ducky- so he said we could try out the river or he also recommended a "beautiful" spot called 1,000 springs about 5 miles away in Haggerman, Idaho. We decided we would give 1,000 springs a try. Upon arriving, we decided the "beautiful spot" Wayne had told us about had had some pretty features but the island itself wasn't so beautiful. I guess Wayne had been stuck in Tuttle a little too long. Nevertheless, we were glad we came. The boat launch was located at a swimming pool which was naturally heated by a hot springs. We paid our fees and launched our ducky's into the Snake River. Just across the river is an island with an old house on it. We paddled about halfway around the island and saw a waterfall. We stopped to check it out. We climbed up the rocks close to the top of the waterfall. We then saw a trail where you could view the old house. We walked up to the gates. On the way back, we saw a very manly looking woman, welcome to the small town life! With that image seared in our minds, we continued our quest around the island. After getting back to the dock, I noticed a drain for the hot pots. I wanted to warm up and paddled over there. Little did I know, how blasting hot it would be! It definitely did the job and warmed me up but I kept my distance after the initial burn. In paddling around the river, we had worked up quite an appetite. Lucky for us, we had some cups of noodles in the car waiting for us. I soaked up the sun while Mike cooled of in the shade.
After filling our tummies and baking ourselves to a crisp, we drove around Haggerman to see what else it had to offer. Surprisingly enough we were able to find several things to occupy our time. We went to a fish hatchery where we saw several very large sturgeon and some other not so attractive fish. After sufficiently staring at the poor, trapped fish we continued on our way. To our surprise, we saw Haggerman also had a Fossil Beds National Monument. We stopped to check it out and found various types of fossils including, but not limited to, the famous, "Haggerman Horse". They also have on display a Saber-tooth Cat, Ground Sloth, Camel, and many other unique animals along with information related to the Oregon Trail. According to their website, it is "one of the most fossilferous Pliocene-aged sites in the world", aka 3.5 million years ago just prior to the Ice Age and which represents the earliest appearances of modern flora and fauna. Don't worry, I did have to look that up on Wikipedia. Nevertheless, it was a fun little museum where they even let you cool off with an informational video in the back room, which we utilized.
In one afternoon w were able to see many of the main highlights of the small towns Haggerman and Tuttle, Idaho. Feeling pretty accomplished we decided it was time to pack up and head home. We packed up our newly purchased duckies, said good-bye to Wayne, and hit the road back to Salt Lake. We took a slight detour in Twin Falls to grab some food. We were pretty hungry by this point and decided Sizzler, a buffet with unlimited grub, would be an excellent choice. We went to order and they informed us that to get a steak and a salad bar was practically the same price as just a salad bar so obviously we decided to get ourselves a steak. We both came to the realization that this was the best steak we had ever eaten at a restaurant. Although, the fact that we were camping may have played into it. Yet, we still felt like royalty. It was a great feast to end the birthday celebration and the acquisition of our newest boat, the ducky!
We arrived late Friday night. Wayne was kind enough to show us where the showers were located along with possible camp spots. We set up camp and would go exploring the next morning. Wayne was a great host and gave us several different options in the morning of things to do. Of course we were looking to try out the ducky- so he said we could try out the river or he also recommended a "beautiful" spot called 1,000 springs about 5 miles away in Haggerman, Idaho. We decided we would give 1,000 springs a try. Upon arriving, we decided the "beautiful spot" Wayne had told us about had had some pretty features but the island itself wasn't so beautiful. I guess Wayne had been stuck in Tuttle a little too long. Nevertheless, we were glad we came. The boat launch was located at a swimming pool which was naturally heated by a hot springs. We paid our fees and launched our ducky's into the Snake River. Just across the river is an island with an old house on it. We paddled about halfway around the island and saw a waterfall. We stopped to check it out. We climbed up the rocks close to the top of the waterfall. We then saw a trail where you could view the old house. We walked up to the gates. On the way back, we saw a very manly looking woman, welcome to the small town life! With that image seared in our minds, we continued our quest around the island. After getting back to the dock, I noticed a drain for the hot pots. I wanted to warm up and paddled over there. Little did I know, how blasting hot it would be! It definitely did the job and warmed me up but I kept my distance after the initial burn. In paddling around the river, we had worked up quite an appetite. Lucky for us, we had some cups of noodles in the car waiting for us. I soaked up the sun while Mike cooled of in the shade.
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