Challis, Idaho

After leaving Sun Valley/Ketchum, we headed north and east, traveling just 120 miles to stop in Challis, Idaho. Friends of ours, also full time RV’ers, were volunteering and living at the Bayhorse Ghost Town, part of the Land of the Yankee Fork State Park. Challis was more or less en route as we started our trek east, so we scheduled a four day stop there along the way.  Located in the geographical center of the state of Idaho, in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, Challis is surrounded by the Salmon-Challis National Forest and is home to dozens of wildlife species including bighorn sheep, eagles, mule deer, and gray wolf, just to mention a few.

We spent one full day with our friends who gave us a wonderful overview and tour of the area. In the morning we took a driving tour through the hills along the salmon river, stopping at almost every pullout along the way to view wildlife. Our host was extremely knowledgeable about local animal habitats, and was able to point out where she’d seen an eagle sitting on a nest, or a bighorn sheep scaling a mountain, and she’d pull over to let us experience this as well. She also knew where delicate spring flowers were blooming and took us on a drive deep into the woods behind Bayhorse Ghost Town to show us where they grew.

They also gave us a tour of Bayhorse Ghost Town, a mining town that thrived in the 1880’s – 1890’s, started when a few small gold veins were found. Now long abandoned, during it’s peak the hillsides were dotted with cabins and town included numerous saloons, boarding houses, assay offices, banks, a post office, six beehive kilns to make charcoal for the smelters, several ore and timber mills, and two cemeteries. The peak population reached about 300 residents.

In addition to visiting with our friends, Dan and I were also able to get in a round of golf, and visit the Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge. Here are some pictures of our stay in Challis.