Fall for Me Two

We spent 9 days moving around in the RV. The original plan had been to rent the vehicle from Salt Lake City in Utah and travel through Idaho to Grand Teton and Yellowstone, and then southeast through Wyoming and ending in Colorado. The hefty one-way charge for returning the RV in Colorado unfortunately rendered our plan too expensive. So we had to backtrack and return it in Salt Lake City instead.

The wonderful thing about USA is that each state is so unique, that it's like visiting a different country each time you cross a state line. This applies not only to the history and culture of the place, but also the weather.

Leaving the snowy fields of Montana, we watched (and cheered) as the neverending snowfall gradually gave way to clear blue skies and we could feel the warmth of the sunshine starting to penetrate through the vehicle windows once again.

The moody skies and dark waters along the last stretch of road in Montana

Welcome to sunny Idaho!

GREEN fields!

Having had a pretty good experience camping for free at the South Tourist Park in Idaho Falls, we returned to our beside-the-toilet spot for another night of FOC camping.

That's our RV in the prime spot again. Shameless.

Everybody likes basking by the river in the afternoon sun

Enjoying the scene (while trying not to step on duck poop.. )

On our first night at South Tourist Park, the sunset didn't seem very spectacular. But this time, the sun sure put up a good show, using the sky as a backdrop and the river as a stage.

Turning the sky into orange taffy

The reeds doing their sun salutations

Ducks basking in the last long rays for the day

I spotted a little busy body furiously paddling across the water. I thought it was a duck with its head in the water at first but as it approached the bank and the head didn't come up, I realised that it was a beaver! Oooooh! It was too dark to snap a shot of the semi-submerged creature and I couldn't zoom in much with my wide-angle lens, so no photos of this busy little guy. I tried following it along the bank and scouting around for its dam where it disappeared into the reeds, but to no avail. Anyway, here's a free photo courtesy of the National Parks Services, which shows exactly how Mr Beaver was paddling away when I saw him.

Just keep goin', just keep goin'...

A spotlight shining through the gap of the reed curtains

One final strip of illumination before darkness falls

It sure beats watching a sunset from your office cubicle.

Fall For Me

Free campgrounds are a blessing. And not just some creepy empty parking lot at the end of a dirt road dotted with potholes or inaccessible in early spring. But real campgrounds specifically designed as RV parks, which tired travelers can use free of charge. All it takes is some goodwill on the part of the city council.

We were suitably impressed by the North and South Tourist Parks in Idaho Falls. We read a few online reviews of these places and decided on the latter for its scenic location along the Snake River.

When we got there, we were hit by a strong whiff of poop which lingered in the air and started harbouring fears of our sewerage pipe leaking. The stink turned out to be from the park's residents, namely ducks and geese. But hey, wildlife in our backyard - pretty cool! We were pleasantly surprised to find free amenities like taps which provided fresh drinking water and clean albeit non-portable water, clean restrooms and even a dump if visitors wished to flush out their tanks. Now, if only there was free WiFi...

No, not as in the cartoon. That's in Colorado.

If you want a good spot, you gotta get there early to "chope". To other campers, a prime spot is one that is as far away from the main road, entrance or amenities as possible. To a Singaporean, the best spot is the one right next to the:

The prime spot - right next to the TOILETS!

South Tourist Park photographs beautifully.






Waking up to a wonderful river view? Priceless. Literally.