Mesa Falls Marathon

Part of our vacation was participate in the Mesa Falls Marathon in Ashton, Idaho. The race had been recommended to me by another runner that I talked to last year. Ashton is a small agricultural town in eastern Idaho, straight west of the Tetons and Yellowstone. One of the best things about the marathon was how well it was run. The race is small and rural, but they took care of the runners very well. We took nice (the kind with bathrooms and leg room) chartered buses to the start in the middle of nowhere in the national forest. The race started early (6:30), which was nice. They even let us stay on the bus until the start, so there was no cooling off. It wasn't cold at all for running, maybe in the upper 40's. The first 9+ miles were on empty dirt roads through the national forest. Perfect for relaxing and easing into a pace.

I carried a disposable camera with me while running. The pictures aren't high-quality, but I enjoyed looking at them. The next four miles were along a scenic highway, capped off by the overlook for the Lower Mesa Falls.

After the halfway point, the course turned on to a dirt path that followed along a river. It was scenic. The temps were rising, but it was still pretty comfortable in the woods.

At about mile 17, the course left the path and started to climb out of the valley. This hill lasted three miles and gained about three hundred feet. The hill slowed me down, but it didn't kill me. I came out feeling decent.

We left all shade behind by about mile 19, entering rolling wheat and potato fields.

The sun feels more intense out west to me. It started to get pretty hot and dry. I worked hard to try to keep hydrated and fueled. I spent the last three miles run/walking, but I was still happy to finish with a 4:38. The post race food was nice as well.

Idaho Waterfalls

Saturday afternoon we drove around the Ashton, ID area to check out some waterfalls. The first one that we stopped at was Cave Falls. Cave Falls is actually located in Yellowstone, but it is not accessible by road from the main part of the park.

This Western Admiral landed in a pine briefly while we were hiking up to the falls overlook.

Another view of Cave Falls. The cave that lends its name to the falls is immediately left of the falls. It was closed due to several rock falls in the area, so we didn't get to check out the cave. It was a shame, but the falls were still pretty in their own right.

Here is a view looking down on the 65' tall Lower Mesa Falls. There wasn't any official way to get closer. It was quite tempting to try to find a way. The Mesa Falls Marathon ran past this overlook.

Upper Mesa Falls is taller (114') and wider (200') than the lower, but is a simpler waterfall. There was a park by the falls with several paths and overlooks, including one right on the brink of the falls. There was even a wedding on one of the overlooks earlier in the day. I don't know how anyone could have heard the service, but maybe that was all right.

Salt Lake City to Ashton

We flew into Salt Lake City on Thursday and headed up towards Pocatello, ID. We stopped at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge (UT) to stretch our legs. The facility was very nice, but it wasn't a good time for birds. Some ibis and cormorants flew over, and some young coots were in the marsh. Seeing a flock of Bank Swallows perched on a power line was a highlight for me. (I find it very challenging to see detail on a swallow in flight.)

Close-up of a Thistle flower

After spending the night in Pocatello and running around the Idaho State University campus, we headed towards the black canyon of the Bear River, near Grace, ID.

The river is popular for its rapids, with a class 5 rapids and a class 4 run overall.

After heading northeast to Alpine, WY, we followed the Snake River back towards Rexburg, ID. This view of the Snake River was from an overlook along US26