Topographic lines and rivers are punctuated with trails and roads, revealing a story for Greene. Greene reads maps like you and I read the paper. Floating in 100˚ F mineral water, it was literally the polar opposite of our dismal icy shenanigans … the hot springs were a good idea indeed.Īn official cycling route, the Idaho Hot Spring Mountain Bike Route (IHSMR ) is the brainchild of Casey Greene, a cartographer with Adventure Cycling.

This year’s plan was to tackle a 200-mile section of the Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route. Last year we skied around Washington’s Mount Rainier-a colossal effort that kept us in an icebox while orbiting the peak over 5 days. Minson and I catch up yearly to adventure together. The silence is broken by my travel partner, Chris Minson, who is floating a few feet away when he stutters “…this was a very good idea.” Soak up the scenery at Burgdorf Hot Springs. And so is the audible hustle and bustle of city life. Thirty miles north of McCall, Idaho, the light pollution is all but gone. I’m lying on my inflatable camp mattress, afloat in a pool of warmth waiting for the stars to illuminate the evening sky.

Gold fork hot springs