Where’s Waldo? Remember him, the mystery man wearing a camouflage type red and white sweater, matching hat and blue pants? I took a trip to a small, quaint historic town in northern Idaho where many people might ask, where’s Wallace?

Wallace, Idaho, home to a mere 784 people and a long-standing history is a timeless experience just off I-90. After arriving at the Wallace Inn, I immediately felt something special about the town, but I couldn’t quite grasp what it was until I had some time to explore. It was like an episode of Cheers, where everyone knew my name! Well, not quite, no one knew my name, but locals acted like we had been neighbors for years. As captivating as the people in town is the history that surrounds it. The rich mining in Wallace led to the building of 13 bars and 13 churches – so you knew exactly where everyone was on Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Until 1988 when the last one closed, there were five bordellos in town to accompany the lifestyles of the lead, copper and silver miners. So if you see small huts (usually about five in a row) or extremely steep, covered staircases from the street to the second story as you’re walking through town, you know you’re in the midst of some Wallace bordello history. Unfortunately, the Oasis Bordello Museum is closed from October to April, but it’s an absolute must see during the warmer months.

Outdoor enthusiasts also have reason to be excited about this small town in the Idaho panhandle. Whether you’re into skiing and snowmobiling in the winter months or mountain biking and trail running in the summer, Wallace is the ticket for everything recreation. Two pristine mountains, Silver Mountain and Lookout Mountain are both within 10 miles of Wallace. They offer hundreds of miles of road and trail riding, including five nationally recognized trails (Trail of the Coeur d’ Alenes, Northern Pacific, Route of the Hiawatha, Milwaukee Scenic and Centennial Trail) with variable levels of incline so it’s easy to find a ride that’s right for you.

During my time in Wallace, I took the short 10 mile drive to Idaho-Montana border on what many would call a perfect day on Lookout Mountain. Sun shining and fresh powder in 30 degree weather, hello paradise! For the first time I experienced the adventurous side of snow-shoeing. After riding up the main lift at Lookout, I ventured down the backside of the mountain through the trees and untouched snow. The spectacular mountain scenery combined with three hours of snowshoeing epitomized what it felt like to find a hidden mountain secret. After seeing endless lifts with shorts lines and beautifully groomed runs I look forward to my next trip to truly take advantage of the slopes and experience what it feels like to be a “local” with the mountain all to myself!

Wallace, Idaho– a place you’ve probably never heard of, but a place you’ll never forget. When you’re in town, be sure to visit the Wallace Mining Museum & Visitor Center for fun facts, cool sights and endless information about the unique town of Historic Wallace.

Written by guest blogger Austin Rogerson.

Written by guest blogger Danielle Gruden

My friend Krista was in desperate need of a volunteer for her Sawtooth Relay team this year – and me being someone that can’t say no – I of course was roped into the situation. I thought of rolling hills, lakes, streams and snow-capped mountains as she attempted to tell me of my job duties.

The Friday before the race, I picked part of the team up and we began our drive to Stanley, ID. Our backseat driver informed me to take HWY 21 – it being the best route. Although this proved to not be the route most efficient with time – it did turn out to be the most beautiful. The winding roads hugged the hillside with views of the Payette River. Lush green cascaded down the landscape with snow still topping each mountain peak. We rolled our windows down to enjoy the view and the fresh air – which I might add would be a great new car tree air freshener scent.

We arrived in Stanley – in time to catch dinner at the Redfish Lodge, and to see an old friend Mike – their general manager
(stop and say hello – he doesn’t bite).  Mike was kind enough to help us pick out appetizers and dinner. We sat around till late talking about old stories – laughing and smiling till our cheeks hurt.

Later that evening we headed to Stanley to hang out with a few of the locals and to check out some of the next day’s competition. Downtown Stanley gave me the feeling of a cozy cabin with your best friends. Everyone said hello, everyone had a story to tell, everyone was welcomed.

The next day began early. I love my friends – and if they for some reason question this – I will remind them that I woke up before the sun to take pictures and tote them around for the Sawtooth Relay. I am not a morning person.

To my surprise – I wanted to become a morning person – due to what
my eyes saw. As the sun crept up over the mountains, it was as if it was casting light on all that it felt needed to be spot-lighted. The landscape sparkled as each beam of light highlighted each gorgeous feature.  Our team’s 6:30 a.m. starting time passed, and we sent our first runner off to victory. I began my trek to Sun Valley – in an effort to squeeze in a nap and a bite to eat before my 9:45 volunteer start time.

However, my plan didn’t go according to schedule. The sight of the day took my hunger pains away and each road-side stop proved to be more than the rest I was sure I needed. I took every opportunity to fill my cameras lens with the beauty that touched my eyes.

I made it to my station 10 minutes late – it took me three hours to get to my placement. I don’t regret a second of this usually hour-long drive that was tripled. It was worth every second – you can’t find beauty like this just anywhere. The Sun Valley/ Ketchum area aches to be gazed at. It IS something to write home about. I suppose I should end with a rephrase: my friends love me – because they woke me up to see beauty in its purest form.

This is the third of a four-part installment about the motorcycling adventures of the all-female Motorcycle Media Group (MMG) exploring the Yellowstone-Grand Teton Loop. In Part Three, the MMG heads to Linn Canyon Ranch for fine dining and an eye-opening lesson in Geotourism. Written by guest blogger Michelle Baird.

The MMG had just left the decadent Teton Springs Lodge & Spa in Victor, Idaho, and, refreshed from several hours of relaxing at the spa after a full day of riding our Harley-Davidson motorcycles, we were headed to the Linn Canyon Ranch for dinner.We were on a five-day tour of the Yellowstone-Grand Teton Loop, thanks to the Idaho Department of Tourism–and, thanks to Harley-Davidson, we were riding brand-new 2011 Harley-Davidsons. We had already clicked off around 340 miles of the 400-mile trip, and this was our last dinner together as the MMG.

Some of us had gotten so caught up in the day’s exploration of the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway and the Teton Scenic Byway that we had completely forgotten to eat our brown-bag lunches, so we were ecstatic to find a huge spread of appetizers set out on tables on the wraparound porch when we arrived at the Linn Canyon Ranch. We were welcomed by a cowboy singing softly on the Linn’s porch that overlooks an apple orchard and an aspen grove. The Linn Canyon Ranch is a blue-jeans-friendly place, but with a black-tie menu, and we were treated to elegantly arranged plates of food.

During our dinner, we had a VIP visit us: Reid Rogers, project manager of the Greater Yellowstone Geotourism Center. Rogers previously had held the position of president of the Teton Valley Chamber of Commerce, but he stepped down from this job in order to focus his energy on the Geotourism Center project that we were about to learn about. Most of our group had never even heard the term geotourism before: The National Geographic Society defines geotourism as: tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place–its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents. Geotourism is best-practice tourism that sustains, or even enhances, the geographical character of a place, such as its culture, environment, heritage, and the well-being of its residents.

The word is actually not new: It was coined by National Geographic senior editor Jonathan B. Tourtellot and his wife, Sally Bensusen, more than a decade ago. What is new is what Rogers and his supporters are doing. They are making an actual brick-and-mortar institution, and turning the theory of geotourism into something tangible. There are plans in motion to build a visitors’ center/interpretive facility in Driggs, Idaho, and it is believed it will be the very first of its kind.

Why Driggs, Idaho? Because the National Geographic identified the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem as one of the world’s important geographical areas at around the same time that the city of Driggs was planning to build a visitors’ center. Rogers went to National Geographic to gather information and discovered that there was no other facility in existence that took the concept of geotourism and turned it in a physical institution, so he decided to mesh the two projects. Driggs is located about six miles from the border of Wyoming, just a few hours south of the entrance to Yellowstone Park, and an about an hour’s drive west of the Grand Teton National Park, so the location makes it a hub to these popular tourist spots. Reid Rogers and the citizens of the area saw an opportunity to get linked up with the National Geographic’s geotourism projects.

Geotourism creates a circle of mutual benefit: in exchange for the tourism revenue, the residents and the businesses have an incentive to protect their historic structures, their culture and their land. It puts the area in a global conversation in the National Geographic’s network and provides method of measuring their progress against other geotourism destinations. And from the tourists’ part of the circle of benefits, it encourages and educates visitors to tread lightly, leaving the region intact and unmolested for future generations.

National Geographic had created an online interactive map (www.YellowstoneGeotourism.org) of the area, which encompasses 20 million acres of chunks of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. The map is more than a road-and-lodging guide: It shows everything from where to swim in a geothermally warmed pool (Lava Hot Springs), to places to off-road ride on 400-foot dunes (St. Anthony Sand Dunes), to when to see a dog-sled race (American Dog Derby, coming up in February). National Geographic Society has crafted a “Geotourism Charter” that explains its 13 principles. The charter has phrases such as “Encourage businesses to sustain natural habitats, heritage sites, aesthetic appeal, and local culture,” and “Help businesses develop approaches to tourism that build on the area’s nature, history and culture, including food and drink, artisanry, performance arts, etc.” It is an exciting project that could change the future of tourism and allow present and future generations to see a piece of authentic America that is actively protected from the all too common commercialization, branding and homogenization of our important places in America.

Reid Rogers spoke to each of us about the project, and, by the end of the evening we were all infused with his passion for geotourism. We realized that we can preserve our lands, yet still enjoy them. We don’t have to stand behind the metaphorical rope to view our nation’s treasures in some unnatural freeze-framed vignette. With the idea of geotourism, it means that we can live and experience a place, its people, its history, and its culture, while being thoughtful and conscious about negatively impacting the destination. The geotourism concept allows evolution of the destination along the natural path it is already going down. It is also about healing the damage we have already done from past mistakes and nurturing what is intact.
The MMG had just 66 miles left on the ride; we were heading from Victor in the morning back to where we had first let out the clutches in Idaho Falls. After our meeting with Reid Rogers, the trip was now more than just a dozen women riding bikes in Americana; we were witnesses to the beginning of a mini-revolution of sorts of how we use our land and explore our country. The final blog tells about the beginning, including a trek through Wyoming and an night at Xanterra Parks & Resorts’ Grant Village in the heart of Yellowstone Park.

Is there really any better feeling than jumping in the car with some good music and great company, and embarking on a no-place-to-be, summertime road trip?

No, indeed there is not.

If you want to hit the road and leave the daily grind behind, visit www.idahobyways.gov or www.drivethetop10.com to find a scenic byway meant for cruising.

Or, cruise down one of the following byways that we here at the Idaho Division of Tourism highly recommend.

1. Pack the bikes, roll through the Palouse via the White Pine Scenic Byway.

Spend the night in Coeur d’Alene then head down this 82.8 mile scenic byway, which begins on Idaho Hwy 3 at Interstate 90 and cruises through the endless rolling hills of the Palouse. Give homage at the Cataldo Mission, a church built in 1853 and now the oldest standing building in the state.

If families have bikes in-tow, they can stop at the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes and ride on the 73-mile long bike trail that was built on the original Union Pacific Railroad grade.

Feast your eyes on the 400 year-old trees along White Pine Drive, the 12-mile stretch of highway that’s bordered on both sides by old growth forest.

Families can camp and recreate in historic Laird Park, where remnants of early gold mining activity remain along the banks of the Palouse River. Or, they can continue on to historic Potlatch, the old logging and mill town with the funny name where Frederick Weyerhaeuser opened the largest white pine mill in the world in 1905.

2. Channel Hemingway and Escape in the Rockies via the Sawtooth Scenic Byway.

This scenic byway begins in Shoshone at the intersections of U.S. Highways 26 and 93. Driving north on Idaho Highway 75, pit stops should include the Shoshone Ice Caves, an underground ice cave, and Sculptured Canyon, a centuries-old lava field that was carved out by melting glaciers – hours of fun that will let the kids burn right through all that energy.

Further north, travelers can stop in Ketchum and visit the Ernest Hemingway Memorial and gravesite. Hemingway spent the last years of his life amidst the scenic Sawtooth Mountains, fishing the area’s many lakes and streams.

Weary travelers can find posh accommodations in the resort town Sun Valley, or continue north, over Galena Pass and find a camping spot in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. With more than 300 alpine lakes and 756,000 federally protected acres, this area has everything from camping to water activities to wildlife viewing.

Northwest of Galena Summit, Stanley’s Redfish Lake is Idaho’s largest alpine lake, more than 300 ft. deep at some points. Families can camp, hike, fish, and splash around in the lakes.

3. See Mesa Falls and Fish Henry’s Fork on the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway.

If you’re in eastern Idaho, travel northeast from Idaho Falls to where the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway begins in Ashton, at the junction of U.S. Hwy 20 and Idaho 47. On the way to Mesa Falls, travelers can stop for photo-ops and mind-blowing scenery at the Teton Overlook, a perfect view of the Teton Mountain Range, some 40 miles away.

This scenic byway only takes about an hour to drive, so spend half a day at the spectacular Mesa Falls. At 110 feet and 85 feet, both the Upper and Lower Falls can be seen from the Grandview Overlook, which was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the 1930′s. Next to the overlook, Grandview Campground has 9 campsites for a little outdoor lodging.

Further north, travelers can find lodging, camping, and recreation in Island Park. Eagle Ridge Adventures is a local dude ranch that puts guests up in a grand lodge or private cabins. Horseback rides, fishing, canoeing, hiking, horseshoes and Dutch oven cookouts are just a few of the activities guests get to partake in. If families simply come to camp but still want some recreation, local outfitters like the Henry’s Fork Anglers offer guided fly-fishing trips along the infamous waters of Henry’s Fork.

Yellowstone National Park is approximately 35 miles from Island Park, offering even more scenery and adventure for freedom-seekers who just don’t want the road trip to end.

4. Take a history lesson on the Sacajawea Historic Byway.

This historic byway rolls through Lemhi Valley, where Sacajawea was born and raised until she was 12, and where she returned with Lewis and Clark on their historic western voyage.

Travelers should pack their hiking boots. This 132-mile scenic byway parallels three national trails: The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, the Nez Perce National Historic Trail, and the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. The Leadore Ranger Station has information and maps for accessing all three trails. Further north, the Sacajawea Interpretive, Cultural, and Educational Museum is a must see.

5. Realize that geology rocks and tour the City of Rocks Scenic Byway.

For those of you who really want to get away, this byway begins on Idaho Hwy 77 in the pioneer town of Albion. Then it climbs into Mount Harrison and the Sawtooth National Forest.

Visit Idaho’s newest state park, Castle Rock State Park, a 1,240 historic ranch. With towering granite spikes that hover over wildflower-filled meadows, the park offers world-class rock climbing along with hiking, horseback riding, and birding.