My time in Mackay with the Schaefers

Wow, I made it to the home of the Schaefer family (Jennifer and JoAnn) in Mackay, Idaho. Boy did I get a great reception. I was lifted out of my envelope and the hugs just kept coming. I even got to sleep with them at night so that I would not be afraid. JoAnn made sure that I had plenty of food and water, and that I received my vitamins every day.



We started our adventure at the earthquake epicenter at the bottom of Mt. Borah. On October 28, 1983 an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale occurred at Borah Peak. So far this is the largest earthquake to hit the state of Idaho. A large fault line appeared running along the Lost River Range and is still visible today, though with newly growing vegetation it is beginning to fade from the landscape. During this earthquake the mountains rose and the valley dropped. Several buildings were destroyed and unfortunately 2 people died in the earthquake. Since there was limited damage and loss of life the measurement of 7.3 was reduced to 6.9. They say that the mountains and the valley continue to separate ½ inch each year. Isn’t our world just amazing, with all its beauty and its strengths?

Next on our trip was to the Mackay Reservoir which is a man made dam. It was built in order to conserve the spring runoff through much of the summer, to allow farmers to grow their crops. The dam is also a recreational area where people can boat, fish, picnic and camp.

We then made our way to EBR-1. EBR-1 stands for Experimental Breeder Reactor-1. EBR-1 was the first place to produce useable electricity from atomic energy on December 20, 1951. You can actually take a tour of the building. It is free to the public and is open from Memorial weekend to Labor Day weekend. It was so much fun and we learned a lot, more than I can tell you on my blog.

So if you ever have the opportunity, I highly recommend going. Some of the highlights of our tour were actually getting to manipulate some of the machines. We got to use a Geiger counter to check the radiation on a radioactive sheet. Don’t worry it was all contained in a box. We just got to turn a handle and watch the dial move as the probe reached up to the radioactive sheet. We even had the opportunity to play with a glove box.

Our only problem was that our arms were not long enough to reach all the way in. But, I have to say the best part was getting to play with the mechanical hands. These are mechanical arms that you maneuver on one side of a wall while performing an action that you would normally perform with your hands on the other side of the wall. You use the mechanical hands when dealing with a dangerous material and cannot be in the same room. While at EBR-1 you get to look into a hot cell which is where they inspected and repaired radioactive material. They would use the mechanical hands to manipulate the materials inside the hot cell.

They had to look through a window with 34-layers of leaded glass (a total thickness of 39 inches). This provided them radioactive protection. The walls around the hot cell were of thick concrete, also for their protection. I could go on and on because there was so much. So I will stop there, but highly recommend a visit. One more thing EBR-1 supplied the power to the city of Arco on July 17, 1955, becoming the first city in the world to be lit by atomic power.

Our next stop was to the Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve. Approximately 2000 years ago volcanoes erupted in this area leaving behind a barren land full of dark, sharp and pocketed rock. Over time vegetation has started to come back, though it has been a slow and hard process. The Craters of the Moon is unlike any land that I have ever seen. There is a visitor center where you can learn more about the different types of lava rock and see a video of a volcano erupting. You can also learn about the different types of plant and animal life that are found here. From the visitor center you can go on a drive and hike to different areas of the park. You can hike up and look down into volcanoes. You can also walk through tunnels where lava once flowed. We did not spend much time here due to the poor weather, but I can tell you that if you go wear good tennis shoes to protect your feet, bring lots of water and protect yourself from the sun.
Finally, we stopped at the submarine museum. They actually have the top part of a submarine there. It was taken off of the SSN-666. This submarine was known as the devils boat due to its numbers and the Book of Revelations. It was very interesting to learn about the subs and to see the top, but my favorite was sitting on the torpedo.

I had a wonderful time visiting with Jennifer and JoAnn, but I am ready to go home to see my family.

Hanging with the George Family in Heyburn, ID

My next stay was with the George family in Heyburn, Idaho. Wow, that is quite a roadtrip from Challis to Heyburn! I was beginning to think I would never get out of that dark, cramped envelope! But anyway, let me tell you a bit about the Georges. There are four kids in their family. Porter, the oldest, is 12. Emily is 9 and she was always wanting to practice her photography with me. I guess it must be because I am so photogenic. I mean, really, who wouldn’t love this face? Noah is 6. I was not his favorite person, er, dog. I guess he thought I had fleas or something. He kept saying I was dirty. I can’t help it if I am allergic to baths! My favorite friend was probably Aleise. She is 3 and she just loved to cuddle with me. “Cept sometimes she threw me up in the air and tried to catch me. It made my tummy feel funny. And sometimes she missed.

Here is a picture of me climbing trees with Emily and Noah. They have a big yard with quite a few fruit trees. This is a cherry tree we are in. I want to go back and visit in the summer when they are covered in yummy fruit. I love cherries!

I spent a lot of time just hanging out by the computer. Does this screen look familiar to you?

You people spend so much time doing schoolwork! Good thing it is so fun and interesting! I love hearing about all the exciting stories you learn in history class! If it wasn’t so dark and uncomfortable in my envelope, I would love to travel and see the world!

I painted pictures with Aleise. Boy, does she love princesses! I was really careful not to get any paint on me because of the bath thing. Remember? I am allergic. Honest.

Here we are reading stories with Grandma. These kids have a grandma that lives just across the street. How would that be? They don’t have to travel in an envelope to see her even! That would be pretty fantastic, I think. Grandma even comes over to their schoolroom twice a week to teach Science. And that woman knows her stuff, I tell you! She taught us all kinds of stuff about weather and clouds and temperature. We even got to make an oven with an old box and tinfoil. But Emily said it didn’t get hot enough to bake cookies. Too bad.

I became quite the bookworm (bookdog?) while visiting the Georges. They read a lot. They even wake everyone up to read with the dad before he goes to work in the morning. Then there are stories in school, and naptime stories, and Noah learning to read, and Emily reading to Aleise and family reading time before bed. That Porter boy just reads and reads all day long. He has to wear glasses, maybe so his eyes don’t get tired from all that reading. He even reads in the bathroom! Haha. I think that is pretty embarrassing. I wonder if he will read this? Probably so! Here I am with my nose in a book (literally!).

When the mom is busy making dinner or working on the computer, the George kids listen to books on tape. So here we are reading again. I think this book was about Theodore Roosevelt. Did you know that the teddy bear was named after him? I am named after a potato.

I had a great time in Heyburn! The weather was cold and everyone was busy with school so we didn’t go see many sights, but I learned you can go anywhere you can imagine if you just open the pages of a book! Now it is back in the envelope I go and on to my next adventure… Maybe I am on my way to your house.

My Trip to Challis, ID

I arrived at the home of Shawna and Angela Bridges. It was a sunny day but cold. They have a little snow on the ground. I went to the Challis Public Library with them on my second day here. They have a small library, but the librarian was very helpful as the books they both wanted to check out were not available. She got on to the computer to see if she could request it from a different library. Both Shawna and Angela wanted books from the American Girl Collection. This is the series they're reading. The librarian let them know the books would be here in a few days and she would call them when they arrived.

The next few days we just hung out at home, as the girls had school. Except for Monday and Tuesday afternoon they both bowl. Angela’s team name is Pins Heads. She bowls on Mondays and Shawna's team name is Popeye's. She bowls on Tuesdays. It was fun watching them bowl.
It has snowed a little at night since I've been here, but they really don't have a lot of snow on the ground. The sun has been out most of the day.

Saturday, February 12, 2010, we drove up to Sunbeam and up the Yankee Fork to see the old dredge. On our way up highway 75 we went through the small town of Clayton (population 56). We stopped and looked in the windows of the Merc (The Clayton Museum). It's closed till summer. They had a lot of interesting things inside. From here we continued up river till we came to Sunbeam, Idaho, This is where we turned off the highway & headed up Yankee Fork to the old dredge. The old ghost towns of Bonanza and Custer are along this road. Not much is left of Bonanza, only a couple of buildings that have fallen due to the heavy snow.

Custer has more buildings to it & is preserved better. But we couldn’t drive into Custer as the snow was too deep and no one wanted to walk the 1 ½ miles through the snow to go see it. This road is also called the Custer Byway. If you follow it all the way you'll end up on Main Street, Challis. It was the old wagon road between Sunbeam and Challis before Highway 75 was built.
In the summer there is a fest called Custer Days, where the Forest Service employees and volunteers dress in 1800 attire. They have demonstrations, the old Merc has items for sale, the few old homes and other building are open to the public, and they have a short movie about the area. We then drove on up the Stanley, ID (population 26) for lunch at the local lodge. After a day of playing in the snow and warm food in our tummies everyone slept on the way home except for Grandma as she was driving.

For the next week or so we just hung around the house and played. The weather wasn't very nice and no one really wanted to get out much.

Before I left to go back home we did go to the Land of the Yankee Fork Interpretative Center here in Challis. The girls got to dress up in 1800 era dresses for some pictures. We took pictures in front of some items you'd find in a dry goods store. They were able to hold a couple of old dolls in their arms with me in the middle. I got my picture taken top of an old saddle with them. Then we went over to a fainting couch, we sat down in front of a couple of gold pans, an old dentist chair, a slush box (used for panning gold), and finally we were allowed to sit at an old salon table (complete with poker cards, and old beer bottles). I was hanging off the edge of the table. We had a great time here looking at all the items in the museum.

Off I go!

Yippee! Yippee! I am off on my first adventure. Okay, I know this isn't exactly first class travel but at least I get to go somewhere new! My first adventure in Idaho will be to (drum roll please)...Angela and Shawna's house. I am supposed to arrive sometime this week. I can't wait to meet them. Don't forget to stop back here to read all about my adventures in Challis and the surrounding areas. TTFN (Ta Ta For Now).

Hello there! JoJo here, looking a bit bored. I am waiting for my first big adventure with one of our class's many students. Who will be first?

Oh... I remember the days when I used to travel from home to home, back in 2007. Mind you I was in Washington at the time, not Idaho. I didn't get mailed to the next home, but rather was brought home from class each night. Sometimes I was lovingly carried through the bus line, the envy of all the kids. Other times I was crammed in a backpack until arriving safely at my new home.

It seemed every adventure I went on involved many photo opportunities. Thank goodness I look so good on camera. My favorite posed shot was at the top of a basketball hoop. Getting up there took several failed attempts. But when I made it, boy o' boy! I felt I was at the top of the world. I could see trees, mountains, rooftops a plenty. I loved hearing the barks of the other dogs stuck on the ground, seething in envy. Competitive? No, not me.

I love all the animals I have gotten to meet on my many adventures. Upon arriving at the new home, I immediately met the other dogs and pets living there. Often they were friendly, a little too friendly sometimes. Apparently when you do so much traveling, as I do, you pick up many new smells. Other animals can't be quite rude in their unwelcome sniffing!

As I reminisce, I will post other fun stories from my past for your reading enjoyment. Really, my desire right now is to create new memories. Are you willing to take me into your home for a week's stay? If so, let Mrs. Hartney know. May my travels begin!