As we approached our friends’ house in Eagle, I noticed that the town and roads were very spread out. Reminded me a bit of Southern California neighborhoods. Makes sense, with the amount of space out there in the middle of nowhere, Idaho.
We entered through the gated neighborhood surrounded by pristine waterfalls and picture perfect mansions. Adam had told me about Cat’s home before when he visited for a work trip a couple years ago, but his description just didn’t do it justice. I don’t think I can do much better…but here goes. They bought the land in 2007 and built their beautiful custom-home complete with 3 garages, a babbling brook in the entryway, a casita on one side of the house (where we slept), and a gorgeous green yard out back lined with large rocks and a modest garden. The cleanest home I have ever stepped into.
Beyond the garden and a neighborhood path, the Boise river flowed by confidently.
Our hosts made us a delicious chicken salad with iced tea that we enjoyed on the patio out back. Maia enjoyed the chicken & garlic bread, then proceeded to do a “napkin dance” around the yard.
Maia showed interest in their cats, Louie and Lily, although Lily stayed hidden for most of our stay. (Side note: Despite the cats being bathed weekly and the house being kept extremely neat & tidy, Adam is extremely allergic to cats and had to take his emergency meds by morning to avoid a massive attack.)
After Maia had her third bubble bath of the trip and was all tucked in, I joined Cat & Adam in the living area. We chatted a bit before heading to bed by 10. Cat & Terry are former Army, so they are both up by 4am. The Welshs slept in until a comfy cozy 8am (10am east coast time!).
We took it easy the next morning, exploring the backyard some more.
Amongst the forest, a dead tree lined with black vultures stood tall, the sun shining through. This was the second time we encountered a vulture-filled dead tree on our trip; however, I noticed something interesting. When we observed the turkey vultures the first time a couple weeks back, it was at sunset and the aura was eerie and ominous. This time, at sunrise, the scene of black vultures emitted a sense of serenity and even a little hope.
We took a quick drive with our hosts to Bardenay, an outdoor lunch spot 5 minutes away. Cat gave us a brief rundown of the neighborhood, noting the convenience and proximity of everything. I admired their leap from Northern Virginia to the simpler life here in the suburbs of Boise. Not too far off from what we are trying to accomplish.
We returned back to the home, finished packing up our stuff and hit the road. We contemplated just going straight to our final destination, but at this point (1pm) we would be arriving in the middle of the night and Adam really wanted us to get there during daylight. Made sense give we had to unload the RV upon arrival.
Our final evening in the RV was in Winnemucca (fun to say out loud… try it). A very well-kept RV park, Maia & I checked out the horseshoe “court”, while Adam befriended our neighbors who were from Oakland and road tripping to Utah.
Adam grilled some bison steak while I settled for Maia’s leftover lunch of buttered noodles and spicy shrimp.
The waxing moon shone bright as the sun set with its brilliant colors all around us in the high desert.
After a restful night’s sleep, we were up bright and early to head to our new home…
The Welshs Voyage West! 