I just returned from a trip out to Idaho… and yes… I made my previous post from a hotel room as I drove out there.

I went to Idaho for two reasons: (A) to see Shoshone Falls during the Spring thaw and (2) help my writer friend with a couple projects. I was successful at both.

Shoshone Falls is a little east of Twin Falls, Idaho, if my sense of direct is holding up. it is often called the Niagara of the West.

When I visited in September of 2022, most of the Snake River was directed to the hydro-electric plant, which meant there was very little river flow over the actual falls (if any). It was still impressive, just for the rock structures alone, and I’m glad I saw it during the dry season. But I’m ecstatic that I went back during the Spring, because it was so, so much more incredible.

Taken: 10 April 2024

I’m am slowly coming to realize that I could happily live in Idaho for quite some time. I love the stark, arid beauty of the terrain out there, and the climate suits me well. West Virginia went through a dry (well… drier) spell, but it is transitioning to being more of a wetlands climate… at least where I live. Luckily, it’s so hilly around here that there isn’t much opportunity for standing water to breed wetlands insects; it’s all running downhill to the nearest stream to drain away.

But!

What would a visit to such natural majesty be without recording its roar?

As I wrote above, I’m back home now… for a little ove a month. Then, I’ll go to the event I helped my writer friend plan. It, too, is in Idaho… so I get to go back. I may see if Shoshone Falls is still active, like it was this month.

In the six weeks (or so) before I head out again, my goal is to complete principle comoposition of both Tempus and Colfyr. I am super-close to finishing both, and I see no reason why I shouldn’t be able to do that. I’ve added “Writing Time” to my calendar to help my writer friend build a daily writing habit, and… hey… I want to build a daily writing habit, too. Win-win, there.

I had the exquisite timing to be approaching Wyoming on I-80 when a winter storm that included hail blew through from Laramie, Wyoming, to Sidney, Nebraska. There was one point where hail completely filled the wiper well on my rental car.

Needless to say, I turned back to Sidney and diverted south to Colorado. And I’m so glad I did.

Aside from the simple fact that I wasn’t dealing with driving through a winter storm that was (most likely) a deciding factor in at least one wreck, I found perfect inspiration for a site in an upcoming story when I headed north to Laramie after overnighting in Fort Collins, Colorado.

The upcoming story is still a personal project, so I’m not going to into too much detail about it. But! As I was driving north on US-287 (?) from Fort Collins to Laramie, I saw rock formation along a ridge line that made me immediately think of a castle. A tractor-trailer moving about the speed of a snail trying to crawl backwards gave me enough time to grab a zoomed-in picture, too.

Apologies for the power lines cutting through the zoomed-in picture. I probably should’ve stopped to take the best pic possible, but truth be told, it works for my purposes. I am by no means a professional landscape photographer.

But!

These pictures–especially the left, zoomed-out one–are the inspiration for Stonecrest Castle. I won’t call it ‘Castle’ in the story, because that’s rather prosaic. But when I looked out my passenger window and saw it, I knew immediately it had to appear in a story… and I knew just the story. I’m not quite sure how it’ll appear in the story, but I have no doubt that it will.

I think I’ve rambled on enough, for now. I still need to return the rental car today and start conquering the Mount Everest of laundry I brought home with me.

I hope the days have treated you and yours well, and I offer you my best wishes for the future.

Stay safe out there.