Tuesday I left White Bird and headed south towards Boise. I opted to take Highway 95 all the way down to Interstate 84 to avoid the construction zone near McCall, and to see some new terrain. I had thought about stopping at the large Birds of Prey sanctuary in Boise but it was approaching 100 degrees when I got to the highway exit (and had been 100 degrees or more both days I was in White Bird). My Airbnb host in White Bird was familiar with the sanctuary but told me it is a large, outdoor facility and there was no guarantee that I’d even see any unusual birds so I decided to pass. If I had known I’d see some California Condors later in the trip, and learn about their connection to the sanctuary, I might have reconsidered. As it is, I will have to make it a point to go there the next time I am in the northwest.
As I arrived in Twin Falls I first had to cross the Perrine Bridge. There was a place to park and take photos on the north side of the river, both looking west (right) and, by walking under the highway, to the east. I’ll skip the westward-looking photo for the moment as I would soon learn that the view looking west was much better from the Visitor Center on the other side of the river. This is a panoramic photo taken as I walked under the highway to get to the east side of the bridge.
And this is the view looking east.
The river you are looking at is my old friend the Snake River and in this photo it is flowing towards you. A little further east of here is the ramp on which daredevil Evel Knievel attempted (but failed) to jump the river back in 1974 on his steam-rocket-propelled motorcycle. The earthen ramp is still there but visitors are discouraged from visiting it as the Twin Falls Police Department uses it as the back of their practice shooting range!
I crossed the bridge (in my car) and stopped in the Visitor Center. That vantage point provides a much better view of the river looking west:
If you look very closely you will see some golf course fairways in the distance, to either side of the river. There are two golf courses down there, one public and one private. Here is a panoramic photo of the river from the Visitor Center, including the bridge.
And here is a photo of the bridge itself.
The Perrine Bridge is the only bridge in the US people may “base jump” off of by parachute without needing a permit. I didn’t see anyone doing that while I was there but there were photos in the Visitor Center and I’m sure you can find some online.
Of course the main reason visitors come to Twin Falls is to see the waterfalls. There are many in the area (30 I believe I read somewhere) but the most popular by far are the Shoshone Falls, east of town.
There are some smaller falls to the right, though you have to look very closely at the still photo below to see them. They are easy to spot when the water is flowing, obviously.
The water flow wasn’t nearly as dramatic as it is in the spring after the snowmelt from the mountains further north in Hell’s Canyon. That plus the fact that the water flow is controlled by a dam up-river and the water level overall is unusually low this year.
Finally, this is the view from high up in the parking lot, looking at the observation platform with the west-bound river in the distance:
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