Day 6 would start our preparation for returning home. Bill, Keith, and Ed would ride this day, but only an abbreviated route where we would end in Salmon, ID. This would allow us to get down to Challis Hot Springs at a reasonable hour. The next day would include a stop in Boise, so staging in Challis made sense from a drive-time perspective.
The Statistics for the day were as follows:
Max Elevation – 8,533 ft
Total Ascent – 12,570 ft
Total Miles – 153
Avg Speed – 38.3 mph
Top Speed – 70 mph
The ride started with some asphalt heading north along the Salmon river. Soon we turned west toward shoup on a road that transitioned to gravel a couple miles before the town. Shoup is known for having one of the oldest functioning hand-powered gas pumps in the Nation. The station is currently closed and for sale, but the pumps are still out front.
From Shoup we traveled a little further west and then south toward the rabbit foot fire. We rode past signs alerting us to the fire and potential road closures, but never found a road block. We then turned east, away from the fire, and toward the town of salmon. All of this route was graded dirt/gravel road except for a short stretch of jeep trail.
In Salmon, we met Paul and Todd, found a open parking lot and restructured our gear so we could put two motorcycles in the truck. Paul made us a nice lunch and we ate in the shade next to our gear.
Once packed, Ed and Keith rode the bikes to Challis, while Bill joined the crew in the truck.
The hot springs of challis were once again a welcome treat at the end of our day.
