Two Rivers Run Near-By

On a recent trip to Meridian, Idaho, to visit daughter Kelly, and son-in-law Travis,  our buddy and trusty cameraman, Paul Bakas came along for the ride. Well, from our humble abode, the ride was a little over 13 hours, non-stop. Laureen could not make this particular trip, due to conflicts in her work schedule, so it was up to the two boys this trip.

"Are you're sure that you both can go and not get into trouble?" she asked, a week before our departure.

I recalled, being in Pamplona, Spain, during the annual bull run, many years earlier, made famous by the great American author, Ernest Hemingway, and that hadn't worked out for the best. No I didn't get gored, but I'll never forget the breath of one bull running a lot faster than I was. I jumped over a short fence to safety. The man in front of me - well, one horn taught him a lesson.

"We won't get in trouble," I reassured Laureen.

And, we did not. The drive from Victorville to Meridian (a city nestled next door to Boise) was an easy one. Long, but easy.

This was not just a chance to visit with  Kelly and Travis, but we were to partake in two separate river excursions. Running the white water of the Payette River, with an experienced guide and then the next day, floating the calm and easy Boise River in an inner-tube.

The Crew: Kelly, John, Travis, and Paul taking the photo

Running the Payette River, is never to be taken for granted. Helmets, life vest, paddles, and a strict lecture, given by our guide, Lee MacDonald Pownau, to whom we nearly had to swear our souls.

"Where does rafting happen?" drill sergeant Lee asked.

"In the river," Paul replied.

The look Paul received from Lee was unnerving. I turned my head away. "It begins and ends in the raft. Without the raft, there is no rafting."

Captain Ahab - no, Captain Lee 

Actually, I was thinking, if there was no river, there wouldn't be the need of a raft. I remained silent, afraid my helmet, life vest, and soul would be lost to the churning waters upon which we were about to embark, if I disagreed with Lee.

We pushed off, and immediately took to the river like fish running for their lives. The next few hours reminded me of the time when I was a law enforcement officer. Most of the time, it was just a job taking reports, but - and this is a big but - there was about 5 to 10 percent of the time, it was stark raving crazy.

The raft behind us - the river can be tricky

"Paddle forward," Lee barked, and I wondered what the big deal was. Well, going over a six foot waterfall of bone crushing water was a big deal. The five of us, on our raft, paddled like people being chased by demons.

A rather relaxed section of the Payette at this time

According to Lee, the Payette was actually down quite a few feet from it's high mark in mid-June. That's when things can get dicey. It was dicey enough, and when we came ashore near the town of  Lowman we were all tired from paddling and looking for holes in the river (a term for river runners that would conjure doom).

Lowman is a very small settlement, situated in the mountains, about two hours north-east of Boise.

The owners of the Payette River Company, Sean and Ginger Glaccum, have a wonderful business, that not only allows people to raft along the Payette, but have experienced guides, who also know the history of the region.

With Lee, there was so much to learn, and he didn't scrimp on sharing his knowledge.

It was great river run: some scary rapids and some nice long runs, along placid clear blue water, allowing us to chit and chat. What more could one ask for?

The next day, it was off to the near-by river, the Boise, for the annual float enjoyed by locals and tourists alike. Very different from the previous day: no one was hanging on for dear life, hurtling down white water waterfalls. No, this was to be enjoyed by all ages.

The difference was surreal.

Floating down the Boise does not require lectures from expert white water guides. It's about having fun on a sunny day with family and friends. Utilizing inner tubes, flip-flops, and water proof cameras  is all that is required. The ride starts near a pub knocking back a couple of cold ones. We started off at Payette Brewing, just a few steps from the Boise River. A couple of toasts and then a short walk across the river to a waiting bus. A few bucks, and the bus dropped us off at the start of the float fifteen minutes later.

From there, it was simply laughing, laughing and laughing some more. No huge waterfalls - though, there are a few sections of speedy water, and a person could get tossed from their floaty if they aren't observant.

Kelly looks like she's struggling on the river, not!
 Looks more like a model.

Travis is wondering, why his beer hasn't been delivered. 

Paul, struggling through the treacherous waters of the Boise River
 - hang on Dude!

The city of Boise, only allows a certain time to float the Boise, due to weather conditions. When Laureen and I were there in early June, rafting wasn't allowed. The water was running too quickly and far too cold.

July and August are the months to enjoy, stretching out on an inner tube, or raft and enjoying the peaceful serenity of the currents.

The end of the trip winds up where we started, across from Payette Brewing and how perfect is that? Start with a brew and end with a brew.

Life couldn't, in this writer's opinion, be better than that.

When in Idaho, explore the rivers - and if there's enough courage - run one.

Love the water and the water will love you.

Photographs by: John R. Beyer and Paul K. Bakas

In the Pen - Temporarily

John's cell-phone rang, though he didn't recognize the number, he went ahead and answered it.

Of course, it was a telemarketer, "Hello, this is No-Name, and I am calling about solar power for your house."

Sounding very quiet and serious, John interrupted the bothersome robo-seller, "I'm sorry, I can't speak right now. I'm in prison." It seemed apropos -- it was a cell-phone call, after all.

Mr. No-Name, apologized and hung up. When does that happen? A bothersome salesperson just hanging up?

Of course, the prison John was speaking about was the Old Idaho Penitentiary in Boise, Idaho.

Not a particularly inviting facade...

Laureen and John had traveled to the City of  Trees, to visit daughter Kelly and her husband Travis. Sightseeing is a must and one place on the top of the list was the Old Idaho Penitentiary. What more could an explorer and researcher desire then to spend quality time with family in a dank, dark, cold, and possibly haunted prison?

Travel Channel ghost hunters always
look better in green light.

This solid rock penitentiary is so well known for its hauntings, that a paranormal group from the Travel Channel visited and performed their paranormal rituals. The crew from Ghost Adventures studied, listened, viewed, filmed, and tried just about everything else these paranormal ghost hunters do - usually with green night vision goggles (we really enjoy that dramatic piece) and concluded that it could be haunted.

Cell-block constructed in 1911

There was a heaviness to the place. One felt strange anxious feelings, as we traipsed around the cell blocks where men and women spent some of their worst and often final years on this planet of ours. In one cell block where very young men were held, even as young as fifteen or younger, the feelings of oppression and sadness were overwhelming. The cold stone walls only accentuated the feeling of hopelessness these inmates must have felt, cooped up day after day serving their varied sentences for crimes for which they had convicted.

Solitary - about as dank as it could get

Now, many of these inmates deserved to be in prison for some pretty heinous crimes. One such deserving soul was Lyda Southard, who had a penchant for killing several of her husbands to collect on their life insurance. And there was Harry Orchard, convicted of assassinating the former governor of Idaho, Frank Steunenberg with a bomb outside the gentleman's home in Boise in 1905. Orchard confessed that he was a hit man for the miner's union and they, the union had a beef with the former governor.

Other crimes committed in the early years of Idaho also warranted lengthy prison sentences: murder, robbery, burglary, horse stealing, larceny and the such, but some would seem rather silly to lock someone up in the twenty-first century. Polygamy, cohabitation without being properly married, homosexuality, and plenty more offenses which shocked the public morals at the time the prison was operating.

The ones who spent their eternity at the penitentiary - in a way

No matter the crime - laundry had to be done -
John in front of the prison's laundry facility

Different times also meant different crimes.

The penitentiary was built using prisoner labor, and the sandstone, which makes up most of the sprawling prison, was mined from the nearby foothills. As the prison population rose, so did more buildings using prison labor. As one warden stated, "It was better to use free labor than cost the state to house the people who the prison had to be built for."

Constructed started in 1868 and a public ceremony touting the state of the art prison was held on July 4th of 1870.

That's some good construction - and cheap too!

The date seems a bit ironic for celebrating the completion of a prison.

The prison stayed in the business of incarcerating criminals for 101 years. Over 13,000 inmates spent time there, but with no more than 600 at any one time which was the maximum it could contain.

Ten inmates were executed in the prison - the last being Raymond Snowden. He had been out drinking with his date, Cora Dean, on September 23, 1956, when they got into an argument and he ended up stabbing the mother of two, thirty times with a pocket knife. He left the dead woman beside the road, only to be found the next morning by a paperboy making his deliveries in Garden City. Snowden was convicted of murder and executed on October 18, 1957 by hanging. It is said, Snowden dangled at the end of the rope in agony for fifteen minutes before succumbing to his penalty.


So, maybe Snowden is still hanging around the penitentiary, scaring visitors.

Are Laureen and Kelly seeing a dangling ghostly Snowden?

In 1973, riots broke out over the outdated systems - poor plumbing, unhealthy water, very little heating or cooling offered by the old buildings, and so in December of that same year. the penitentiary closed for good.

Guard Tower

The penitentiary now stands as a historical landmark in the state of Idaho. It is a fascinating site to explore, to look into the cells where prisoners spent their days and nights, to read many of the inmates personal histories - some sad and some tragic - both for the inmate and their victims.

The penitentiary also has a museum sporting a marvelous collection of weapons from the earliest days to modern weaponry.

 John and daughter Kelly in front of a Gatling gun - impressive weapon

For more information -

https://history.idaho.gov/location/old-penitentiary/

https://history.idaho.gov/old-idaho-penitentiary-faq/