Bear Lake, Idaho and Utah

Bear Lake State Parks, Idaho and Utah (Sept. 30 – Oct. 5, 2015)

We departed Massacre Rocks State Park near American Falls, Idaho to drive south towards Bear Lake. Don has been telling me about Bear Lake and how beautiful it is for years. When Don was in his mid twenties he was stationed at Hill Air Force Base in Ogden, Utah for a while and visited Bear Lake on his motorcycle with a buddy. He always told the story about how beautiful the lake was with its unique color and I was anxious to see it.

Bear Lake is a freshwater lake surrounded by mountains on the Utah-Idaho border. It is about 54 miles to drive around the lake. It is split about equally between the two states; its Utah portion comprises the second largest natural freshwater lake in Utah. The lake has been called the “Caribbean of the Rockies” for its unique turquoise-blue color, which is due to the reflection of calcium carbonate (limestone) deposits suspended in the lake.

Driving towards Bear Lake

We wanted to try out both state parks (Idaho and Utah) so we stopped on the eastern Idaho state park first to spend a few nights. There were few other campers in the park so picking a choice spot was easy. We found a nice level site close to the water with only a water spigot. Time to use solar for electrical power!

The campgrounds are at about 5,900 feet elevation, so the temperatures were mild at this time of year.

After our visit to the Idaho side we dropped down to the southern end of the lake to switch over to the state park in Utah. There were only two other campers in the entire park. Again, we could pick the best spot. When we arrived there were two beautiful eagles watching our every move and we took this as a great sign. It was fun to look for them throughout our stay and we found their beautiful nest but unfortunately did not see any little heads poking out.