It is pretty easy to find empty space in Idaho. Many times, that means heading off of the freeway, off of the state highways and byways, on down a gravel road.

I’ve never been a fan of using a GPS while exploring, via car, or especially on a motorcycle. The fewer gadgets the better. The abundance of gravel roads in Idaho was one of the main reasons I sought a smaller ADV motorcycle like my BMW G650GS. The bike is much lighter than many of the super-ADV liter+ bikes but runs well on a 50/50 tire, and can carry everything I need for longer trips in Touratech panniers.

So down the gravel roads I go. I this particular photo, what you can’t see from here is up this road a ways…are the Western side of the Tetons in Idaho. I spent a few days in this area rather than the much busier and more expensive Jackson area across Teton Pass in Wyoming. I had rented a small canvas walled cabin, stocked with a little stove for heat, and a nice front porch face a little stream. The favorite part of my visit was the hospitality of the local people. They checked me in, pointed to a path and said, “Your cabin is down that trail.” They offered the use of the fridge in the unlocked lodge, and then left to go home.

It was mid-week and clearly pre-season. There were no other guests at the 4 other disbursed cabins. Never saw another person for 2-1/2 days. Each evening I was stalked by local wildlife - in this case, a cat who clearly needed some company.

You don’t always luck into circumstances like these. In our current pandemic, I long for the remoteness of places like this.