Todd and I in Ketchum

Ketchum instantly became my favorite getaway when our family went camping there this summer.  It's only 3 hours away but feels so different from where we live with rugged mountains and beautiful forests.  It is a hiker's playground.  Having just purchased a motorhome, Todd and I chose to take it for a spin, just the two of us, to work out any kinks on it before we took the whole family anywhere.  And we chose to take it to Ketchum.

I used to love camping, still don't mind it.  But sometimes you want a mix of both worlds of the looking nice and the getting dirty.  We were outside a ton, but we also went out to eat, got massages, and went to a movie. Todd took me to the campground where they did their Stake Priesthood Encampment for the young men in July.  We also did the same hike that they did.  It was gorgeous.  We had beautiful weather the whole time there. 

So Ketchum proved to still dazzle me.  However, the motorhome... not so much.  Our first night there we came back from eating dinner at a great little Mexican restaurant only to find that the keys the dealership gave us wouldn't open the dead bolt lock on the motorhome.  It was late but we called Good Sam (like Triple A for RV's) and waited for an hour or two.  They said they couldn't find a lock smith. 

We had rented a car for driving the mountain dirt roads/trails and upon picking it up, found all they had for us was a tiny pickup truck.  Which was perfect for the trip, but not so much for sleeping.  So we called around at hotels.  All of them were full except the most expensive in all of Ketchum/Sun

Valley - the Sun Valley Resort.  They had one room left and robbed us to take it for a few short hours as it was very late upon checking in.

 Only 5 minutes after walking into our hotel room, Good Sam called us saying they found a lock smith after all and that he had to come all the way from Twin Falls (over an hour).  We went to the hotel lobby and asked if they would allow us to have our money back since the room looked exactly the same as it did before.  They agreed and we were grateful! 

We drove back to the RV campground and waited in our truck for over an hour before Good Sam called to say the lock smith they contacted wasn't actually coming himself, he was agreeing to find one of his employees to come.  Which he did not having any luck doing. And so he cancelled.  So there we were again... later, more tired, much more grumpy.... driving back to the same hotel to see if the same dumb room was still available.  Which it was and the same lobby host was not as pleasant as he was the first time. 

In the morning, a Ketchum locksmith came wreaking of alcohol and behaving like a man with a hangover- which would explain why he was not available that past night....  He got us in easily despite motorhomes having a more rare lock than just any regular locksmith can open.

So we were very careful not to lock this certain dead bolt lock on the door again while we were there.  Kind of stressful because it was very easy to accidentally touch on the way out and lock.  But we were back in and we had a very good time the rest of our stay.

Favorite part... definitely the hiking.  Also loved the gorgeous drive from Ketchum to Stanley (around an hour), ice cream at Galena Lodge, a natural hot spring we visited just North of Stanley, pizza at Papa Brunees in Stanley, and exploring many dirt roads dreaming of future camping trips there. 

This was the rock field where, at the Priesthood Encampment, the boys were given a large rock to carry up the rest of their "burden hike" to represent the weight of sin that the Savior takes away (taking the rock away at some point and letting the finish the hike feeling free from it).

Doing the hike, you could tell it was pretty special to Todd.  He definitely didn't mind soaking it all in when I took my time taking pictures.  He showed me where certain stories took place from their camp and hike and it was fun to hear and see.

I love how photography makes you actively look for beauty all around you and how it makes you see everything as a work of art.  What I wouldn't give for a macro lens because I love capturing all the little beautiful things I see on a hike.  And Todd is so patient and pleasant as he waits for me intermittently all the way up the hike.  We ran the several miles straight all the way down to compensate!  But seriously, looking for lovely things in life to take a picture of makes you see more and more and more of the beautiful things that surround us in life.  I feel like it makes me a more grateful person.  There's my two cents on why I snap so much all the time.  It's my happy place, my hobby, and my medicine for a more grateful heart.

A bumble bee!

The hot spring we drove to.

A stick sculpture we saw in town.

(phone pic)

One yummy stop for breakfast, The Kneadery.

(phone)

We wandered around the shops in downtown Ketchum one afternoon.  Literally saw Arnold Schwartzeniger blitz by on a street bike with a group of people who he was loudly and cheerfully saying something to.  Moment of silence for Todd to take it all in...  We did like all the shops.  Lots of bike shops and ski shops, athletic clothing places like Lulu Lemon- love that one.

We found this crazy cool shop that looked like an average sized flea market shop on the outside selling asian decor and eastern world rugs and things.  But waking into it... it felt like we were in the Cave of Wonders on "Aladdin".  For starters, it was FILLED TO THE HILT with heirlooms, carpets- piles of them, beyond counting, stacked all over the place, vases, mirrors, wall art, tables, chairs, metal works, huge wooden hand carved pillars that people literally buy and install in their home, antiques, hand made things, brass, silver, on and on.  But what really killed me was how HUGE it was!  We went up 2 and a half floors, out to a covered deck with more items, back the start, then they showed us down two more floors into what seemed like a cold dark dungeon but filled with huge pieces of furniture.  I don't know who buys this stuff, you'd probably need a genie to grant your wishes for it.  Things were so expensive I stopped looking at tags.  The only thing in there I'd ever have had interest in buying anyway was an adorable little antique baby basinet but I wouldn't need one now anyway.  None of it was our style, but just so cool to see.  It was like an education on things from that side of the world.  Not just Asian, but Arabic, Russian, Indian (as in from India, not Native American)...  They said they have people from all over the world come to shop there.  Probably more like people from all over the world come to ski or mountain bike the Ketchum area and stop in...

We also visited the shops at Sun Valley Resort when we went there to get massages.  We each found a jacket there.  They had a cute little candy shop there and this is the treat we brought back each of the kids since we've been reading Harry Potter together.