Pullin' Chocks: More About Mackay, Idaho

We are starting to find our way around Mackay already, and enjoying it very much. When we read about Mackay we understood the population to be around 850, made up of a few more women than men. When we arrived we were greeted by the Mackay sign that read population of 525. At any number there seems to be more wildlife than people. The weather is much cooler up here at 6000 ft. The scenery is beautiful as we are surrounded by several peaks some in excess of 11,000 ft. The high mountains still have snow from about 8,000 ft up. As the weather warms up we can see the creeks and rivers rising just a bit every day as the snow melts and runs off. Part of the forecast here in Mackay is the Hydrologic Outlook; we better keep an eye on that. The locals tell us that this year wasn't a big snow year, so we don't expect to see much flooding.

Mt. McCaleb at 11,682 ft watches over the sleepy little town of Mackay, Idaho. This is the view from our campground road.

We are staying at the Mackay Golf Course and RV Park. Below is a shot of the small club house and a few RVs. This part of the campground is too tight for us to fit into, but we can fish the Big Lost River at the end of the 7th hole per the owner Steve M.

Below is the annex RV park that is across from the 9th hole. We didn't have much trouble getting onto our site. The way this part of the park is layed out, Gari had to back in from the blindside, which made it a bit more difficult, but Gari being the driver she is, she made it look pretty easy.

We rode our bicycles from camp up to a self guided mine operation tour. There is Gari arriving at the White Knob Mining Site in Mackay. This original site was the blast furnaces and smelter where the ore was brought down from White Knob Mountain. Copper ore was discovered on White Knob in 1879 and full production started up by 1884. The mine produced copper, and some silver and gold all the way into the 1980's.

Steve takes a turn at operating the shovel.

Gari inspects the blast furnace and smelting pot.

There was a nice view at the mine site of the Big Lost River meandering through sleepy Mackay, Idaho.

We rode out in Romeo to explore the Mackay Reservoir and the Big Lost River below the dam. We parked Romeo up on the hill above the river.

Steve presents an nice Rainbow Trout specimen caught below the dam... only thing is, Gari caught it! Safely released after the picture.

Gari skillfully plays another whopper below the earthen dam.

Steve picks up Gari's catch. Even though the picture is a bit out of focus, we suspect that was a 3 pound Cutthroat Trout. All catches below the dam are released prior to Memorial Day.

Gari casts her lucky lure from the dam into the reservoir. We didn't have much luck there. We will return with the kayaks later and get away from the shoreline a bit more.

We rode down stream a bit to a Sportsman Access area. We saw a lot of feathered fowl but no fish bites here.

...and we discovered that there was a fungus among us...

Steve tried his luck from a rock and confirmed it was no fish luck at all.

Another day, another fishing expedition; this time with kayaks! Gari gets a snack before we put over.

Steve finishes his apple before paddling out.

Gari & Steve paddling on Mackay Reservoir.

We saw this couple preparing to launch their fishing boat. We spoke to them as they headed out. It turns out they had already spotted us in town and knew where we are staying! I suspect a lot of the 500 folks in town have noticed our presence as the new people.

Steve soaks in the magnificent view from the reservoir.

Gari jigs around the aquatic plants near where Romeo is parked.

We rigged up a hauling configuration with bungee and rope for carrying the kayaks in the hauler bed. It looks like it is going to work very well. It is a lot easier and faster to load and unload in the bed than it is to use the roof racks.