Idaho City Days
Hey, Treasure Valley Dave here someplace special in Idaho City. We are at Idaho City Days 2023 on the last day of September. It’s a little soggy out, but okay. The spirit’s nice and warm. There is a lot of stuff going on, and I’m anxious to walk down this street to find out what is happening.
This is something that I’ve done in other places. I had a special request because it’s unique to Idaho to have clean toilets. And Brian, this is for you. That’s a clean bathroom. No graffiti.
Normally, I wouldn’t do that, but I’m showing off how people treat property here. It’s indicative of how they treat each other. They have no respect for all that.
Path of Tradition
I found our friends at Path of Tradition.
Dave: Hey, how are you doing? This is Don. He came up here, we helped him find a place, and now he’s got this little business in Idaho City. Don, how’s life going?
Don: It’s going well.
Dave: Really?
Don: You want to see the shop?
Dave: Yeah, I want to check this out.
Don: We got a lot more stuff this year.
Dave: Wow. So, if I’m coming out from California, someplace else, to tour around Idaho City—
Don: Yep.
Dave: If I stumble into this shop right here, what should I be looking for?
Don: Well, if you need a knife, but if you’re going back to California—
Dave: (laughs) Good point.
Don: But in Idaho, nothing’s illegal.
Dave: Nice.
Don: A whole selection of hunting knives in there. Yeah, out the front switchblades, those are popular.
Dave: Wow. Yeah, they’ll probably get you a prison sentence in California.
Don: Yeah, toothpicks will too. These are great for hiking out in the woods.
Dave: Okay.
Don: It’s a hiking strike.
Dave: So, you do have bears around here?
Don: Turn it on.
Dave: Geez.
Don: Keeps animals alive.
Dave: Right?
Don: Our website’s going to be open soon.
Dave: You’ve got a website?
Don: Yeah.
Dave: What’s it going to be?
Don: It’s gonna be pathoftradition.com.
Dave: Path of Tradition.
Don: This is an excellent book.
Dave: “Idaho History.” Idaho’s original history.
Don: It’s signed by Skip Myers.
Stop at the Path of Tradition in Idaho City, whether it’s a big festive occasion like this or just checking things out. There’s some great stuff to check out and tell Don that Treasure Valley Dave sent you.
Walking Around the Street
Let’s cruise down this street and see what’s going on. There are some pretty cool sights around here.
- Wooden sidewalks. Hey, there’s a great place to stop for something to eat.
- BoCo Social. Nice! It probably stands for Boise County.
- Idaho City trading post. I wonder what they got.
- Daycare
- Idaho City High School fundraiser
- Jam. Hmm. Put that on some nice sourdough toast, and I’ll be there for the day.
- Harley’s pup. It’s jumping today. I’m not surprised.
- Smokeless Barrel. Wow! What’s a smokeless barrel all about? I have no idea, but this feels nice and warm. This is better than your old propane patio heater. You never know what you’ll see up here in Idaho City.
- The Home Boutique. Ah, all sorts of knick-knacks in there.
Idaho Ghost Towns and Mining Camps
Dave: Hi, guys. Wow! You have a book about what?
Robin: “Idaho Ghost Towns and Mining Camps.”
Robert: Idaho City.
Dave: Oh my gosh.
Robert: It’s about 120 different towns. It’s 300 pages. This took me three years to write.
Dave: So, you’re Robert?
Robert: Yes, sir.
Dave: Nice. Well, I’m just going to have to get one of those.
I just met Robert, the author of this great book and his lovely wife, Robin. I know, Robert, Robin. Pretty cool, huh? And he’s just telling me about it. This will be a great book about our area’s history, but he also covers a lot about Idaho City. So, I’m looking forward to getting into this book. I’ll give you an update, and you guys may want to get your copy as well.
What Else Is There?
Oh, there are a lot of goodies out there, like rugged furniture, hats, etc.
- Diamond Lil’s Restaurant and Salon. Money Bar. If you can interpret that for me, that’d be great.
- Boise County Courthouse. Oh, that one’s old. I’ll bet it’s still in operation.
- National forest signs. We can get one of those for your new house. That’d be cool.
What else do we have going on over here? Well, you can ride your side-by-sides, razors, and whatnot. That’s just what people do here. Aside from that, we have:
- Food from a truck or a trailer. I like that — a little patio on the back of the trailer. I wish you had Smell-o-Vision. You guys would be all over the screen.
- Stella’s. We got one of those in Nampa. I try, try, try not to go too often, but sometimes things don’t go the way we plan.
- Boise Basin Museum. I don’t know that I’ve ever been in there. Maybe I have. I’ve been to most places around here.
- General News Depot. Interesting. There was a time when that wagon there was brand-new. And that one, can you imagine what that must have been like?
- Firehouse. I don’t know if I’d rely on that to extinguish my fire. Let’s not start a fire at all.
Festival Activities
Ah, what a peaceful little area — the band must be on a break. As we’re walking around, are you noticing anything? It’s clean. It’s crisp. Kids are having fun running around. I don’t see any gang colors flying. I don’t see any graffiti. I don’t see any trash. It’s just a kind of a different place.
Apple nachos? Now, I’ve never seen that before. Oh, what do you suppose they’re doing? I bet they’re going to get some gold out of something. That’s cool.
Dave: Wow! Look! An old-timey woman with a cell phone.
Performer: He’s got a rocker box here.
Dave: Yeah.
Performer: There’s a screw on this one that we had to find somewhere to make it. The nails they used back then were square-headed.
Dave: Right.
Performer: To seal it, we apply linseed oil, which is used back then, as well for the water.
Dave: Right.
Performer: So, out of this gold paper, the brighter piece, it’s professionally cleaned. The darker pieces come out of the wall from mining.
Dave: Nice.
Performer: And we’ve panned and came up with more.
Dave: Wow! Right here locally?
Performer: Some of this is shipped to us, but there is also some gold here locally. But you must be careful not to go on someone else’s claim.
Well, there’s always something fun happening around here, whether it’s a special day like this or just a typical day. You can come check it out and be part of everything happening.
Other Fun Things to See
- Old Masonic Lodge. Who’d have thought?
- Dodge minivan. So, where else besides Idaho City can you see a Dodge minivan with a big old brush guard on the front like that? Those guys are serious.
- Blankets. Ah, look at all these blankets. Does Caroline have anything to do with this? We’ll have to find out.
- Walulla Coffee Shop. The locals highly recommend this place. I’ve been here before, and it’s always great.
- Transportation. You never know what kind of transport you’ll see around here. It can be a classic banana seat with sissy bars or big horses. I don’t know if I’d be safe on either one.
Wrapping Up Our Idaho City Days Tour
Wow! Another fantastic Idaho City Days, huh? I’m glad you guys came along. Hopefully, you can make it up here on your own someday. Let me know if you need somebody to go with you or take over to Trudy’s and show you what to order. I’d be glad to do it!
Anyway, we’ll see you around on the next one. When it comes time to sell a home, buy a home, or even relocate to the Treasure Valley, your Treasure Valley Dave team is your real estate expert by your side, helping you get home. Contact us today.
