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Visiting BYU-Idaho

 We just finished our fall break with nearly perfect weather. On Saturday we drove up to Rexburg so that Mindy could tour BYU-Idaho to see if she wants to go there after she graduates. Rexburg has also enjoyed a long pleasant fall. We really enjoyed our stay there.

On our way up, we stopped to hike Alien Tower Trail, otherwise known as Deer Ridge Trail. It's a fun, very doable hike, especially good for fall since it's pretty exposed. The only downside were all the dogs off-leash but they were fairly well-behaved.





Then we drove up to Rexburg and watched the end of the Alabama game (they lost to Tennessee) before heading out to eat with Mark and JoEllen at a taco place. I had good fish tacos.

We came back to pick up the kids and then went to a cultural night. It was pretty fun with a very enthusiastic audience.








Afterwards we had some ice cream and/or hot chocolate.

The next day was Sunday. Scott took Mindy to a student ward  where the bishop shared his interesting conversion story:

He grew up as a non-member and said he learned how to drink excessively in the Army. After his 2nd DUI, he completed a detox program, met his future wife, and straightened up his life. He eventually finished a mechanical Engineering degree and took his first job in Utah. He wasn't excited about the prospect of moving to Utah because he didn't think very highly about the Mormons. But he really enjoyed it. His neighborhood was very nice and welcoming. He took another job in Idaho and enjoyed his work and neighborhood there too. After a few years, his 9-year-old daughter came home from school and said she wanted to get baptized. He was NOT excited, thinking his daughter was too young to make that decision. So he insisted on sitting in for all the lessons. When the lessons were finished, he told the missionaries he wanted to take the lessons for himself. During this second round, his son listened from the top of the stairs. In each successive lesson the son moved farther down the stairs. When the lessons were over, he said he wanted to have the lessons for himself. So the missionaries taught them again for the 3rd time! They got through the lessons and were all baptized on an Easter Sunday.

Afterwards, the ward had a linger longer and Mindy talked to a few students about their experiences which were positive.

That afternoon we visited the gardens on campus and then enjoyed a tasty roast dinner with rolls and apple caramel cake.




Monday morning, after saying goodbye to the Morris family, Mindy and Scott attended a class taught by Uncle Mark then we all went on a campus tour which was pretty informative. My general impressions of BYU-Idaho as compared to BYU-Provo are:  not as crowded and busy, smaller campus and buildings, and smaller class sizes. Traffic in Rexburg is much less than here in Utah Valley which seems to get worse by the year.


After visiting an art gallery on campus and the campus library, we stopped by mile marker 101, just south of Idaho Falls to walk a geologic trail at a rest stop (seriously undersubscribed) with lots of lava rock, then went home via Morgan, Utah. We've never driven that direction on I-84 and it was really pretty. We were supposed to try this great restaurant near Morgan but it is unfortunately closed on Mondays. So we ate at a local burger joint and then drove home through Provo Canyon which is much more scenic than I-15. The fall colors were really pretty on this trip.





It was a great trip!









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