Why You Need a Road Trip to Arco, Idaho

I like driving and I love Idaho scenery.

So, during normal times I often get in the car on a Saturday morning and just head out without any serious plans.  I drive and stop and take some pictures.  Drive some more, stop and take more pictures.  Then I want lunch.

The back roads and small towns are a treasure when it comes to variety.  Locally owned restaurants keep most of the money earned local.  Big chains, not quite so much.

One of my favorite stops is in Arco.  Pickle’s Place gets your attention.  The outlandish green it’s painted.  The giant chair outside.  Indoors it’s just a folksy atmosphere and plenty of comfort food.  I dropped in after viewing the Atomic Days Parade one not so long ago summer.

The atom plays a big role in Arco.  It’s not far from Idaho National Laboratory.  If you make it a full weekend you can bed down at the local motel (which has a paint scheme even more eye-grabbing than Pickle’s Place).  Then you can visit the lab, too!

Arco is a town with attitude.  A good one.  The bright colors and the brashness of the monuments tell you these are outgoing people and proud.  At one end of town the brashness is visible along a mountain.  Generations of high school kids have tempted fate and left their mark.  It takes some courage to scale a rock face with a paint brush and honor your graduating class.

I get the impression it’s a great place to raise a family.  Its quirkiness rivals such places as Wallace in Shoshone County.  I’d say it’s a tie when it comes to most unique place in Idaho.