Getting there: Ponderosa State Park is located two miles northeast of McCall's city center off of Idaho 55, about 107 miles north of Boise. The drive takes about two hours, 40 minutes, depending on traffic through the Payette River canyon.
Campgrounds: For $22 a night, the campground offers flush toilets, group shelters, electrical hookups, nature store, dump station, rental yurts, firewood, hiking trails, boat ramps, hard-path biking, guided walks, fishing, swimming, education center, volleyball area, horseshoe pits. At the North Beach area on the north end of the lake is another 630-acre park where primitive camping is available.
Guidebook: "Idaho for the Curious," by Cort Conley; $19.95 plus $3.25 shipping and handling from Backeddy Books, P.O. Box 301, Cambridge, Idaho 83610.
For more information: www.idahoparks.org/parks/ponderosa.html or 208-634-2164