Experience Americas Most Treasured Roads
Touring the Byway
140 Miles | 6 Days / 5 Nights | Gateway City: Idaho Falls, Idaho
Day One
We recommend starting your journey in Idaho Falls, where you can explore geologic phenomena and the region’s heritage. Begin your visit at the Riverwalk, followed by a walking tour of downtown. You can also visit the Museum of Idaho before enjoying the Art Museum of East Idaho. Spend the night at Destinations Inn.
Day Two
On Day Two, on your way to begin your journey on the Peaks to Craters Byway, visit the EBR-1 Atomic Museum located on US 26 between Arco and Idaho Falls. An overnight at the Mackay Mansion Bed and Breakfast will position you to begin following the remainder of the Peaks to Craters Scenic Byway in the morning.
Day Three
The next morning you can tour the Lost River Museum and take the Mackay Mine Tour. And then it’s on to gorgeous Mt. Borah, the highest mountain in Idaho. Explore Spar Canyon and check for signs of Mountain Lion activity. Enjoy an overnight stay at the Tea Cup Bed and Breakfast.
Day Four
On Day Four, stretch your legs on the Challis Historic District Walking Tour and relax in the Challis Hot Springs. Then, it’s time to venture to the North Custer Museum and Land of the Yankee Fork State Park and Interpretive Center with an option to take the Custer Motorway Adventure Loop Road. Go to the Sawtooth River Scenic Byway’s northern terminus in Stanley from there. Stay at the Redfish Lake Lodge.
Day Five
In Stanley, about an hour north of the famed Sun Valley area, you’ll have a chance to experience the Sawtooth National Forest Recreation Area and its natural beauty. Stop by the Sawtooth-Stanley Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center before heading off to the Stanley Museum and Pioneer Park. Travel the Sawtooth Scenic Byway to spend the next night, or two, in Sun Valley at the infamous Sun Valley Lodge, known for the many celebrities it has attracted over the decades.
As you head toward Hailey, stop at the Sawtooth Botanical Garden on your way out of Ketchum. In Hailey, a walking tour will acquaint you with the Wood River Valley, and you can also learn about the area at the Blaine County Historical Museum. Your last stop will be at the Wood River Draper Reserve before you enjoy an overnight at the Silver Creek Hotel in Bellevue.
Day Six
On Day Six, you’ll be headed for the remainder of Peaks to Craters Scenic Byway, stopping at the Hayspur State Fish Hatchery and Carey Lake Wildlife Management Area. Next up, Craters of the Moon National Monument, where you can explore spatter cones, the nature trail, the inferno cone, and Indian tunnels. From there, we wish you a safe passage if you travel on another Idaho Scenic Byway or a safe and pleasant journey home.
View the Detailed Itinerary below to see the full route, which is complete with dining, shopping, and lodging recommendations!
Highlighted Attractions
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Craters of the Moon
Some have said that the ocean of lava flows and cinder cone islands at Craters of the Moon is a “weird and scenic landscape peculiar to itself. ” President Coolidge designated it to preserve what he called “the most unusual and unearthly lunar landscapes.” It is so unique that Apollo astronauts used the area to learn to detect good rock specimens in an unfamiliar and harsh environment. Encompassing three major lava fields, and 400 square miles of sagebrush steppe grasslands, the Monument covers 343,000 acres. The 60 distinct solidified lava flows that form the Craters of the Moon Lava Field range in age from 15,000 years old to just 2,000 years. Lying along the Great Rift of Idaho, where molten lava shot through to form surrounding mountains, almost every variety of basaltic lava, as well as tree molds (cavities left by lava-incinerated trees), lava tubes, and many other volcanic features are represented.
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EBR-1 Atomic Museum
Plan to drive on US 20/26 towards Arco to visit Experimental Breeder Reactor No. 1 (EBR-I). Colorful, interactive displays also tell the story of EBR-I’s sibling, Experimental Breeder Reactor No. 2 (EBR-II), which once powered much of the site and operated with a novel closed fuel cycle. The museum also has two aircraft nuclear propulsion prototypes, a reactor control room, remote handling devices for radioactive materials, radiation detection equipment, and more. You can walk through the museum using the self-guided tour instructions or take a guided tour.
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Mackay Mine Hill Tour
Relics, structures, small mines, and remnants of houses in “copper city” dot the wild backcountry of Mine Hill, dating from 1879 when ore was discovered. Over the years, almost a million tons of ore have been removed from the mountain. Interpretive Sites along the 20-mile route include the Smelter Site and Hardrock Mining Exhibit, Cossack Tunnel and Compressor Building, Horseshoe Mine and Taylor Sawmill, Anderson Cabin, White Knob Townsite, Aerial Tramway Headhouse, Ausich Cabin Site, Cliff City Town Site, Cliff City Cabin, Cliff City Smelter, Shay Railroad Trestle, and the Empire Mine Ore Bin Location. Three color-coded routes for ATVs, Cars, and 4WDs graded by difficulty are available at the Mackay City Hall.
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Land of the Yankee Fork State Park and Interpretive Center
Yankee Fork preserves a mining camp established on the Salmon River, named because everyone in the party was a Yankee. Even though no gold was discovered immediately, prospectors stayed on and finally found gold in 1870. Soon after, the Yankee Fork Mining District was organized, and after the discovery of the General Custer Mine in 1876, the area began to flood with miners. By 1910, the three popular sites, Bonanza, Custer, and Bayhorse, were all but deserted. The interpretive center illustrates the area’s mining heritage through exhibits, a gold panning station, and audiovisual programs. The grounds also feature a ¼ mile trail detailing the archeological finds of a nearby Challis Bison Jump Site.
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Custer Motorway Adventure Road
For an authentic Idaho mining town experience, explore this stage and freight wagon toll road that was used by mining supply trains running from Custer and Bonanza delivering gold bullion to Challis. The only access for a decade, tollkeepers charged $4.00 a wagon and a team of four animals, plus 50 cents for each additional animal. Initially, the stage fare was $11.00, dropping to $8.00 by April 1880. The backcountry Forest Road 070 trip is scattered with several stagecoach stations, old barns, mining equipment, deteriorating log cabins, and weathered grave markers. Explore the ghost towns of Bonanza, Custer, and Bayhorse and the old tollgate. Interpretive signs provide more information. From start to finish, the loop drive is 98 miles with 46 miles of dirt/gravel road with no services and 52 miles of paved highway. Get a map at the Land of the Yankee Fork Interpretive Center. Stop at the Custer Cemetery, the McGowan Museum at Custer, the Yankee Fork Gold Dredge, and the Sunbeam Dam Interpretive Site.