|
Adventure Vacations in the Idaho Rocky Mountains! White Water Rafting, Horseback Riding, Cabins, Campgrounds, Dude Ranches, Gold Prospecting, and Fishing! Idaho's best vacation attractions!
September 10, 2010 |
  Contact Us We can make your tourism related business successful! |
Updated 01/07/10
|
BOISE ART MUSEUM - Boise - Featuring a permanent collection including paintings, sculpture, drawings, prints, photography and Asian artifacts. The museum also has a comprehensive collection of American Realism works. There are more than 20 exhibits annually encompassing a wide range of historical and contemporary themes. A variety of educational programs lectures, films, art classes and guided tours are available. BONNEVILLE MUSEUM - Idaho Falls - Housed in the 1916 Andrew Carnegie Library building now on the National Register of Historic Places. Featuring permanent displays of natural history, early inhabitants and explorers, agriculture, mining, and nuclear energy. There is even a walk through facsimile of a small 19th century community and art gallery. CATALDO MISSION - Old Mission - Idaho's oldest building, built between 1848 and 1853. Constructed with large logs cut near the site using only a few simple tools. The 18 inch thick walls have stood the test of time. CITY OF ROCKS - Sawtooth National Forest - This was an important landmark on the historic California Trail. Spectacular and unique granite rock formations. The early pioneers left their names in axle grease here on Register Rock. Register Rock is on the list of National Historic Landmarks. CUSTER MINING CAMP - 2 miles north of Bonanza - The Custer mining camp was founded in 1878. Named after General Custer, of the battle of the Little Big Horn. Custer became the area's largest town around 1896 with a population peaking at 700. The town was deserted by 1911 when the last major mine closed down. Only a few of the buildings remain, the museum and area are managed by the Challis National Forest district. EXPERIMENTAL BREEDER REACTOR #1 - Arco - This is the site of the first nuclear generated electricity, produced here in 1951. 52 reactors were built here at the site. Located on 890 square miles of desert. Today nuclear research and waste processing are carried out for the U.S Department of Energy. Listed on the registry of National Historic Landmarks. FORT SHERMAN MUSEUM - Coeur d' Alene - This fort named for the Civil War General famous for his tactic of scorched earth called the "March to the Sea". The fort was built in the 1880's to keep the peace in this remote and undeveloped region. The museum includes 3 of the original 52 buildings. FRANKLIN - Franklin - This is the oldest non-indian town in Idaho, settled in 1860 by Mormon pioneers. Once the busy terminus for the Utah Northern Railroad, where freight for the Montana mines reloaded for the long wagon haul north. HAGERMAN FOSSIL BEDS NATIONAL MONUMENT - Hagerman - Located on high bluffs above the Snake River, the monument was established to preserve the environment that contains fossils of more than 90 animal species, some as old as 3.5 million years. IDAHO CITY - Idaho City - This town was once a bustling mining camp and the center of one of the richest gold strikes in North America during the 1860's. At one point more populated than any other city in the Northwest. Some buildings of the 1860's camp still remain. Wood board sidewalks and unpaved streets the population is now around 300. The town is now a National Historic Site. IDAHO HISTORICAL MUSEUM - Boise - The collection tells the story of Idaho from prehistoric times through the days of fur trading, gold rush, and pioneer settlement. Exhibits on how the early pioneers of Idaho lived and conducted business in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. IDAHO MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY - Pocatello - This museum features Permanent exhibits of Ice Age Mammels, Indian basketry, beadwork and hidegoods. The museum is also the home of the Don Crabtree flintknapping specimens discovery center. LEMHI PASS - Salmon National Forest - This National Historic Landmark is where the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1805 crossed the Continental Divide and the point at which they realized they had left the Missouri River drainage and entered the Columbia River drainage. The Continental Divide is the division between the Atlantic and Pacific watersheds. LOCHSA HISTORICAL RANGER STATION - Clearwater National Forest - Consisting of several log buildings built during the 1920's and early 1930's. Representative of the era when the Forest Service buildings were not accessible by road. These preserved examples of early day craftsmanship were made with simple tools and furnishings. The site was first opened to the public in 1976. McCONNELL MANSION - Moscow - The mansion was built in the 1880's by, then Idaho Governor William McConnell. The building first housed a department store. Elaborately decorated with medallions of pressed tin, half-moon windows of colored glass, and cast iron supports. The original furniture was of the Victorian style. The mansion is on the Register of Historic Places. NOB HILL HISTORIC DISTRICT - Potlatch - A walking tour of Nob Hill includes several houses on the National Register of Historic Places. The tour includes 10 original houses built in 1906 for mill managers when Potlatch was first developing as a lumber town. All wood-framed bungalows with gable roofs and dormers. The homes are privately owned, and NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. NORTHERN PACIFIC DEPOT RAILROAD MUSEUM - Wallace - Re-creation of an early working railroad station with ticket windows and telegrapher's desk. Exhibits of the rich history of railroading in the Cour d' Alene mining district. The station was moved to it's present location to make way for Interstate 90 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. OLD FORT BOISE - Parma - This is a replica of an important Hudson's Bay Company fur trading post. The fort was originally built in 1834 and is located just northwest of town. With the decline of fur trading, the post became famous for it's hospitality to travelers on the Oregon Trail. The original fort was washed away by a flood in 1853. OLD FORT HALL - Pocatello - This is a replica of the original fort built in 1834 and located at the junction for the Oregon and California Trails. It is located on what is now the Fort Hall Indian Reservation. The post was for fur traders and a refuge for overland emigrants and miners. The original fort was dismantled in 1864 to build a stage coach station. OLD IDAHO PENITENTIARY - Boise - Built in 1870 as a single cellhouse, it grew into a complex of several buildings surrounded by high stone walls. Convicts did all the later construction. The facility served as Idaho's prison for over 100 years and is on the National Register of Historic Places. There is a self guided tour of several of the historic buildings. PACKER JOHN'S CABIN - McCall - This is a replica of the original cabin built in 1863 by John Welch known as Packer John. Welch hauled supplies from Lewiston to Idaho City during the major Boise Basin gold rush. The territorial political conventions used the cabin to meet. PERRINE BRIDGE - Twin Falls - 486 feet above the river and 1500 feet long spanning the Snake River Gorge. The present bridge was built in 1976 to replace the original bridge built in 1927. The original bridge was 475 feet, the highest bridge in the US at that time. SILVER CITY HISTORIC DISTRICT - Silver City - Silver City founded in 1863, was once a booming mill town with a population of 2,000. It is now known as the "Queen of the Idaho ghost towns". About 40 of the original buildings are still remaining in the Historic District. A busy place in the summer months with tourists and many shops. Silver City is difficult to reach and is on the Register of National Historic Districts. SKI LIFTS - Sun Valley - The first ski lifts were built here in 1936. Far superior to rope tows used prior to this time. The chair lifts quickly became popular and were adopted by ski resorts everywhere. One lift, no longer in use, is still preserved on Trail Creek Road. STAFF HOUSE MUSEUM - Kellogg - Here you will find numerous exhibits of the mineral and timber producing area. Made the world's leader by the removal of over one billion ounces of silver. The building once used to house key mining staff members and company visitors. STANDROD HOUSE - Pocatello - Built in 1901 by the wealthy and prominent Judge Drew Standrod, this mansion was considered one of the most impressive mansions in Idaho. Constructed entirely of light grey and red sandstone, and featuring a distinctive round corner tower. The interior was treated with golden oak, parquet floors, leaded glass windows, glazed tiles and imported marble. Now owned by the City of Pocatello and has been restored to it's original beauty. the Mansion is on the National Registry of Historic Places. STATE CAPITOL - Boise - Construction began in 1905 and took 15 years to complete. Patterned after the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. Notably the Capitol Building is heated by a geothermal well, and is open to the public. U.S. ASSAY OFFICE - Boise - One of the most significant public buildings remaining from Idaho's territorial days. This is the place where gold and silver were evaluated. Built in 1870 it illustrates the importance of mining in the development of the Pacific Northwest and is a National Historic Landmark. UNIVERSITY HISTORIC DISTRICT - Pocatello - Historic buildings on the Idaho State University campus include: Administration Building, Pharmacy Building, Frazier and Colonial Halls, and the Liberal Arts Building. They are part of the National Historic Districts. WALLACE DISTRICT MINING MUSEUM - Wallace - Here you will find displays and exhibits depicting hardships and toil of mining work and life in the mining camps. Home of the world's largest silver dollar. WALLACE NATIONAL HISTORIC DISTRICT - Wallace - One of the few places in the U.S. where the entire town is listed on the National Historic Register. Many buildings, most built around the turn of the century, are still in good condition. The town became the hub of one of the richest mining districts in the world. By 1985 the district produced one billion ounces of silver. Known as the "Silver Capitol of the World". WHITE BIRD HILL GRADE - White Bird - Completed in 1915, this was Idaho's only north-south highway for 60 years. Many tortuous curves and switchbacks. It represented many significant engineering and construction achievements. It was replaced with a new road in 1975 and is on the National Historic Places. YANKEE FORK GOLD DREDGE - 13 miles E. of Stanly - Built in 1940 to help find gold in Yankee Fork of the Salmon River. The dredge is 114 feet long and 54 feet wide, 64 feet high and weighs 988 tons. The Dredge was operated until 1952, the dredge washed and separated rock, dirt and gold. Tours are available. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Dude and Guest Ranches | Fish & Game Information | Fishing | Historic Places
Historic Trails | Horseback Riding | Hot Springs | Hunting | Museums | Railroads
Scenic Byways | Ski Areas | State Parks | Tours | Whitewater Rafting
 |