Backpacking

Backpacking Areas

• Highway 14 Corridor

  
   

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  American Indians traveled through the present-day South Fork of the Clearwater River corridor on their seasonal migration from the Camas Prairie in Idaho to the Bitterroot Valley in Montana. The route, known as the southern Nez Perce Trail, was later used by gold miners and homesteaders who flocked to the area in the 1860s.

  Today, State Highway 14, which follows the South Fork of the Clearwater River, is the primary travel route through the corridor. This picturesque route winds through the forested canyon with sections of rugged granite outcroppings. From Golden, the countryside changes to gently sloping lodgepole pine-covered uplands and lush meadows which are carpeted with a variety of wildflowers from April through July. An auto tour along the historic Elk City Wagon Road is located in the northern portion of the corridor. Interpretive signs along Highway 14 explain the rich and colorful mining history of the Elk City/Dixie area. The Newsome and Orogrande mining districts can be accessed from Highway 14. Visitors will find hiking, fishing and picnicking opportunities along the way.

  Learn more about this corridor

  Road and trail status report

• Columbia Ridge Trail #205
• Driveway Route
• Flint Creek Trailhead
• Johns Creek Trailhead
• Orogrande Summit Campground
• Sam's Creek Campground
• Lochsa/Highway 12 Corridor

  The corridor winds along two wild and scenic rivers, the Middle Fork of the Clearwater River and the Lochsa River. Scenery is beautiful through the corridor, ranging from dense forests to shrubfields created by wildfires in the early 1900s. Canyon walls are steep, and rock outcroppings are impressive.

• Colt Creek Trailhead
• Eagle Mountain Trailhead
• Elk Summit Campground
• Glade Creek Group Campground
• Knife Edge Campground and River Access
• Lolo Creek Campground
• Mocus Point Trailhead
• Powell Campground
• Sherman Creek Trail #203
• Split Creek Trailhead and River Access
• Warm Springs Trailhead
• Wendover Campground
• White Sand Campground
• Whitehouse Campground
• Wilderness Gateway Campground
• Lolo Trail Corridor

  On September 11, 1805, Lewis and Clark with the Corps of Discovery began one of the most difficult and demanding legs of their voyage to the Pacific Ocean - the 120-mile trek across the Bitterroot Mountains. They followed the Lolo Trail, an ancient travel route of the Nez Perce Indians. One of the responsibilities given to Lewis and Clark before their epic journey west was to study the flora and fauna of the United States' newly acquired land. They collected hundreds of plant specimens with approximately 170 being new to science. As a tribute to their efforts, several species are named for them.

  The Nez Perce-Clearwater and Lolo National Forests manage the areas of the Lolo Trail National Historic Landmark. This landmark coincides with a portion of the Lewis and Clark and the Nee-Me-Poo National Historic Trails.

   

  Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail

  Tracing the courses of the Missouri and Columbia rivers, the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail stretches through 11 states - Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. The Trail winds over mountains, along rivers, through plains and high deserts, and extends to the wave-lapped Pacific coast. In this diversity of landscapes, visitors to the Trail create their own journeys of discovery. Read more at the Lewis and Clark NHT website.

   

  Nee-Me-Poo National Historic Trail

  Congress passed the National Trails System Act in 1968, establishing a framework for a nationwide system of scenic, recreational, and historic trails. The Nez Perce (Nimíipuu or Nee-Me-Poo) National Historic Trail stretches from Wallowa Lake, Oregon, to the Bear Paw Battlefield near Chinook, MT. It was added to this system by Congress as a National Historic Trail in 1986. Read more at the Nee-Me-Poo NHT website.

   

  Lolo Trail

  The Lolo Trail is an ancient travel route of the Nez Perce through the Bitterroot Mountains. It follows the ridge tops parallel and to the north of Highway 12. It is the site of many historic events and carries the memories of hundreds of years of American Indian use. Lewis & Clark followed this route on their trip across the mountains to the west coast.  Read Lewis and Clark on the Lolo Trail (787 kb pdf) - for more history and recreation information.

   

  Lolo Motorway

  Forest Road 500, known as The Lolo Motorway, is a primitive, winding road built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. A low standard road, it generally parallels trails along the high ridges that form the divide between the Lochsa and North Fork Clearwater Rivers. Despite the name "Motorway," this road is very rough, narrow and travels through remote country. The safety of visitors is a major concern. Access to the Lolo Motorway in the Powell area is via FS Road 569 (Parachute Hill Road), and in the Wilderness Gateway area via FS Road 107 (Saddle Camp Road). Access to Forest Road 100 in the Kamiah area is at the junction of U.S. Highway 12 and the Kamiah bridge over the Clearwater River. The Lolo Motorway is a difficult trip that demands a high degree of self-sufficiency and the right vehicle.

  Before embarking on a trip along this route, we suggest you review our regularly updated Road Reports or contact your local Forest office.

• Weitas Guard Station
• Magruder Road Corridor

  
   

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  The historic, 101-mile, single-lane, mostly-unimproved Magruder Corridor Road winds through a vast undeveloped area, offering solitude and pristine beauty as well as expansive mountain views. The corridor was created in 1980 leaving a unique road that enables a traveler to drive between two wildernesses: the 1.2 million-acre Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness to the north, and the 2.3-million-acre Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness to the South. The road itself has changed little since its construction by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s.

  Travel time varies, but it takes six to eight hours to travel from Red River to Darby without rest stops, at an average speed of 12-15 miles per hour. A two-day trip is ideal with an overnight stay at one of the dispersed or primitive campsite locations. The corridor was named for Elk City merchant Lloyd Magruder who, in 1863, along with four companions, was murdered near mile 44.2 westbound (near the Selway River). The murderers were pursued and brought back to Lewiston, Idaho, where they were tried, found guilty, and hanged; the first legal hanging in the Idaho territory.

  Learn more about this corridor

  Road and trail status report

• 14 Mile Trailhead
• Dixie Wagon Road Trail #222
• Dry Saddle Trailhead
• Parallel Trail #668
• Poet Creek Campground
• Porters Trail #508
• Running Creek Trail 533
• Spook Creek Trail #513
• North Fork of the Clearwater Corridor

  Two main routes into the corridor make it possible to tour the area in a loop, with little backtracking. Road 247 from the small community of Headquarters is a paved, mostly winding road. Road 250 is paved for several miles from its junction with State Highway 11 just south of the town of Pierce.

• Fish Lake Trailhead
• Fourth Of July Trailhead
• Isabella Landing Trailhead
• Isabella Point Trailhead
• Junction Mountain Trailhead
• Kelly Creek
• Kelly Forks Campground
• Liz Creek Cabin
• Smith Ridge Trailhead
• Palouse Corridor

  The corridor is made up of two main travel routes: State Highway 6 from Potlatch east and north to the St. Joe Divide, and State Highway 8 from Deary to Elk River. While forested, the area borders the rolling hills of the rich farmland known as the Palouse prairie. In the Palouse corridor itself are stands of old-growth cedar, grand fir and western white pine.

• Selway River Corridor

  
   

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  The Selway River corridor begins in Lowell where the Selway and Lochsa rivers join. Idaho County Road and Forest Road 223 follows the wild and scenic Selway River through rugged country known for its extraordinary scenery, exceptional water quality and excellent wildlife viewing opportunities. A stop at historic Fenn Ranger Station, which is on the National Historic Register, is an easy five-mile drive from Lowell. The east end of the Selway River corridor provides access to three trailheads entering the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness. A 42-mile sightseeing drive from Lowell to Selway Falls and back offers the traveler an opportunity to appreciate the pritine beauty of the Selway River, a Wild and Scenic River, as well as picturesque Selway Falls.

  For the camper, the Selway Corridor offers 13 campgrounds with restrooms. Hiking and horse trails wind through spectacular backcountry and into the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness. The Selway River is home to rainbow, cutthroat, bull and eastern brook trout. Whitewater enthusiasts can experience a thrilling 20-mile float from Selway Falls to Lowell during spring runoff May through June. July through August, the water level provides a slower floating opportunity.
   

  Learn more about this corridor

  Road status report

• Boyd Creek Campground
• East Boyd Trail #703
• Fog Mountain Trailhead
• Gedney Trail #708
• Glover Ridge Trail #704
• Selway River Trail #4
• Twenty-five Mile Bar Dispersed Site