Exploring Central Idaho's Mountains

gorillamel

Dirty Blonde
Forget Red River/Elk City. Don't miss the best river roads in Idaho. Drive up the North Fork of the Clearwater. Pierce,Id. to Superior, Mt. Then St. Regis, Mt. to St. Maries, Id. along the St. Joe river. Far better than the Magruder. Beautiful camping and better senery. :ylsmoke:

Thanks for the heads up. I'll have to check out those areas. I was pretty disappointed with Magruder. Way too much hype about that road. Sad.
 

KellyM

Adventurer
Thanks for the Trip Report. My wife and I have been considering that run.

The white flowers are Bear Grass, part of the lily family. They were also in bloom all over the mountains near McCall last week.
 

gorillamel

Dirty Blonde
Ooo thanks for identifying them for me. There were fields of them all over the mountainsides. Very pretty.

I'd say overall there were no overly technical parts of either trail. Driving over some rocky sections (my tires never spun nor did I need to re-take any lines) and bits of fallen trees, but that was it. Might be some pucker factor when on the shelf part of the trails, but that's about it.
 

jrose609

Explorer
Ooo thanks for identifying them for me. There were fields of them all over the mountainsides. Very pretty.

I'd say overall there were no overly technical parts of either trail. Driving over some rocky sections (my tires never spun nor did I need to re-take any lines) and bits of fallen trees, but that was it. Might be some pucker factor when on the shelf part of the trails, but that's about it.

The Magruder doesn't have the difficulty of Moab, but the scenery is beautiful.

It's all relative.........you could have driven across Kansas or something....:smilies27
 

sourdough

Adventurer
In Elk city I met a couple in a 2wd Dodge Caravan full of kids and a dog. They were getting ice creams at the little store. They had just come thru the Magruder from Montana side. That road has net exposure and is popular but there are more scenic roads in Idaho. From Elk City go north and drop down into the Selway river canyon. Follow the river road out to HWY 12 very beautiful. The family was headed that way and back to Montana, just another weekend cruise I guess. Seemed a long way for ice cream.
 
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gorillamel

Dirty Blonde
The Magruder doesn't have the difficulty of Moab, but the scenery is beautiful.

It's all relative.........you could have driven across Kansas or something....:smilies27

Agreed! I've been to Moab and to Kansas. I still prefer my tree-covered mountains. :)

In Elk city I met a couple in a 2wd Dodge Caravan full of kids and a dog. They were getting ice creams at the little store. They had just come thru the Magruder from Montana side. That road has net exposure and is popular but there are more scenic roads in Idaho. From Elk City go north and drop down into the Selway river canyon. Follow the river road out to HWY 12 very beautiful. The family was headed that way and back to Montana, just another weekend cruise I guess. Seemed a long way for ice cream.

Hahaha, it is a hyped road. Breath-taking scenery. Now it's time to explore more parts of Idaho. I might just follow your directions on the next planned outing in that direction.

Next weekend will be spent near Bruce Meadows, Artillery Dome, Stanley and Challis for a few days. Kayaking, beer and exploring (not together) will ensue.
 

Shanfari

DhofarX.com
That's such an amazing trip! Love all the shots & videos! I bit you had lots of fun :).

Great car you have, your friend's as well ^_^
 

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