Swan Valley

FROM BONE TO ALPINE, SCENIC TERRAIN AND GREAT RIDING

EEast of Swan Valley there are countless county, BLM and Forest Service roads that access the Palisades area. Although there are hundreds of miles of farming/ ranching access roads in this area, our main focus is routes that fall east of Idaho Falls in the Bone area (Bone Road to Long Valley Road and up to Grays Lake) and south of Highway 26 to Alpine, WY.

The Palisades area takes in the Palisades Ranger District of the Targhee/Caribou National Forests. Although most of the region has routes available to all wheeled vehicles, there are a few routes accessible for jeep/ORVs, 50-inch restrictions, single-tracks or hiking trails.

The major access points are at Bone, Fall Creek or points on both ends of Palisades Reservoir.

Highlights

At first look as you travel east out of Idaho Falls, all you see is sagebrush, lava-crested ridges and groves of quaking aspen trees. The farther east you go, the higher the elevation, tighter the trails and thicker the pine trees. The most scenic route is along Skyline Ridge. This takes you back to a series of ridges that offer some great trails and spectacular scenery.

Trail Tip

Since there is a lot of livestock throughout the area, you will occasionally come across closed gates along designated routes. Rule of thumb is that if the gate is closed, close it behind you when you pass through. If it is open, leave it open. Some routes will dead-end at private property lines. Please respect posted areas and No Trespassing signs.

More To Know

In the late 1800s Caribou Jack discovered gold on Caribou Mountain in Eastern Idaho. Soon, about 1,500 residents occupied Caribou City, many were Chinese miners, climbing all over the mountains in search of instant riches. Now, over a century later, the gold is gone, the remnants of the city is a ghost town, and the terrain looks much like it did when Caribou Jack first wandered up McCoy Creek to seek his fortune.

PRO TIP: Grab some square ice cream at the Rainey Creek Country Store

South Fork Fall Creek Trail

MODERATE ELEVATION CHANGES.

INTERMEDIATE TO CHALLENGING.

The South Fork Fall Creek Trails starts from the Fall Creek Road about five miles south of the Snake River. Designated as FS 030, the South Fork Fall Creek Trail heads east until it connect to FS 261 that will take it back south until it connects with the Rash Canyon Trail (FS 302) which will take you back west to the Fall Creek Road. This is about an 11-mile loop.

If you are looking for more adventure, you can continue south on the Willow Springs/Beaver Creek Trail for another four miles and tie into the Fourth of July/Commissary Ridge Trail or the June Creek Trail that will either take you back down to Fall Creek or you can head back south to Skyline Ridge and connect to the Commissary Ridge Trail.