Nothing feels better than a chilly morning hike in Idaho during Autumn! I adore this season and have been enjoying the hikes around the area for almost a decade. Here are my top 5 favorites! Please remember to LEAVE NO TRACE! Be careful when hiking this time of year.
- City of Rocks
- Independence Lakes
- Ross Falls
- Skillern Hot Springs
- Box Canyon
Book a Best Western Hotel in Twin Falls or Burley to be perfectly located!
City of Rocks – Almo
There are so many hikes in City of Rocks all ranging from ‘park and a short walk’ to decently long hikes. Drive the City of Rocks Scenic Byway to see so many beautiful fall colors, the best happening in the back side of the park on the way to Breadloaves. Some great hikes are: Creekside Towers which is 1.3 miles long. Stripe Rock Loop is about 3 miles long, and then there is a great 6 mile loop called City of Rocks Loop. The hikers standing on the rock photo is called Bathtub rock, and that is a class 3 climb (no equipment necessary.)
For those looking to upgrade cameras, or get a camera, here is what I shoot with! My Sony Alpha & Favorite Lens
Independence Lakes – Oakley
Heading about 2 hours south of Twin Falls will take you to the trailhead of Independence Lakes, which is a 7.5 mile round trip hike that has about 1,700 foot elevation gain. You can opt to just see the first lake which is only about 3 miles in! The entire drive and hike in is stunning aspen groves. Take Basin Road from Oakley and head east into the mountains. It takes about an hour to get to the trailhead from here because the road is awful. Don’t drive it with anything that has less than 6 inches of clearance, and be sure to have good tires because they could pop. Take it slow (I always do in my Subaru Crosstrek and that is why it takes me 2 hours to get there from Twin Falls.)
Ross Falls – South Hills
Ross Falls is a very cute little hike where you will walk through an aspen grove! The trailhead is located about 45-50 minutes south of Twin Falls, and is about 15 minutes before Magic Mountain Ski. The trailhead is marked on the road and has a decent sized pull off. Don’t hike up from the parking lot, but walk to the south end of it to find the nice dirt trail. The hike is only a .5 miles long and will lead to an orange cliff side with bright green moss all along the walls. Honestly, spend an entire day in the South Hills this fall because there are AMAZING colors everywhere!! The entire drive will have your jaw on the floor.
My hiking essentials can be found here by the way! Hiking Gear, Snacks, Clothing
Skillern Hot Springs
Skillern Hot springs is a 6 mile in and out trail. The elevation gain is less than 1,000 feet making it a lovely and easy hike. I enjoy running it! The fall colors in the Soldier Mountains north of Fairfield are truly stunning! The drive from Twin Falls takes about 2 hours, but mostly because the road is not great and very windy once you enter the national forest. At the end of the beautiful trail there is a hot spring nestled into the side of the rocks! Note that this is not accessible once the snow has accumulated over a few inches! This road turns into a snowmobile trail in the winter time so be prepared to turn around if needed. LEAVE NO TRACE! No one will pick up your trash! PLEASE, pack it all out.
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Box Canyon
An unsung fall favorite is Box Canyon State Park! Although it’s usually hiked in the summer, the fall season is my favorite time to hike it! The trail is about 3 miles round trip with a steep canyon climb of about 300 feet gained. It passes lots of blue water pools and a waterfall! The canyon has lovely fall colors inside and I think it is so pretty to see the blue water against the orange bushes! The Thousand Springs Scenic Byway is a pretty drive in autumn. This hike is the only one on this list that costs money to park. It is a $7 day fee, or get a $10 ID State Parks pass at your DMV.
Happy Trails this fall in Idaho! Let me know if you have other favorites, or if you have any questions about these trails. Find me on Instagram for all the fall content and photos like this reel I shared of the Independence Lakes hike:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_TGRX2vjiw/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Also, I sell my photography prints! It would mean the entire world if you considered supporting my small art business for the upcoming holidays! One of these photos could hang in your living room! https://earthtosarah.darkroom.com
Earth to Sarah 