8 Best Small Towns In Idaho For A Crowd-Free Summer
Idaho has more land than people, and summer here stays quieter than the crowds out west. The towns below offer empty trailheads, clear lakes, and space to spread out. Stanley sits under the Sawtooth peaks while McCall hugs a deep mountain lake. Some draw anglers and others draw history buffs but none feel overrun in July. Head to these eight towns for an uncrowded Idaho summer.
Stanley
Stanley sits in the Sawtooth Valley, ringed by jagged peaks and wired straight into the outdoors. The Sawtooth National Recreation Area sprawls across 756,000 acres with more than 700 miles of trails into the mountains, forests, and alpine lakes. The tough five-mile Iron Creek Trail climbs to Sawtooth Lake, one of the area's best. Just north, Redfish Lake is the hub of summer, reached by a 4.6-mile trail and good for camping, kayaking, and swimming. Refuel with pastries at the Stanley Baking Company, then dig into pioneer and mining history at the seasonal Stanley Museum.
McCall
McCall wraps around the south shore of Payette Lake, a quieter alternative to Idaho's busier resort towns, with fewer than 4,000 residents. The lake is the whole point in summer, reachable right from the town center at spots like Rotary Park, which has a sandy swimming beach and a playground. Ponderosa State Park is the area's marquee draw, with a swim beach, campsites, and trails through Douglas fir and ponderosa pine, plus deer, moose, and beaver in the woods. About 32 miles out, the historic Burgdorf Hot Springs keeps its rustic cabins and warm outdoor pools deep in the Payette National Forest. Just know the cabins run without electricity or running water.
Moscow
Moscow is a college town of about 25,000 on the Washington border, home to the University of Idaho and an easy summer pace. The campus Arboretum & Botanical Garden holds more than 17,000 plants from around the world, with butterfly and daylily gardens to wander. For something more active, the paved Latah Trail links the town to nearby Troy through woods and wetlands, and the Idler's Rest Nature Preserve adds a short, shaded woodland walk. Downtown keeps busy with wood-fired pizza at Maialina Pizzeria Napoletana and shows at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Center.
Jerome
Jerome makes a roomy summer base, with about 12,000 residents and the Snake River Canyon close by. The canyon stretches more than 50 miles past waterfalls, springs, and the Perrine Bridge, which stands nearly 500 feet above the Snake River and draws BASE jumpers all season. Shoshone Falls, the "Niagara of the West," sits about 13 miles away and actually runs higher than Niagara at 212 feet, best between May and June when the flow peaks. Hikers and bikers can take the 10-mile Snake River Canyon Rim Trail, and the Minidoka National Historic Site nearby tells the story of the Japanese Americans incarcerated there during World War II.
Bonners Ferry
Bonners Ferry sits in Idaho's northernmost county, near the Canadian border and right on the Kootenai River. It is the gateway to the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge, a rarely crowded 2,774-acre patchwork of habitats. Short trails like the Deep Creek Trail cross wetlands and grasslands with deer, elk, and thousands of birds, including bald eagles, and a 4.5-mile auto route lets you drive or walk it at your own speed. Downtown stays low-key and pleasant in summer, with the 3-Mile Antique Mall for browsing. Time a visit for early to mid-August and you can catch the Boundary County Fair.
St. Maries
St. Maries is a small rural town of about 2,500 on the St. Joe River, built for an easy summer. Eight miles out, Heyburn State Park, Idaho's oldest, covers more than 8,000 acres of forest, marsh, and lake with miles of trails and quiet water for boating and fishing. The 72-mile Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes runs through the park, with campsites, picnic spots, and good odds of seeing wildlife. Back in town, Happy's Marketplace is the spot for antiques and the Grub Box does classic American breakfast and lunch. Cherry Bend Boat Park just outside the center adds boat launches, a swim area, and shaded picnic tables on the St. Joe.
Sandpoint
Sandpoint sits on the shore of Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho's largest lake, ringed by forested mountains. Summer revolves around the water, starting at Sandpoint City Beach Park, with six acres of sand, volleyball courts, and boat ramps. Just north, the 1.5-mile Pend d'Oreille Bay Trail runs right along the lake. For a drive, the Pend Oreille Scenic Byway rolls 33.4 miles through farmland and lakeshore toward the Montana state line. When you want a break from the sun, the Cedar Street Bridge Public Market has local shops and a stop for coffee and pastries at Paneah's Bistro.
Wallace
Wallace fills a narrow canyon in northern Idaho's Silver Valley, and its entire downtown is on the National Register of Historic Places. Silver mining built the town starting in the 1880s, when a Civil War veteran named Colonel William Wallace first settled it. Wander the historic district past vintage storefronts and the castle-like Northern Pacific Railroad Depot Museum, or head underground on the Sierra Silver Mine Tour into a real mine with a former miner as guide. For the outdoors, the two-mile Pulaski Tunnel Trail leads to the tunnel where firefighter Edward Pulaski sheltered his crew during the Great Fire of 1910. It is a town where the history is impossible to miss.
An Idaho Summer Without The Lines
Idaho rewards travelers who skip the obvious. These towns spread across the state, with the Sawtooths around Stanley and the lakes near Sandpoint, and most stay quiet even at the height of summer. Swim a glacial lake, fish a clear river, hike an empty trail, and walk a historic downtown, all without fighting for parking. Head out this summer and let the crowds go somewhere else.
