The Sawtooth Mountains are a gorgeous area of Idaho. They are part of the Rocky Mountains in Central Idaho and a beautiful, peaceful escape. The Sawtooths are popular for hiking, camping, fly fishing, and whitewater rafting. There are nearly 400 alpine lakes in this region and a plethora of jagged peaks. It’s the perfect spot for a long weekend because they are isolated from pretty much anywhere else you’d want to combine it with for a longer road trip. This isolation means it is not super well known or popular, which is a big win in my book.

Hiking in The Sawtooth Mountains:

None of the trails in this area are too steep, but they can be quite long. Remember to keep in mind the elevation if you’re coming from sea level—this area sits at around 6,000ft of elevation and then you’ll climb further up from there.

Sawtooth Lake via Iron Creek Stanley Lake Trail: This trail is 12.8 miles long with 1,817ft of elevation gain and takes about 5 hours to complete. Note that AllTrails lists this at 9.6 miles. Sawtooth Lake is absolutely stunning and an iconic sight in the Sawtooths. The mountains and lake are gorgeous. The trail is pretty exposed and leads through the wilderness to Alpine Lake and from there it heads uphill to Sawtooth Lake for one more mile. This trail is close to the town of Stanley somewhat popular, but there is overflow parking and it’s not by any means crowded.
Imogene Lake Trail: This trail is 15.2 miles long with 1,459ft of elevation gain and takes about 5.5 hours to complete from the upper trailhead. Note that AllTrails lists it at 13.4 miles. This is a great two-for-one trail with both Hell Roaring and Imogene Lakes. Hell Roaring is only about an hour from the upper trailhead which is a nice way to divide up the hike. If you visit Hell Roaring in the morning you may be treated to a gorgeous reflection in the morning light. Imogene Lake is much larger and also beautiful. You can hike all the way around the lake if you’d like. The trail is very quiet, I only saw a couple of folks the entire way (even on a holiday weekend).
- There are two trailheads to access Hell Roaring and Imogene Lakes. The upper trailhead requires a 4 wheel drive/high clearance vehicle to access. The lower trailhead adds a couple of miles to your hike.
Pettit Lake to Alice Lake: This trail is 13.9 miles long with 1,900ft of elevation gain and takes about 6 hours to complete. The trail begins at Pettit Lake which is very pretty in the morning light. It then winds deeper into the wilderness with a few dramatic viewpoints and several river crossings. It is a quiet, exposed, and rocky trail that can get buggy in the afternoon. Alice Lake is a beautiful alpine lake that you can also hike around if you want to add in more mileage. The AllTrails route takes you to Twin Lakes, which adds about 2.4 miles and 200ft of elevation gain, though AllTrails says this route in total is 13.6 miles.

Things to do in Stanley, Idaho:

Stanley is the tiny town that calls the Sawtooth Mountains home. It’s a great base for exploring this region with a few hotels, restaurants, and outfitting businesses. You could also stay in the Sun Valley area, but that is not quite as “mountain-weekend”-y, much more touristy, and you’ll have longer drives to trailheads.

Stanley Lake Overlook: Stanley Lake is a gorgeous alpine lake that is accessible without hiking through the mountains (though you can do that too!). The overlook is a great spot to lounge on the water, but there is also a boat launch area with a beach and a campground.
Sawtooth Hotel: A great spot for dinner with a view! The food is tasty, though a little pricey, and the team here is very nice.
Relax in a hot spring: Thanks to its geography and geology, Idaho is home to more soakable hot springs than any other state in the U.S.! There are over 20 in the Stanley area, and I checked out two:
- Sunbeam Hot Springs: This a spacious hot spring with several different pools of water with different temperatures. It is located about 15 minutes north of Stanley.
- Valley Creek Hot Spring: This is right in downtown Stanley. It is a bit smaller and has some road noise, but the water is warm and relaxing.
Stanley Baking Company: A cute spot for baked goods, coffee, breakfast, and lunch. It is wildly busy so expect a wait in the summer months, but it’s worth it.
Papa Brunee’s: A solid spot for pizza and subs. It can be a little hectic but the food comes out pretty quickly.
Stay at Basecamp Lodge: This is a cute lodge and RV park in Stanley. There are thoughtful touches and it’s on the cheaper side. I enjoyed my stay but if I were to return to the area I would probably book something with a view.
Redfish Lake: This area can be the most crowded of the Sawtooths. It is home to a lodge, multiple campgrounds, two restaurants, a boat launch, kayak/SUP rentals, trailheads, and more. It’s worth checking out, but not quite the vibe I wanted personally.
Skip: Stanley Supper Club: 0/10 experience here.
Heads up: Groceries from the only store in town, Mountain Village Mercantile, are extraordinarily overpriced and they have a limited selection—do your best to avoid it.

Twin Falls Recommendations:

Twin Falls has a nice little downtown. It’s a very outdoorsy city with a bunch of bike trails, a gorgeous golf course on the Snake River, trails, waterfalls, parks, and more. It’s about 2.5 hours from Twin Falls to the Sawtooth Mountains, and you’ll pass through the popular ski area of Sun Valley on the way.

Koto Brewing Company and Milner’s Gate are the two breweries in town and O’Dunkens is a beer bar that looks solid—they were all closed when I was in Twin Falls due to a holiday.
Shoshone Falls: This is a massive waterfall known as the Niagara of the West. It is taller than Niagara Falls, just not as wide, and very cool to see. There is a $5 entrance fee to see the falls.
Perrine Coulee Falls: A nice waterfall that you can reach via this trail that is half of a mile long with 200ft of elevation gain and takes about 20 minutes to complete, or you can also just see the fall from the road.
Redhawk Gastropub: A restaurant with views of the Snake River Bridge and Canyon on their nice patio. They have a solid tap list, the food is tasty, the service is a little lacking.
Snake River Canyon Rim Trail: This is a great trail to bike along the edge of the Snake Canyon. You could go as long or as short as you’d like with nice views throughout.
Centennial Waterfront Park: A great park on the Snake River. There is a boat launch and picnic tables with nice views of the canyon and bridge.
Java Blue Lakes: A nice little spot for coffee, breakfast, and lunch.

Stops on the way to/from the Sawtooths:

Craters of the Moon National Monument

This is a very unique attraction made of dried lava from Great Rift fissures. The park has several trails with craters, cones, and caves. It is neat to explore but not worth going too far out of your way for. It is $20 per car to enter without a National Park Pass. Located 2.5 hours southeast from Stanley, 1.5 hours northeast of Twin Falls. There is a 7 mile loop drive that each trail and viewpoint is located off of.

Spatter Cones and Big Craters via North Crater Trail: This trail includes Spatter Cones, Snow Cones, and Big Crater. It is 1.3 miles long, but also connects to the North Crater trail so you can make it as short or long as you’d like. Most folks just see the spatter and snow cones, but the Big Crater is pretty neat.
Inferno Cone Trail: This is a quick .4 mile roundtrip trail up to a panoramic viewpoint. It is short but steep and takes about 15 minutes to complete.
Caves Trail: A mostly flat 1.8 mile long trail to Indian Tunnel and Dewdrop Cave. These are made of lava tubes and neat to see. It is a bit treachorous with boulders in the cave and the trail can be a bit hard to follow. Bring a headlamp for better sight. Note the AllTrails route includes Boy Scout and Beauty caves which were closed during my visit. You will need a free permit from the visitor’s center to access this area. Do not wear or bring anything that has been in a cave ever before to protect the bats from white nose syndrome.

Salt Lake City

I flew in and out of Salt Lake because it made sense from Charlotte with cheap, nonstop flights at good times. It would be easier to access the Sawtooths by flying into Boise, Twin Falls, or Sun Valley, but this made more sense for me. If you also are in SLC, check out all of my Utah recommendations here. Highlights from this trip:

Bonneville Salt Flats: The salt flats are pretty neat—they are the remnants of Lake Bonneville and it’s, well, salty and flat. They do car racing here occasionally, but otherwise you can just walk around and take in the sights and uniqueness. The best spot to access the salt flats is by just making a quick stop at the west bound rest area on I-80 West, about 1.5 hours from the SLC airport.
Templin Family Brewing: A stellar brewery with a wide variety of beers but superb Lagers. This is a popular spot with frequent food trucks, a small snack menu and cocktails. They have a nice back patio space as well.
Epic Brewing Company: Epic is most known for their big Stouts and have been in the beer game for ages. Their SLC taproom does not have any taps because of Utah’s wild beer laws, but they have a huge menu of bottles and cans you can get pours from.
Grid City Beer Works: A great brewery with a Lager and Cask focus. They have a tasty food menu and lots of vegan options as well. The vibes here are a fun mix between classic brewery and restaurant, plus they have a rooftop deck.
Great Salt Lake State Park: This is a nice spot for sunset and to see the Great Salt Lake. There is not quite a beach but you can access the water if you’d like, just keep in mind it is indeed very salty. There are also a ton of spiders in the area because of the salt, meaning the observation deck and surrounding rocks are covered in webs and eight legged critters. There is an entrance fee of $10 per car.