Your Headquarters for Outdoor Recreation

Over 20 public lands managed by the US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service surround Mackay, Idaho. There is a vast variety of things to do in these wonderful places. The public lands include: 

• Borah Peak Wilderness Area 
• Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area 
• Hawley Mountain Wilderness Area
• White Knob Wilderness 
• Jim McClure-Jerry Peak Wilderness Area 
• Salmon-Challis National Forest 
• Sawtooth National Forest 
• Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve 
• Central Idaho Gold Level Dark Sky Reserve 
• Joe Fallini Recreation Site 
• Big Lost River Trail 
• Mackay Fish Hatchery 
• Mackay Reservoir 
• Garden Creek Campground 
• Iron Bog Campground 
• Lake Creek Trailhead Campground 
• Copper Creek Garfield Campground 
• Mount Borah Trailhead Campground
• Star Hope Campground 
• Broad Canyon Trailhead Campground 
• Loristica Group Campground 

When it’s time to come into town for a hot meal, a hotel break from the outdoors, food shopping, or any of the other many things you may need, Mackay is your headquarters.

This Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness is located in 5 National Forests: Salmon-Challis National Forest, Payette National Forest, Boise National Forest, Bitterroot National Forest, and the New Perce National Forest. A small portion is under the control of the Bureau of Land Management. Enjoy a dramatically beautiful landscape with steep, rugged mountains, deep canyons, and wild whitewater rivers that, at 2.3 million acres, is the largest contiguous wilderness in the United States. The Salmon River Canyon is one of the deepest gorges in North America, deeper even than the famous Grand Canyon. In contrast, the Salmon River Canyon is not noted for sheer walls and towering heights but instead for the variety of landscapes visible from the river: wooded ridges rising to the sky, substantial eroded monuments and bluffs and slides, picturesque castles and towers, and solitary crags. 

Lying across the Lost River Valley from the Lost River Range, the White Knob Mountains loom overhead. The White Knob Wilderness encompasses nearly 10,000 acres of public lands that are primarily foothills and mountainous terrain between 2,000 feet and almost 8,000 feet above sea level. The wilderness serves as an important wintering area for deer and elk. Sagebrush and bunchgrass are scattered about the lower elevations, and concentrated stands of Douglas-fir occur at higher elevations. Mountain mahogany is often found between the sage-to-Douglas-fir transition or on the tops and slopes of lower hills. Several pockets of aspen and willow surround moist spring areas in upper Waddoups Canyon.

The Salmon-Challis National Forest is a land of rugged mountains split by untamed rivers. Escape into the backcountry in the Lost River Mountain Range. Visit the Bighorn Crags within the legendary Frank Church – River of No Return Wilderness. Climb Idaho’s highest peak, Mount Borah. Enjoy miles of scenery while driving along Scenic Byways. The forest is also rich in American heritage. Historic cabins, ranger stations, lookouts, and mining ghost towns link today’s visitors with the past. Visit the ghost town of Custer and tour the Yankee Fork Gold Dredge while traveling the Custer Motorway. Visit the Mackay Mine Hill to glimpse the area’s copper mining legacy.

President Coolidge designated the Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, which spans over 1,117 square miles in 1924, to preserve what he called “the most unusual and unearthly lunar landscape.”  The preserve encompasses a unique volcanic landscape that resulted from a series of volcanic eruptions when Idaho was on the edge of the Pacific Ocean about 15,000 years ago. Some have said that the ocean of lava flows and cinder cone islands at Craters of the Moon is a “weird and scenic landscape peculiar to itself. “It is so unique that Apollo astronauts used the area to learn to detect good rock specimens in an unfamiliar and harsh environment.

The Joseph T. Fallini Campground, situated on the banks of the Mackay Reservoir, is the only recreational site in Challis Field Office that offers full RV hookups and features a diversity of other facilities. This scenic area has a gorgeous view of the Lost River Range and offers recreational opportunities such as boating in the summer and ice fishing in late winter. A boat ramp provides access to the reservoir for jet skiing, water skiing, and sailing, and other launches along the reservoir are also available.

Mackay Fish Hatchery started on Warm Springs Creek near the backwaters of the Mackay Reservoir in 1924 as a spawning and egg incubating field station. Superior water quality brought the hatchery to its present site in 1925, allowing for expansion to include fish production. There are 26 outdoor concrete raceways, and the hatchery building contains 26 early-rearing troughs and 196 egg incubation trays capable of holding over 2 million eggs. Annually, the hatchery produces approximately 125,000 catchable trout and 2.5 – 3.5 million fingerling trout. Several hundred visitors tour the remote location of the hatchery each year, many not anticipating a fish hatchery situated in a high plains desert setting. The hatchery overlooks the scenic Lost River mountain range, which has many of the highest peaks in Idaho. There is a public restroom available. Self-guided hatchery tours are permitted daily between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., and group tours can be arranged.

Garden Creek Recreation Site is situated along the Big Lost River, with Mount Borah and the Lost River Range just a few miles to the east and the Pioneer Mountains to the west. Several campsites are scattered over acres between the road and the river. Some have a table and a fire ring, while others have a fire ring but no table, and so on. Some are nestled among the aspens and cottonwood trees, while others are fairly open with little shade.

Bring your own drinking water, as no potable water is available, and provide your own firewood. There is no camping fee, and a stay can last as long as 14 days.

This area has four camping units in an open sagebrush area adjacent to Lake Creek with one vault toilet. Hitching rails and a loading ramp are available. Drinking water is available during the summer months. Nearby attractions are the Lake Creek ATV trail, Green Lake Trail, and Muldoon Canyon. There is a $5 per night camping fee.

From Mackay, take US Highway 93, approximately 20 miles north of Mackay, to the Borah Peak Access Road. Follow the Borah Peak Access Road 3 miles to the trailhead. From Challis: Take Us Highway 93 south of Challis to the Borah Peak Access Road. Follow the Borah Peak Access Road 3 miles to the trailhead. From Sun Valley/Ketchum: Take Highway 75 (main street) to Sun Valley Road. Turn northeast onto Sun Valley Road. This road turns into Trail Creek Road (closed in winter). Follow this road to Highway 93. Turn left on Highway 93. Follow this road 4.5 miles to the Borah Peak Access Road. Follow the Borah Peak Access Road 3 miles to the trailhead.

This site has eight camp units in a beautiful wooded setting. It has one accessible vault toilet and several hitching rails. No drinking water is available. Nearby attractions include Broad Canyon Trail, Jarvis Trail, and Bellas Trail.

Take US Highway 93, approximately 16 miles north of Mackay, from Mackay to Trail Creek Road (#208). Turn left on Trail Creek Road. Follow this road approximately 18 miles and turn left on the Copper Basin Road (#135). Follow this road 13 miles and turn right on the Copper Basin Loop Road (#138). Follow this road 7.5 miles to Broad Canyon Road. Turn right on this road and follow it for 0.5 miles to the trailhead. From Sun Valley/Ketchum: Take Highway 75 (Main Street) to Sun Valley Road. Turn northeast onto Sun Valley Road. This road turns into the Trail Creek Road (closed in winter). Follow this road to the Copper Basin Road. Turn right onto the Copper Basin Road. Follow this road 13 miles to the Copper Basin Loop Road. Turn right on the Copper Basin Loop Road. Follow this road 7.5 miles to Broad Canyon Road. Turn right on this road and follow it for 0.5 miles to the trailhead.