Viewpoint · 49 min northwest
Galena Summit
From the overlook just below the 8,701-foot pass you look down on the headwaters of the Salmon River and the whole Sawtooth Valley.
- 30 min · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Day Trippin' › Idaho › From Ketchum
Day trips from Ketchum
Ketchum is Sun Valley's town: Galena Summit's view over the Sawtooth Valley is under an hour north, Stanley and Redfish Lake are about an hour and a half, and Craters of the Moon and Shoshone Falls make big days east and south. The best day trips from Ketchum and Sun Valley, by drive time.
37 places within a 3-hour drive, by real roads.
10 day trips from Ketchum
- Galena Summit 49 min northwest
- Sawtooth Fish Hatchery 1 hr 21 min northwest
- Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve 1 hr 25 min east
- Stanley 1 hr 28 min northwest
- Redfish Lake 1 hr 31 min northwest
- Perrine Bridge 1 hr 37 min south
- Shoshone Falls 1 hr 47 min south
- Bruneau Dunes State Park 2 hr 36 min southwest
- Old Idaho Penitentiary 2 hr 41 min west
- Table Rock 2 hr 54 min west
Within an hour from Ketchum 1 spots
1 to 2 hours from Ketchum 16 spots
National monument · 1 hr 25 min east
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve
A huge, strange lava field with a 7-mile loop road past cinder cones, spatter cones and lava tubes you can walk into with a flashlight.
- Half day · Easy to moderate
- Best May to October (Loop Road not fully open about November to April)
- NPS entrance fee (per vehicle) or America the Beautiful pass (waived when the Loop Road isn't fully open)
Lake · 1 hr 31 min northwest
Redfish Lake
Mount Heyburn and the jagged Sawtooths rise straight out of the far shore, with sandy swim beaches, boat rentals and easy shoreline walks.
- Half day · Easy
- Best June to September
- Sawtooth NRA day-use fee (beach and picnic sites; America the Beautiful pass not accepted)
Landmark · 1 hr 37 min south
Perrine Bridge
A 1,500-foot steel bridge almost 500 feet above the Snake River, one of the few places in the US where BASE jumpers leap legally, with canyon overlooks by the visitor center.
- 1 hr · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Waterfall · 1 hr 47 min south
Shoshone Falls
The Snake River drops 212 feet over a rim wider than Niagara, seen from viewing decks a short walk from the car, with Dierkes Lake for swimming and fishing in the same park.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Best April to June (flow is lowest in late summer and fall)
- City of Twin Falls vehicle fee from March 1 through fall; free in winter (check)
Town · 1 hr 28 min northwest
Stanley
A tiny log-cabin town with the Sawtooths filling the skyline, where three scenic byways meet, with summer Thursday night street dances.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Best June to September
- Free
Wildlife · 1 hr 21 min northwest
Sawtooth Fish Hatchery
See how the hatchery helps Chinook salmon and steelhead finish a 900-mile return from the Pacific, and walk past the fish ponds.
- 1 hr · Easy
- Year-round (tours Memorial Day to Labor Day)
- Free
Trail · 1 hr 37 min south
Snake River Canyon Rim Trail
A paved path of about 7.6 miles along the canyon rim with views of the Perrine Bridge, Pillar Falls and Shoshone Falls; easy to walk just a piece of it.
- 1-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Free
Historic site · 1 hr 46 min south
Minidoka National Historic Site
A sobering walk through the WWII camp where more than 13,000 Japanese Americans were held, with restored barracks, a guard tower and trailside exhibits.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Grounds year-round; visitor center May to late September
- Free
2 to 3 hours from Ketchum 20 spots
State park · 2 hr 36 min southwest
Bruneau Dunes State Park
North America's tallest single dune, about 470 feet, over small lakes, with sandboarding by day and a public observatory on weekend nights.
- Half day · Moderate
- Best March to May and September to October
- Idaho State Parks entrance fee (per vehicle) or Idaho State Parks Passport
Historic site · 2 hr 41 min west
Old Idaho Penitentiary
Walk the cell blocks, solitary cells and gallows of a prison that ran for 101 years in the Boise foothills.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Admission
Viewpoint · 2 hr 54 min west
Table Rock
A short, steep foothills climb to a cross-topped mesa looking over all of Boise, best at sunset.
- 1-2 hrs · Moderate
- Year-round (best spring and fall)
- Free
State park · 2 hr 40 min southeast
Massacre Rocks State Park
Lava bluffs above the Snake River with trails, Oregon Trail exhibits, and Register Rock, a boulder covered with emigrant signatures, two miles away.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Idaho State Parks entrance fee (per vehicle) or Idaho State Parks Passport
Wildlife · 2 hr 45 min west
World Center for Birds of Prey
See live condors, eagles and falcons up close at The Peregrine Fund's center, with daily bird programs.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Admission
State park · 2 hr 8 min north
Land of the Yankee Fork State Park
An interpretive center telling Idaho's gold-mining story, near the Bayhorse ghost town and the soaking pools at Challis Hot Springs.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round (Bayhorse about summer to late October)
- Idaho State Parks entrance fee (per vehicle) or Idaho State Parks Passport; admission for the hot pools
National monument · 2 hr 8 min south
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument
A visitor center shows fossils of the Hagerman horse and other Ice Age animals; nine miles away, overlooks and a 3-mile trail follow the Snake River bluffs and Oregon Trail ruts.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy to moderate
- Year-round (visitor center open fewer days off-season; check)
- Free
State park · 2 hr 37 min west
Lucky Peak State Park
A Boise-close reservoir park with a sandy swim beach below the dam, a marina and Greenbelt access.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round (beach best in summer)
- Idaho State Parks entrance fee (per vehicle) or Idaho State Parks Passport
Get a day trip idea every Friday
Three ideas for the weekend, one each for Washington, Oregon and Arizona, with a link to plan the day. Free. Unsubscribe any time.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP 83340 (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.