Sawtooth National Recreation Area

A motorboat skims across Redfish Lake in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.

A forest ranger guides hikers along the Big Wood River.

The Sawtooth National Recreation Area contains four mountain ranges, 1,000 lakes and headwaters that feed four of the region's major rivers.

In this 756,000-acre recreation area within the Sawtooth National Forest, visitors can choose from a wealth of outdoor activities on water or on land.

The Salmon River provides outstanding rafting opportunities and the fishing, hiking, mountain biking and mountaineering are some of the best in the West. There is backpacking in the wilderness as well as animal treks with llamas or horses with private outfitters.

Due to the high elevation of many of the trails, the primary hiking season is mid-July through August.

During winter and spring, cross-country skiing, sledding, snowshoeing and snowmobiling are popular.

Fly fishers catch cutthroat, rainbow and brook trout, grayling and whitefish. Chinook and sockeye salmon are protected by the federal Endangered Species Act. An effort is under way to restore salmon populations, which have been severely depleted by dams and fishing.

Mountain biking is very popular, with challenging rides on rough and rocky trails and easy rides on scenic dirt roads. Three national scenic byways, the Ponderosa Pine, Salmon River and Sawtooth, converge in Stanley.

Some campgrounds are open by Memorial Day; most open by mid-June and close in mid-September. Reservations are taken at ten campgrounds, while 23 campgrounds operate on a first-come, first-served basis.

The visitor center/headquarters, located eight miles north of Ketchum on Hwy. 75, is open all year, but not every day during the off-season; call for days and hours of operation.