Snowmobiling
Island Park is among the most renowned places to snowmobile in the world. Whether you are an expert that wants to snowmobile on Mount Jefferson, or a first timer that just wants to ride the trails and see the sights, Island Park has it all.
There are over 500 miles of groomed trails in the Island Park area that are suitable for all skills and ages. These trails will get you anywhere in the Island Park area from Ashton to West Yellowstone and Hebgen Lake.
If you want a little more excitement than the trails, but not serious mountain sledding, there are numerous meadows and fields to carve up. There is also the Island Park Reservoir, which freezes over from December until March. Riding full throttle on the reservoir after a fresh snow is like racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats. What a blast!
If you need any help arranging for snowmobile rentals, guiding or just have some questions about snomobiling in general, give Tom a call at 208-866-9073.
We also have licensed Idaho Snowmobile Guides available if you want a guide to show you the beautiful scenery of Island Park with no worry of getting lost in the vastness.
(See Island Park Snowmobile Trail Map)
The Island Park Caldera
Island Park resides within a large volcanic caldera system that includes two of the three calderas that make up the Yellowstone Supervolcano structure.
As illustrated below the Island Park Caldera is the 1st Yellowstone Caldera, which is the worlds largest caldera. This caldera is 58 miles by 48 miles in size. When it erupted 2.1 million years ago it emitted 2,500 times more volcanic ash than Mt. St. Helens did in 1980.
Within the 1st caldera resides the 2nd caldera, the Henry’s Fork Caldera. This caldera was formed 1.3 million years ago.
Huckleberry Picking
Huckelberries grow in abundance in the forests of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming that surround Island Park.
The Huckleberry is a delicious berry and a cousin of the Blueberry. It even looks like a miniature Blueberry and tastes somewhat similar. However, the Huckleberry is sweeter and, frankly, the more delicious of the two.
The Mountain Huckleberry is the State Fruit of Idaho and one among many types of Huckleberries that can be found. (see https://magazine.wsu.edu/2018/08/06/the-huckleberry/ )
Many Idahoans enjoy picking Huckelberries as a yearly tradition. It is a true labor of love that may entail hours of hiking and picking to get enough berries to make anything substantial.
The trick is finding where the Huckleberries are. People tend to keep their Huckleberry spots secret like fishermen do with their favorite fishing holes. Here are some tips to help you find Huckleberries (illustrated by photo below).
1. Huckleberries like a lot of shade so they grow best in the openings among trees where they are not exposed to lots of direct sunlight.
2. Huckleberries tend to grow better on slopes. South facing slopes tend to yield Huckleberries earlier and in higher numbers.
3. Huckleberries grow best in Idaho between 5,000 and 7,000 feet. Start looking at the lower elevations in later July and move up in elevation as the season progresses.
ATV/UTV Riding
Island Park is an OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) friendly place. This includes ATVs, UTVs (a.k.a. side-by-sides) and dirt motorcycles. Basically you can ride a registered (in any state) OHV on any road in Island Park except Highway 20.
There are many trails and dirt roads available to travel around Island Park. It would take several days to explore all the possible roads. Below I will highlight some of our favorite ATV\UTV rides and destinations.
West Yellowstone, Montana
It is always fun to take new visitors to Island Park on a ride to West Yellowstone for lunch and maybe some tourist store shopping.
West Yellowstone sits at the Eastern Gate of Yellowstone National Park and offers many places to eat and lots of shops to look in.
There are a couple of ways to get to West Yellowstone, but the easiest way is up Black Canyon (FS Road 066) to the old Yellowstone Line Trail that will take you into Montana and to West Yellowstone.
Depending where you leave from in Island Park this is usually a good 50-mile round-trip ride. Plan on getting dusty in the heat of the Summer and pack plenty of water. There are plenty of beautiful places to stop on the way to take a trail break.
Around the Island Park Reservoir
You have to get to Yale-Kilgore Road, which runs west off of Highway 20 and take it to Old Shotgun Road. The ATV Trail system can be followed all the way there.
Old Shotgun Road runs for several miles through the open sagebrush country on the north side of Island Park Reservoir.
Eventually you will get to a junction where there is a corral on the corner. Going left, or due south, takes you around the west end of the reservoir and around the south side to Green Canyon. This is a good place for a break with the reservoir nearby and lots of shade in the forest.
After Green Canyon the road goes up and over Thurmon Ridge and eventually comes out to Highway 20 near the Harriman State Park turnoff.
Here you have to cross Highway 20 to follow the ATV trail into Last Chance., a good stop for gas, food and a cold drink.
From Last Chance you can continue follow the main ATV trail that runs through Island Park. That will take you to the Buffalo River and Pond’s Lodge, which also has food and drink available.
From Pond’s Lodge you can get to anywhere in Island Park following the ATV trail system and complete the loop around the reservoir. All told this is around 40 miles.
Float a River
One of my favorite things to do on a hot summer day in Island Park is to float one of the rivers.
There are many floating options in the Island Park area. The most popular float is on the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River from below Big Springs to Mack’s Inn.
Floaters can rent rafts and tubes near Mack’s Inn and book shuttle rides to drop them off at the starting point. Or you can arrange for your own drop-off/pick-up and use your own tubes, kayaks or rafts.
This is an easy, family friendly float that takes about 3-1/2 hours. The water flows smooth and slow and is rarely deeper than a few feet deep.
Floaters will often see Moose along the way that frequent the river and it’s banks for food.
There are many floating options in the Island Park area. The most popular float is on the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River from below Big Springs to Mack’s Inn. Floaters can rent rafts and tubes at Mack’s Inn and book shuttle rides to drop them off at the starting point. You can also use your own tubes, kayaks or rafts and arrange your own drop-off/pick-up.
This is an easy, family friendly float that takes about 3 hours. The water flows smooth and slow and is rarely deeper than a few feet. Floaters will often see Moose along the way and can fish for trout by drifting a fly or other bait while gently floating down the river.
Other fun places to float are the Buffalo River (easy) from above the Buffalo Campground to Pond’s Lodge or the Buffalo Reservoir and the Snake River through Box Canyon (class 2 -3 rapids) to Last Chance.
Last but not least is the section of the Snake River starting about 8 miles south of Mesa Falls at Fisherman’s Drive Bridge. This is a nice easy float down to just past Highway 21 where you get out at the County Boat Dock.
Other places to float are the Buffalo River (easy); the Snake River through Box Canyon (class 2 -3 rapids) to Last Chance; and the Snake River from Last Chance to Osborne Bridge (easy). 20px