Idaho State Parks

Idaho has some great state parks. Quite a few of them are centered around water: lakes, rivers, fishing, boating, water-skiing, etc. Others are of a historical nature. Priest Lake is a place to check out the wildlife and the huckleberries. Round Lake is like a glacial tarn left over from the last Ice Age. Hells Gate is the primary entrance into Hells Canyon, the deepest river gorge in North America. McCroskey is pretty primitive with a gorgeous drive along the skyline and views into the mountains and prairies below. Henry's Lake and Harriman are part of the greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and with great views of the western side of the Grand Tetons. City of Rocks and Castle Rocks are world-class rock climbing sites. From this little bit of rambling on my part, you can see that there's something for just about everyone in Idaho's state parks.

In 2010, the Idaho State Government decided it needed to cut funding for the state parks completely and eventually merge the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation into another state agency. So many of the parks are seeing 501(c)(3) organizations spring up among the public to perform projects that directly benefit their individual parks.