Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve
ID-75, Stanley, ID
Stanley, ID
A huge sweep of jagged peaks, glacial lakes, and wild river country, the first Dark Sky Reserve in the United States, where the Milky Way blazes over the Sawtooth Mountains.
The Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve is an enormous swath of mountain country in the heart of Idaho, built around the tiny town of Stanley and the jagged wall of the Sawtooth Mountains. It stretches across more than a thousand square miles of peaks, glacial lakes, hot springs, and wild rivers, most of it public land where the night stays black. By day it is a paradise of hiking, paddling, and soaking; by night it is one of the finest windows onto the stars in the whole country.
It earned that reputation by becoming, in 2017, the very first Dark Sky Reserve in the United States. Stargazers rate darkness on a scale from 1 to 9 called the Bortle scale, where a bright city is a 9 and the wildest skies are a 1 or 2, and the dark core here reaches the very bottom of that scale. Up in the thin, clean mountain air, thousands of stars and the glowing Milky Way, the bright band of our own galaxy, blaze over the alpine peaks. Being so high up makes the stars look even sharper and brighter.
What Guests Love
- The first Dark Sky Reserve in the United States, with the Milky Way blazing over the peaks
- The jagged granite spires of the Sawtooth Mountains rising above glacial lakes
- Redfish Lake, hot springs, and the wild headwaters of the Salmon River nearby
- Thin, clean mountain air that makes the stars look sharper and brighter
Worth Knowing
- The reserve is huge; the town of Stanley and Highway 75 are the main hub and route through it
- The road crosses high mountain passes that can face snow and closures in the colder months
- Summer nights are short at this elevation, so true darkness lasts only a few hours
- This is remote high country, so come prepared with warm layers, gas, water, and supplies
Details
Stanley, ID
Learn about Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve
The nation's first Dark Sky Reserve
A Dark Sky Reserve is a large area with an exceptionally dark core, ringed by communities that have agreed to keep their lighting low so the night stays black for miles around. Central Idaho became the first one in the United States in 2017, after years of effort by the towns of Ketchum, Sun Valley, and Stanley and by people who cared about protecting the sky.
That is what makes this place special. It is not just one dark spot but a whole region working together to keep the stars visible. The reserve is among the largest of its kind in the world, and it carries the highest rating for darkness, which is why the Milky Way here looks the way it must have looked to people a thousand years ago.
The Sawtooth Mountains and their lakes
The signature of this country is the Sawtooth Mountains, a wall of sharp granite peaks and spires that gave the range its name. The rock is very old granite, and over the Ice Ages glaciers ground against it, carving the peaks into their jagged shapes and gouging out hundreds of alpine lakes at their feet.
The most famous of those lakes is Redfish Lake, a long, clear sheet of water tucked right beneath the highest peaks, named for the salmon that once turned its shallows red as they returned to spawn. Around it and throughout the range are hundreds more lakes and hundreds of miles of trails. This is also headwaters country, where the Salmon River and other great rivers begin their long journeys.
A wild place for wildlife
The mountains and valleys here teem with animals. Elk, moose, mule deer, and pronghorn graze the meadows, black bears roam the forests, and mountain goats pick their way across the high crags. Gray wolves, brought back to central Idaho in the 1990s, once again range these wilds, along with rare animals like the lynx and wolverine.
The rivers tell their own story. The Salmon River and its lakes are famous for salmon and trout, including the sockeye and chinook salmon that make an epic journey from the ocean, hundreds of miles up the rivers, to spawn in these high mountain waters. It is one of the longest inland salmon runs anywhere on Earth.
Stanley, the Salmon River, and Sun Valley
The little town of Stanley sits at the reserve's heart, cradled by mountains and set beside the young Salmon River, sometimes called the River of No Return. From here you can raft whitewater, cast for trout, or soak in wild hot springs scattered along the river just outside town, then step outside after dark to a sky full of stars.
The main route through the reserve is Highway 75, the Sawtooth Scenic Byway, which climbs south over the high Galena Summit, with a classic overlook of the Sawtooth Valley near the top, and drops toward the resort towns of Ketchum and Sun Valley. Those towns, with their dining, skiing, and mountain history, helped lead the fight to protect the dark sky and make a comfortable base at the reserve's southern edge.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Stanley
Redfish Lake
About 5 miles south of Stanley
A glacial alpine lake set right beneath the highest Sawtooth peaks, with beaches, a marina, boat rentals, and trailheads into the mountains.
Sun Valley and Ketchum
About 60 miles south via Galena Summit
Historic resort towns that helped create the dark sky reserve, offering dining, a famous ski mountain, and mountain culture.
Salmon River hot springs
Within about 15 miles of Stanley
Wild riverside hot springs scattered along the Salmon River just outside town, a favorite soak beneath the stars.