Bookstore
The Owyhee Canyonlands
$19.95
Winner of a 2015 Idaho Author Award
The Owyhee Canyonlands is a vast area – it covers 5 million acres or 7,697 square miles in Owyhee County, Idaho, an area larger than Rhode Island and Connecticut combined. The Owyhees also cover a significant amount of countryside in Eastern Oregon, including the spectacular canyons and rock features in the Leslie Gulch area, Succor Creek area and lower Owyhee River area.
Fortunately for all of us, most of the Owyhee Canyonlands are located on public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. Mark Lisk and Steve Stuebner have been exploring the Owyhees for several decades hiking, camping, mountain biking and boating the desert rivers, the Jarbidge-Bruneau, and the many forks of the Owyhee River. We pooled our knowledge and experience to come up with an adventure guide for hiking, mountain biking, driving and camping outings for the public to enjoy. All of these trips are land-based adventures.
The book provides a detailed guide to 55 hiking and mountain biking trips as well as a mile-by-mile guide to the 100-mile Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway.
The guide offers a ton of adventures close to home in the Owyhee Front, plus hiking and backpacking tips for the new Owyhee Wilderness areas. Be aware that many of the hiking adventures are self-guided adventures with no trails per se. You’ll need to follow our directions closely, plus it would be handy to bring supplemental maps with you such as topo maps, BLM maps and a GPS unit to ensure a successful adventure.
Be sure to read our Owyhee Canyonlands “survival guide” chapter before you go. There are little to no services in Owyhee County, meaning you need to bring all of your food and water with you, and your vehicle should be in ready for a rough and rocky adventure. If it’s rainy and wet out there, the unimproved roads will turn into “gumbo,” often making them impassible. Use common sense.
Have fun out there in the Owyhees! There’s just something special about a place that is so huge that it makes you feel small, really small in the whole scheme of things. You’ll be awe-struck by the many box canyons and the variety of caves, spires, honeycombs, and unique rock formations you encounter. With each new adventure, you may find yourself touched by the Owyhees in a way that makes you want to come back for more.
Book Reviews
As an Owyhee County rancher, I've invested many years helping to craft a wilderness and wild and scenic rivers plan for Owyhee County that fits our community. I'd like to welcome the recreation community to visit the Owyhee Canyonlands in a safe and responsible manner. Please abide by Leave No Trace principles, close the fence-gates after you pass through, and enjoy your time in the Owyhees. It's a special place that will grow on you.
Brenda Richards, Chair Owyhee Initiative Committee
This is a one-of-a-kind guide for a one-of-a-kind landscape. The Owyhee Canyonlands are a national treasure, best discovered with a dog-eared copy of this book tucked in your backpack. Steve's excellent route descriptions and Mark's amazing photographs are an excellent introduction to a landscape that is at once fragile, enduring and wholly remarkable.
John Robison, Public Lands Director, Idaho Conservation League
For the last 25 years, the Owyhee Canyonlands has been my favorite area to explore in Idaho and Eastern Oregon. It is a huge, rugged high desert playground out there. This guide offers a lot of great tips for a successful adventure and features many of the best places to visit and explore.
Leo Hennessy, Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation
Trail List & Digital Downloads
- OC - 03 - BLM Oolite Interpretive Trail
- OC - 04 - Shoofly Quick Loop
- OC - 05 - Little Jacks Creek
- OC - 06 - Between The Creeks
- OC - 08 - Browns Canyon Slot Canyon Loop
- OC - 09 - Toy Pass Hike #1
- OC - 10 - Toy Pass Hike #2
- OC - 11 - Silver City Presby Creek Loop
- OC - 12 - Silver City Sawpit Peak Loop
- OC - 13 - Silver City Skyline Mine Tour
- OC - 14 - Barking Spider Wild Rockies Loop
- OC - 15 - Wilson Creek Northwest Passage Loop
- OC - 16 - Wilson Creek Mini-Moab Loop
- OC - 17 - Wilson Creek-Reynolds Creek Loop
- OC - 18 - Squaw Creek Slot Canyon Loop
- OC - 19 - Jump Creek Canyon Hikes
- OC - 20 - Wildcat Canyon Loop
- OC - 21 - Stick in the Sky Loop
- OC - 22 - Explore Sage Creek
- OC - 23 - Succor Creek State Park Hikes
- OC - 24 - Hike to Three Fingers Rock
- OC - 25 - Back of Beyond Three Fingers Loop
- OC - 26 - Carlton Canyon-Painted Canyon Loop
- OC - 27 - Juniper Ridge-Honeycombs
- OC - 28 - North Fork Three Fingers Loop
- OC - 29 - Steamboat Ridge Scenic Tour
- OC - 30 - Juniper Gulch to Yellow Jacket
- OC - 33 - Bruneau Dunes State Park
- OC - 34 - Indian Bath Tubs Loop
- OC - 35 - Bruneau River Overlook
- OC - 36 - Hike Roberson Trail East
- OC - 37 - Mary's Creek Loop
- OC - 38 - Sheep Creek Bighorn Country Tour
- OC - 39 - Sheep Creek Big Bend Rim Hike
- OC - 40 - West Fork Bruneau Homestead Tour
- OC - 41 - Quest for the Arch
- OC - 42 - Jarbidge Canyon Trail
