Free Camp Guide
Aerial view of Snowhole Rapids Wilderness Study Area

Idaho Bureau of Land Management

Snowhole Rapids Wilderness Study Area

Camping fee unknownCamp anywhere in it
Camping fee not confirmed Nobody has written down what it costs to camp here, so we can’t tell you. It might be free. It might not. We read through the Bureau of Land Management’s records in August 2026 and found nothing either way. Watch for a sign when you pull in, or ask them before you set off.

About this place

Over 5,000 acres of public land. The canyon walls through it are steep.

The ground runs from 1200 feet at the Salmon River to 3800 feet up in the Mahoney Creek drainage.

The Salmon River is famous for whitewater rafting. People also fish here, walk, and come to look at the country.

The facts

Cost
Camping fee not confirmed
Type
Open area. Camp anywhere within it
Managed by
Bureau of Land Management

Getting there

Eight miles southwest of Cottonwood, in Idaho and Lewis Counties, along the Salmon River and its steep canyon walls.

Coordinates 45.98111111, -116.5641667

Open in Google Maps Agency page

What is near here

There is another spot of ours within reach, and some better-known places further out.

Every distance on this page is the driving distance. A short distance can still take a long time. The road may be closed for the season, covered in snow, or washed out. Many of these roads are dirt. Plan your route before you leave home. Out here there is often no phone signal to look it up on the way.

Nearest town and supplies

Grangeville is big enough that you’d normally expect fuel and somewhere to buy food. Nobody from here has been to check, so don’t count on it if you’re running low.

Have you been here?

Fees and access change, and the records do not always keep up. If you have been, tell us what you found.

Add road notes for this site

The thing we cannot get from any government record is what the drive in is actually like. If you have done it, this is the most useful thing you can leave behind. We read everything before it appears, and we print a first name with it if you give one.

Where this information comes from

The description on this page is ours. The facts in it, and the fee and facility details below it, come from the Bureau of Land Management’s own records, read in August 2026.