Loading intel...
Deep river canyons and vast cedar forests. The land of the Nez Perce.
Large network of forest trails in the Clearwater region. Beautiful cedar groves, mountain meadows, and creek crossings. Access the Elk Creek Falls area. Mix of single-track and forest roads.
Extensive network of forest roads along the Lolo Motorway and surrounding Clearwater National Forest. Historic Lewis & Clark route. Remote, beautiful, and vast riding opportunities.
scenic drive through the Pierce-Weippe area. lush forests and logging history. Good opportunity to see moose and elk.
Drive to the massive Grandad Bridge spanning the Dworshak Reservoir. Remote, winding logging roads requiring attentiveness. Great fishing access.
The Clearwater region runs from the Nez Perce reservation east into the Bitterroot crest. It holds some of the largest western redcedar groves in interior North America — including the Roosevelt Grove of Ancient Cedars and stands along the North Fork of the Clearwater. Dworshak Reservoir and its complex of access roads dominate the western half; the Selway and the Lolo Motorway define the east.
The Lolo Motorway (FR 500) is the marquee drive — a 100-mile dirt traverse retracing the Lewis and Clark route, drivable in good summer conditions but slow and committing. The North Fork road system out of Orofino connects Dworshak to remote campgrounds at Aquarius and Beaver Creek. South of Highway 12, the Selway River road climbs to Selway Falls and Race Creek — a one-way drive into wilderness boundary that turns around at the trailhead.
Snow and mud usually clear out of the Lolo by late June; the lower river corridors are accessible most of the year. Steelhead season turns the boat ramps and river roads busy from October through April, even as the upper roads close. Orofino, Kamiah, and Lowell are the practical stops; gas at Lowell is the last station before a long stretch east.