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Free Traveling Guides » States » Idaho » DestinationsHells Canyon National Recreation Area
Few places in the world can stand in comparison to the over 215,000 acres (870 sq. km.) of wilderness designated as the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. On the borderline of Oregon and Idaho, this massive expanse has a landscape decked with high rise mountains, breathtaking panoramas, alpine lakes, sharp canyon rim-rocks and above all perfect solitude. Over 900 miles of hiking trails and the Hells Canyon gorge, the deepest river gorge in the whole of North America carved by the Snake River are present here. Designated in the year 1975 by the Congress as a National Recreation Area, this destination truly touches visitors with its thrilling landscape full of sheer wilderness.
Three rivers that flow in this region, Snake, Imnaha and Rapid are collectively called as the Wild and Scenic Rivers and offer ample water based recreation. On to the Idaho side is the majestic Seven Devils Mountain Range comprising of towering peaks of over 9000 feet in height and referred individually as “He Devil”, “She Devil” etc. based on a native Indian legend. The Hells Canyon region also has a rich history that shows up to the hikers. Caves with inscriptions in pictographs and Nez Perce Indian petroglyphs, abandoned fields and old mining sites are found scattered all through the canyon region, an evidence of being home to ancestors. For boaters, hikers, rafters and campers it is indeed a paradise on earth. For wild life lovers there are various animal species, such as bear, elk, bighorn sheep and mountain goats, all living in their natural environs.
Tourists flock to the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area (HCNRA) all round the year to experience this mystifying location with great variations in terrain, climate and vegetation.
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