Bruneau Dunes

Bruneau Dunes State Park is about 60 miles southeast of Boise, on the south side of the Snake River. In the midst of the desert landscape, are giant sand dunes. Next to the dunes are small lakes, that attract a large amount of waterfowl. In addition to hiking and climbing the dunes, you can also rent sleds and “sandboards” that you can carry up the dune and ride down. This area of Idaho is good for star watching, and the park is home to an observatory which you can visit in evenings.

The loop trail starts at the visitors center at the western edge of the park. The first part of the trail is mostly flat through sagebrush, and mostly cheatgrass up to the edge of the dunes. The path is marked by white markers. Once at the dune, you can choose the best route to travel north across the dune. The dune is steep, and difficult to hike in. I normally gain a little elevation so I get a view of the Big Lake, and just parallel the east side of the lake. On the lower part of the dune nearest the lake, the brush gets pretty thick, but the sweet spot is where there are still some shrubs stabalizing the dune, so it is easier to hike on.

On the north side of the Big Lake is the observatory and a smaller lake. The route from the obeservatory back to the visitors center is back out on the mostly flat desert. Because this hike is so exposed, you typically do not want to do this mid-day in the summer months. There is no shade, and the sand can get up to 150 degrees. In the summer months, I normally will start hiking after sunrise, so I can get back to my car by 9AM at the latest. The winter is normally pretty cold and windy. The day I hiked, it was raining in Boise but the was cloudy and suprisingly free of wind. It turned out to be the perfect day to hike out there. Becuase of all the cheatgrass, I would not bring a dog on the full loop.