Idaho trails · Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway
Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway
A 100.9-mile point-to-point in Idaho, with 3,777 ft of climbing. Reaches Peppermint Spring and other lake/spring destinations. Managed by Various.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the first third — 60% of the ascent, between mile 0.0 and mile 33.6. It gives back about 4,526 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Peppermint Spring (spring)
- Mud Flat Spring (spring)
- Summit Spring (spring)
- Thistle Spring (spring)
- Mud Spring (spring)
- Boni Spring (spring)
- Bennett Reservoir (lake)
- Dougal Reservoir (lake)
- Rays Reservoir (lake)
Getting there
Mud Flat Road access. 42.96085, -116.07712 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:38 a.m., the sun rises at 7:07 a.m. and sets at 8:20 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:50 p.m. (MDT) — 13 h 14 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 100.9-mile route works out to roughly 39 h 16 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway + Poison Creek Road — 0.8 mi loop, 62 ft gain
- Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway + Mud Flat Road + Juniper Mountain Road — 12.0 mi loop, 1,103 ft gain
- Juniper Mountain Road + Mud Flat Road + Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway — 12.3 mi loop, 777 ft gain