---
id: "13544"
name: Owyhee Uplands Back Country Byway
distance: "103"
duration: From Boise, it is an all-day trip.
description: From expanses of sagebrush and wildflowers, to sheer, red-walled river canyons, the Owyhee Uplands represent what many people believe the real West is all about.
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websites:
  - url: https://visitidaho.org/things-to-do/ghost-towns-mining-history/owyhee-uplands-backcountry-byway/
    name: Idaho Travel Guide
attractions:
  - url: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/umbagog
    name: Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge - NH
designations:
  - BLM Back Country Byway
  - Idaho State Scenic Backway
states:
  - ID
ll:
  - -116.09722899981847
  - 42.98331099980277
bounds:
  - - -117.04416699970727
    - 42.509529000263115
  - - -116.0768430004041
    - 42.98331099980277

---

Providing access to an excellent example of the sagebrush-steppe ecosystem, the Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway in Idaho lies on 103 miles of gravel and paved roads. Follow the byway through the habitats of more than 180 birds and mammal species. If you’re lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of a coyote, bighorn sheep, or badger. In addition to wildlife, the Owyhee Uplands Backcountry Byway also stretches alongside scenic geologic formations. Wonder at these monumental structures, plateaus, cliffs, and canyons, made from volcanic rock deposited over 8 million years ago and river systems still flowing today.