A big game hunter prepares to slaughter an elk

The inaccessible terrain whose navigation once posed the greatest challenge to Lewis and Clark on their famed early 19th century expedition across the states is also what keeps Idaho off most people's radar. This makes it the best place to really get off the beaten track in the Rockies, which isn't hard to do since no national parks have been created here, yet the state boasts the USA's largest wilderness area outside Alaska (the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness).

In this rugged state wild country impinges upon you at almost every turn, from the black cinder landscape of Craters of the Moon National Monument in the south to the densely-forested slopes of the Selkirk Mountains in the north. Thankfully, a handful of surprisingly sophisticated cities like friendly Boise and the glitzy ski town of Sun Valley offer civilized bases from which to strike out.