Payette River Scenic Byway
Payette River Scenic Byway is a National Scenic Byway in Idaho. Within Idaho it covers roughly 100 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Payette River Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
State Route 55 follows the Payette River north from the Boise area toward the mountain resort town of McCall on Payette Lake. The river is a popular whitewater run, dropping over rapids and falls within sight of the road, and the route climbs from high desert into pine forest. Cascade Reservoir and the surrounding ranchland round out the drive.
- Payette River whitewater
- McCall & Payette Lake
- Cascade Reservoir
- high desert to forest
- SR-55
Designated for its recreational qualities
Plan a drive on Payette River Scenic Byway → Drive this route in Road SortiesTurn-by-turn on iPhone · App Store
Places to stop along Payette River Scenic Byway
Smiths Ferry
A tiny riverside stop on the North Fork of the Payette, where some of the West's toughest whitewater crashes through the canyon below.
Lake Cascade State Park
Campgrounds and boat ramps around a big reservoir known for perch and trout fishing and summer sailing.
WebsitePonderosa State Park
A pine-covered peninsula on Payette Lake at McCall, with cliff-top viewpoints and old-growth ponderosa pines.
Website
Where to Stay along Payette River Scenic Byway
12 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Payette River Scenic Byway.
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What is a National Scenic Byway?
National Scenic Byways are roads recognized at the federal level for at least one outstanding quality — scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational — that gives travelers a reason to seek them out rather than just pass through.