The Owyhee (O Y Hee) Mountains lie in far SW Idaho and spill over into Oregon (and geologically into Nevada). If one looks on a map, the Owyhee mountains and desert lie roughly between US95 on the west, ID51 on the east, the Snake River on the north, and (mostly) the Nevada border on the south. This area is the most remote, undeveloped region in the lower 48.

In 1816, a group of "mountain men", including three native Hawaiians, were sent up the now-Owyhee River to the mountains on a fur trapping expedition but never returned, likely killed by the local Paiutes. Word spread about the incident and they were to be memorialized by naming the waterway the Hawaii River, but the early spelling of "Owyhee" stuck.

The physically largest "town" within the region is the mostly-ghost town of Silver City sitting at 6200 ft. Other towns - mostly with populations less than 100 - exist on the fringes of the area, mostly along the south bank of the Snake River.

Silver City was one of the first places in Idaho to have electricity and telephone service. After a peak population of a few thousand in the 1880s, the population died off when the mines played out. The population fell to 1 in the 1940s but recent population growth of over 2000% has increased it to perhaps 25. That's enough that strangers are welcome to wander around but don't go picking through the ruins - it's a long way from law enforcement and close to plenty of old mine shafts. Even if law enforcement was nearby, locals stick together.

The town is never fully abandoned but in winter, you can't get there from here ...

The biggest business in town is the Idaho Hotel - nice place; the only other two businesses are much smaller - neither of which are a gas station or "general" store. The Idaho Hotel is popular; one needs reservations: no electricity, no heat, no pets, no in-room bathrooms, great food - if you let them know in advance. (www dot historicsilvercityidaho dot com/idahohotel/brochure.html)

On the fringe of the region is the only real town - on US95 and the Jordan River is the town of Jordan Valley; population about 140.
Don't - do NOT - speed through Jordan Valley. 26mph may get you a ticket ...
Do stop at the Rock House on the west side of town for some pretty good huckleberry ice cream (is there such a thing as bad huckleberry ice cream?)

Jordan Valley has a gas station if you really, really need gas but Marsing (46mi) or Homedale (53mi) up on the Snake in Idaho are the closest places to buy groceries ... don't forget the milk. Many of the place names on a map of the region are most useful in filling the emptiness. For example, Arock has a post office and 24 residents. It was named for a nearby rock.

For those interested in tales of the region, I can suggest "Owyhee Trails" (1973) by Mike Hanley of Jordan Valley.

Putting a tire on a wooden wheel at the Owyhee County Museum last mid-October at the county seat of Murphy, ID (pop 188). Mike's the old guy in the blue shirt:
https://newamericandigest.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Fixing-A-Flat.mkv

Oh yes - the pan:
So, wandering around places in the Owyhees that I shouldn't have been when poorly equipped as I was, I stumbled across this old (prospector?) cabin. It was so remote, I found this old pan still hanging on an exterior wall where whoever, whenever left it.

It was still there when I left. Sometimes I find interesting things following those overgrown 2-tracks.

Continue reading →