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With a marked absence of urban centers (the
pleasant state capital Boise , in the south, being the only real
exception), Idaho is very much a destination for the outdoors enthusiast.
Natural wonders in its five-hundred-mile stretch include Hell's Canyon ,
America's deepest river gorge, the dramatic Sawtooth National Recreation
Area and the black, barren Craters of the Moon . Beyond these, hikers and
backpackers have the choice of no fewer than 81 mountain ranges,
interspersed with virgin forest and lava plateau, while the mighty Snake
and Salmon rivers offer endless scope for fishing and whitewater rafting.
The central wilderness still divides the state
into two distinct halves. The heavily forested north , interspersed with
glacial lakes now fronted by resorts like Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene ,
has always had strong trading links with Spokane in Washington; in the
south , irrigation programs begun in the 1880s - partly instigated by
Mormons - have transformed the scrubland to either side of the Snake River
into the fertile fields responsible for the state's license-plate tag of
"Famous Potatoes." Idaho's isolation, and small (1 million) population,
have kept it largely out of the mainstream of recent US history. |
