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Greetings folks. We have been considering moving to the Boise area or Emmett for some time but haven't made it there yet. I have heard alot from people that there is quite a bit of desert in Idaho. I can tell from the maps that most of southern Idaho is desert. However, I am a bit confused about the Boise area with all the surrounding small communities all the way to the Oregon border as well as north towards Emmett.
Can some local folks give me a detailed description of the topography in these areas? Is is desert like at all? Any greenery? What about the hills and nearby Mountains? I lived in southern Arizona for a while and did not enjoy the desert scenery at all. As well as I have travelled through Nevada and Utah on I-80 several times and do not enjoy the High Desert terrain at all. Thank you for your honest and detailed descriptions and for any help/advice you can give.
Greetings folks. We have been considering moving to the Boise area or Emmett for some time but haven't made it there yet. I have heard alot from people that there is quite a bit of desert in Idaho. I can tell from the maps that most of southern Idaho is desert. However, I am a bit confused about the Boise area with all the surrounding small communities all the way to the Oregon border as well as north towards Emmett.
Can some local folks give me a detailed description of the topography in these areas? Is is desert like at all? Any greenery? What about the hills and nearby Mountains? I lived in southern Arizona for a while and did not enjoy the desert scenery at all. As well as I have travelbaed through Nevada and Utah on I-80 several times and do not enjoy the High Desert terrain at all. Thank you for your honest and detailed descriptions and for any help/advice you can give.
Southern Idaho is a mix of desert, lush farmlands, mountains and forests. Many people not familier with Idaho often err at thinking the entire southern half is desert which is incorrect. I think many base this opinion on their drive on I-84 which cuts through the Snake River Plains. There is a lot of unseen Southern Idaho if one travels off of the Interstate.
Boise and Emmett are in the Columbia Plateau/Great Basin which covers a lot of eastern Washington, Oregon, Southern Idaho, Nevada and Utah. The desert topography around Boise and Emmett is very similar to eastern Washington and Oregon, with a lot of sage, black lava basalt, river canyons, and mountains are always in view. The desert changes with the seasons and is very green in spring to early summer and then dries. I found this site with some information. Columbia Plateau Ecoregion // LandScope America
Both Boise and Emmett which are at the base of mountains, are really close to forests, Boise is situated where the forests begin on the ridge above the city, and the forests and mountains expand out all of the way up to Canada.
It is like two ecosystems collide above Boise.
Last edited by TohobitPeak; 12-27-2011 at 08:21 PM..
Reason: basin should have been plateau
It's not exact but Boise is somewhat close to Silver City NM which is just over the border from Arizona and 3 hours from Tucson. The other cities that are fairly similar might be Prescott or the higher elevation towns in the Verde Valley.
Emmett area is mostly corn fields and rolling hills. The town of Emmett is a wonderful place to live. 3 hardware stores makes it a homeowners paradise
20 minutes to the forest for camping and hunting. 30 minutes to boise for sushi .
If you're looking at a map, the areas south and southwest of I84 from Ontario to TF and then over to Pocatello are almost exclusively desert and farmland. There are a few mountains in the South Hills Sawtooth Forest south of Twin Falls, and some in the Owyhee Range (where Silver City is) in Owyhee County by Murphy. But almost exclusively farmland and desert.
There are some amazing things to see and do in the desert, however.
The areas north and northeast of I84 along that same route are a mix of desert, farmland and foothills until you get to the mountains and forested areas, which will be obvious on a topo map. In most of the communities along the corridor you describe all you will see is desert, even up amongst the foothills. You can see the tree line and where the forested areas begin, but the immediate foothills are treeless scrub.
As Tohobit suggests, the mountains and forests are very, very close however.
Thanks for all the answers so far. We are interested in Boise and Emmett and were really wondering what the terrain is like all around that area. For instance, if you went for a drive in the country (not towards the Mountians) what would you see on most of the country roads and highways? Is the countryside dominantly desert or something else? Or maybe a combination. I know that there are farms around, is that the impression you get, or is it a desert environment. I love agriculture and farming, and love to live around it. But have never cared for the desert. Living in AZ was rough. There are some places here in CO that have too much of a desert environment for me.
Thanks for all the answers so far. We are interested in Boise and Emmett and were really wondering what the terrain is like all around that area. For instance, if you went for a drive in the country (not towards the Mountians) what would you see on most of the country roads and highways? Is the countryside dominantly desert or something else? Or maybe a combination. I know that there are farms around, is that the impression you get, or is it a desert environment. I love agriculture and farming, and love to live around it. But have never cared for the desert. Living in AZ was rough. There are some places here in CO that have too much of a desert environment for me.
If you do not drive towards the mountains and remain in the valley and if you leave Boise and drive directly south or east you will be in desert which is mostly undeveloped. If you drive westward out of Boise through Meridian the land stretching west towards Oregon, south towards the Snake River and north to the Foothills is mainly irrigated farm land and alot of it too. The suburban cities are mixed in with the farm land; Star, Middleton, Nampa, Caldwell, etc.
The drive on the Interstate between Meridian and beyond Caldwell, is mostly through farm land. The rural areas west of Boise through western Ada County, into Canyon County and towards Oregon are scenic lush farm lands, with a lot of canals, ponds, the Boise River. During the growing season this area makes for a great relaxing drive. I believe that Canyon County is one of the most productive agricultural counties in the nation, so as I mentioned there is a lot of farm land out there.
I recommend playing around with Google Earth. You can get a feel for the different vegetation and topography, as well as where the landscape changes from one zone to another.
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