SHOSHONE FALLS FAST FACTS
LOCATION: Twin Falls, Idaho, U.S.A.
HOURS: Dawn to Dusk daily
COST: $5 per car
TIME TO COMPLETE: 1 hour
BEST TIME OF YEAR TO VISIT: Early Spring between March-June
ACCOMMODATIONS: Parking lot, public restrooms and multiple viewing platforms
Shoshone Falls (pronounced show-shown) is approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of the city of Twin Falls, Idaho. The falls are located along the deepest portion of the Snake River as it winds its way through a deep basalt canyon towards the Columbia River. Every year 250-300,000 vehicles visit the “Niagara of the West”. We visited Shoshone Falls in March 2018 as part of our North Midwest Road Trip.
The Shoshone Falls might not be the most well-known waterfall in the USA but it is one of the more breathtaking. In total the falls are 212’ (64.6 m) in height, an impressive 45’ (13.7 m) higher than Niagara Falls, and travels over a 925’ (281.9 m) wide rim. Even more significant is the water flow. At its height, Shoshone Falls generates as much as 20,000 CFS (cubic feet per second) (570 m3/s) of clear pristine water over its edges. Even when the flow is slower the shapes of the rocks, smoothed by centuries of onrushing water, provide unique contours and formations.
14,500 years ago, pluvial Lake Bonneville experienced a violent and destructive flood whose power formed both the Snake River and Shoshone Falls over just a few short weeks. The name Shoshone, which became official in 1905, comes from the Native American tribe that once occupied this area, known for its salmon fishing. The falls were first documented by European explorers in the mid-19th Century along the Oregon Trail which became a popular tourist attraction despite its relatively obscure location. Timothy H. Sullivan photographed the falls in 1874 and Shoshone Falls on the Snake River by Thomas Moran, c. 1900, hangs in the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, OK. In 1974 daredevil Evel Knieval attempted his aborted Snake River jump just a mile west of Shoshone Falls at a spot you can still visit today.
You enter the park by car that winds down onto a spacious parking area complete with restrooms and an area to lounge, have your lunch or run your dog around. There are three different places from which to view the falls. The most popular (and most crowded) is just 75’ (22.9 m) from the parking lot and provides the best view of the falls themselves. The sound of the falls is deafening and the impact on the water below so extreme that a solid form of mist remains a permanent fixture. There is a higher vantage point but bushes obscure some of the view. Our favorite vantage point is to the left of the main platform. Not only do you have a nice view of Shoshone Falls but also the Snake River to your west.
Shoshone Falls are categorized as Segmented Plunge falls as they have multiple fall points. There are two main levels created by the river working its way around a series of small islands at the top followed by a pool that eventually spills over the main portion of the falls. The top tier areas have four distinct sections that have been named individually as The Two Graces, The Brides Maid, The Bridal Veil and The Sentinel. At the top you’ll notice Idaho Power’s Shoshone Falls Dam buildings which oversees water diversion for irrigation of more than 500,000 acres (202,343 ha) of local farmland as well as the Shoshone hydroelectric plant. The diversion is done, in part, to reroute the clean clear water to fishing hatcheries that provide 70% of all trout eaten in the United States.
The best time of year to visit Shoshone Falls is the early spring between March and June. In the other months the water flow is dictated by either water diversion, the amount of rainfall or both. If you’re really ambitious (and in excellent physical condition) you can take a paddleboard up the Snake River to get a closer view of Shoshone Falls. No matter how you see the falls it is worth the effort. A true hidden gem.
By now you’ve probably figured out we love waterfalls. We love hikes with an overlook payoff but there is something magnificently unique about waterfalls. It could be the impressive show of nature or just the awesome power of water to shape the world around us.
Do you have a favorite waterfall? We’d love to hear all about it.
