About this place
The deep canyon of the Snake River holds the greatest concentration of nesting birds of prey in North America, and possibly in the world. Its crags, crevices and rising warm air are why.
About 800 pairs of hawks, owls, eagles and falcons come here each spring to mate and raise young.
The conservation area covers 485,000 acres along 81 miles of the Snake River, in southwest Idaho. It is rough country and it is left that way on purpose.
You can camp rough almost anywhere in it, for free. The Cove Recreation Site is the exception: it is a developed campground, and it charges.
The job here is to keep that habitat intact while still allowing other uses of the land.
The birds reward patience. Come on the place’s own terms and fit into its rhythms, and you will see a great deal.
The facts
- Cost
- Free to camp
- Type
- Open area. Camp anywhere within it
- Managed by
- Bureau of Land Management
Getting there
From Boise Airport, get onto Interstate 84 eastbound from W Airport Way. Stay on Interstate 84, then take S Orchard Access Rd to S Range Rd, about 31.2 miles. Follow S Range Rd for another 8.2 miles to the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. Allow about an hour from the airport.
Coordinates 43.18222222, -116.1802778
Open in Google Maps Agency page
What is near here
A few more of our own spots are within reach of this one, along with some better-known places.
- Crater Rings Directions
- Little Jacks Creek Wild and Scenic River Directions
- Little Jacks Creek Wilderness Area Directions
- Bogus Basin Directions
- Arrowrock Dam Directions
Every distance on this page is the driving distance. A short distance can still take a long time. The road may be closed for the season, covered in snow, or washed out. Many of these roads are dirt. Plan your route before you leave home. Out here there is often no phone signal to look it up on the way.
Nearest town and supplies
- Grand View, ID Directions
- Mountain Home, ID Directions
Mountain Home is big enough that you’d normally expect fuel and somewhere to buy food. Nobody from here has been to check, so don’t count on it if you’re running low.
Why “at least”: this route is hard to measure. We worked the drive out twice, with two separate mapping tools, and they gave different answers. That usually means there is no road close to the campsite, so the drive doubles back a long way. The figure above is the longer of the two. The real drive could be further still, so check the route before you set off.
Why the drive to town is usually twice what the map says — what we found measuring every campsite in this guide.
When it’s time to move on
On most public land you can camp for 14 days before you have to move on. Check this site’s own limit before you plan a long stay. When you move on, the Bureau of Land Management usually wants you at least 25 to 30 miles away. So the free campsites closest to you are the ones you cannot use.
One in this guide sits inside that 25 miles. The nearest one you could move to is Little Jacks Creek Wild and Scenic River, Idaho — 32 miles in a straight line, but at least a 39 mile drive.
Why “at least”: there is no road right at this campsite, so the drive is hard to measure and the real one could be further. Check the route before you set off.
This guide covers five states and does not list every free campsite, so there may be something closer that we do not hold. Check this site’s own rule before you rely on it.
Have you been here?
Fees and access change, and the records do not always keep up. If you have been, tell us what you found.
Thank you, that is recorded. It helps the next person.
Add road notes for this site
The thing we cannot get from any government record is what the drive in is actually like. If you have done it, this is the most useful thing you can leave behind. We read everything before it appears, and we print a first name with it if you give one.
Thank you. A person will read it before it goes on the page.
Where this information comes from
The description on this page is ours. The facts in it, and the fee and facility details below it, come from the Bureau of Land Management’s own records, read in August 2026.