ACL Conference 2025. Libraries: Gems of the Community

The refuge provides oases for resident and migratory wildlife, including spectacular concentrations of mallards and Canada geese. The refuge also provides a place for people to slow down, relax and unwind.

Boating, swimming and fishing are among the many activities that folks enjoy at Lake Lowell. Bird watching, hiking and hunting are other recreation options.

The Warhawk Air Museum was created to preserve history and educate future generations about American veterans and their contributions to the freedoms we know as Americans today.

One of the more beautiful day trips from Boise, the area offers over 20 miles of hiking trails. The most popular of them is the 7-mile Around the Mountain Loop. Chairlift rides at Mountain Star delight with panoramic views of the Sawtooth Mountains, the Boise National Forest, and even downtown Boise.

Explore any of the Boise museums: Boise Art Museum, Basque Museum & Cultural Center, Idaho Black History Museum, Discovery Center, and Children's Museum of Idaho.

The 25-mile tree-lined pathway follows the north and south sides of the Boise River through the heart of the city and provides scenic views, wildlife habitat and pedestrian access to many of Boise’s popular riverside parks.

The Village at Meridian features upscale apparel and specialty retail, fine restaurants and cafes, and Village Cinemas. Designed with European style architecture, the buildings and tree lined village streets surround a park setting complete with a children's play area and world class show fountain with hourly shows choreographed to lights and music.

Wahooz Family Fun Zone features 15 indoor & outdoor attractions including Go-Karts, Mini Golf, Laser Tag, Ropes Course, Twister Ride, Bumper Cars, an 80-game Arcade and 24 lanes of Bowling. Roaring Springs Waterpark is right next door!

Bruneau Dunes park boasts the tallest single-structured sand dune in North America with a peak rising 470 feet above the surrounding desert floor. The Bruneau Observatory has the largest telescope available for public viewing in Idaho

The large interpretive center building contains exhibits that tell the compelling story of the Oregon Trail and the emigrant experience. In addition, the center contains a theater that hosts films, lectures, and dramatic presentations. On the grounds of the site are four miles of interpretive hiking trails, an amphitheater, a wagon encampment for living history demonstrations, and scenic views of the surrounding area. Oregon Trail ruts are visible from the center and can be visited. The site offers activities for all ages, for school groups, and for group tours. This is a particularly fine stop for families with children.

Pay $7 per car for entrance to the park; entrance to the museum is free with park entrance.

During World War II, over 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were forcibly removed from their homes and incarcerated without due process of law. Although little remains of the barbed-wire fences and tar-papered barracks, the Minidoka concentration camp once held over 13,000 Japanese Americans in the Idaho desert. Minidoka preserves their legacy and teaches the importance of civil liberties.

Often referred to as the Niagara of the West, Shoshone Falls is a must-see attraction in Twin Falls, Idaho. At 212 feet tall and 900 foot wide, Shoshone Falls is one of the largest natural waterfalls in the United States surpassing the height of the famous Niagara Falls.

Nestled against Payette Lake and surrounded by majestic peaks, McCall is a charming mountain town where adventure is at your doorstep.

Craters of the Moon is a vast ocean of lava flows with scattered islands of cinder cones and sagebrush. We invite you to explore this "weird and scenic landscape" where yesterday's volcanic events are likely to continue tomorrow.

Hells Canyon, North America's deepest river gorge, encompasses a vast and remote region with dramatic changes in elevation, terrain, climate and vegetation. Carved by the great Snake River, Hells Canyon plunges more than a mile below Oregon's west rim, and 8,000 feet below snowcapped He Devil Peak of Idaho's Seven Devils Mountains. There are no roads across Hells Canyon's 10-mile wide expanse, and only three roads that lead to the Snake River between Hells Canyon Dam and the Oregon-Washington boundary.

Within Yellowstone's 2.2 million acres, visitors have unparalleled opportunities to observe wildlife in an intact ecosystem, explore geothermal areas that contain about half the world’s active geysers, and view geologic wonders like the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River.

Popular for its iconic mountain range rising abruptly from the Jackson Hole Valley, Grand Teton National Park is a sheer delight to explore in one day. Named after one of its primary features, the park encompasses almost the entire 40-mile long Teton Range. The northern part of Grand Teton National Park consists of the picturesque Jackson Hole Valley.

The Coeur d’Alene area is surrounded by dozens of lakes left behind by the glaciers from the ice age. There are more than 55 lakes within easy driving distance of Coeur d’Alene, but none more scenic and full of activities than Lake Coeur d’Alene itself.

In the far north of Idaho, just 60 miles from Canada, Sandpoint is nestled between frontal ranges of the Rocky Mountains, on the shores of magnificent Lake Pend Oreille. Schweitzer, Idaho’s largest ski resort, highlights the wide variety of outdoor recreation that abounds here. In town there is a vibrant arts and cultural scene, more than 40 fine restaurants and a variety of lodging. In a word … Sandpoint, Idaho is simply amazing.