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Shoshone Falls, photo 1 of 4

Photo: Frank Schulenburg / CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Lakes & rivers

Shoshone Falls

Twin Falls, ID · Snake River Canyon, southern Idaho$$5 per car, March through fall

About

Milner Dam, about 20 miles up the Snake River, decides how much water goes over Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls, Idaho. The flow peaks in spring, at 10,000 to 12,000 cubic feet per second in a typical year, and a heavy-snow year can push it past 20,000. Summer irrigation diversions cut it back, and by fall the 212-foot falls often look nearly dry. Oregon Trail travelers were already detouring to see them by the mid-1800s.

Highlights

212 feet high, taller than Niagara900 feet wide, Snake RiverSpring peak, 10,000 to 12,000 CFSFlow set at Milner Dam upstreamMain overlook 75 feet from parking

Getting there

4155 Shoshone Falls Grade Road, Twin Falls, ID 83301

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Yosemite Falls is the tallest in North America, and by August it can be dry. Most of these run on snowmelt and are fullest in spring. By late summer, irrigation upstream can take Shoshone down to a trickle. Burney and Havasu are spring-fed, so the month doesn't matter there.