Elk River, ID

Located at the eastern end of Highway 8 in Clearwater County, Elk River is a tiny mountain community surrounded by thick Idaho timberland. The town started as a busy early-1900s lumber hub, and today it remains a quiet, tight-knit home to roughly a hundred year-round residents. The drive in winds through the forest past Bovill, and because the highway terminates right in town, there is virtually no pass-through traffic.

ATTRSteve Shook from Moscow, Idaho, USA / CC BY 2.0

Daily life here moves at an easy, self-reliant pace centered on the outdoors. Locals enjoy direct access to Elk River Reservoir, hiking trails to Elk Creek Falls, and hundreds of miles of backcountry routes for snowmobiling and ATV riding, with the local general store and lodge serving up famous huckleberry treats. For anyone hoping to relocate somewhere remote, scenic, and surrounded by national forest, Elk River provides classic north Idaho mountain living.