Blank Idaho map

What the outline shows

The outline shows Idaho's boundary alone. The south edge with Utah and Nevada is straight along the 42nd parallel. The west edge with Oregon is straight along a meridian, then follows the Snake River north through Hells Canyon; the border with Washington above Lewiston is straight again. The Panhandle's northern end is a short straight line on the 49th parallel against Canada. The east edge is the most complex: the Bitterroot crest against Montana, ragged and diagonal, then a straight line against Wyoming. Inside, nothing. Press Capital to mark Boise in the southwest and Abbreviation for "ID". Note that the Panhandle north of the Salmon River is on Pacific time while the rest of Idaho is on Mountain time.

Portrait or landscape

Idaho is about 480 miles from its Canadian border to the Utah line and about 310 miles across the southern base, but the Panhandle narrows to about 45 miles. The shape is strongly vertical: print in portrait. Landscape leaves the Panhandle tiny and the base of the state occupying only the centre of the page. For the Snake River Plain alone, zoom to the southern third and switch to landscape, since that band is much wider than it is tall.

Five classroom exercises

1. Draw the Snake River in its great arc: entering from Wyoming in the east, curving across the southern plain past Twin Falls and Boise, then turning north to form the Oregon border through Hells Canyon.
2. Mark the Salmon River rising in the central mountains and flowing to the Snake, and use it to draw the Pacific/Mountain time zone line across the state.
3. Trace the Bitterroot Range along the Montana border and mark the Continental Divide where it follows the crest in the east.
4. Locate Boise, Idaho Falls, Pocatello and Coeur d'Alene; note that three of them are on the Snake River Plain and one is in the Panhandle.
5. Shade the Panhandle north of the Clearwater River and mark the short 49th parallel border with Canada at its top.

How to recognise the Idaho outline

• A wide bottom that tapers upward into a narrow Panhandle, like a chimney or a boot standing on its toe.
• A straight bottom edge and a straight lower-left edge.
• A ragged upper-left edge where the Snake River cuts Hells Canyon.
• A diagonal saw-toothed upper-right edge along the Bitterroot Mountains.
• A flat, short top edge against Canada.

Answer key and related maps

• Idaho map — the labeled version with capital, cities and borders; use it as the answer key.
• Printable Idaho map — the same outline with cities, county lines and the capital printed on.
• Idaho county map — all 44 counties with their seats.
• Boise — capital and largest city, on the Boise River.
• Neighbours: Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Washington.
• Snake River, Continental Divide, and Mountain / Pacific time zones.
• All blank state maps and the printable US maps index.