Idaho · Hiking · Near Ketchum

Senate Meadows Loop

7.0 mi
round trip
392 ft
climb
7,601 ft
high point
Out and back
route
Jun–Aug
best months

Is Senate Meadows Loop open right now?

Alert in the area

The Forest Service lists 4 alerts for Sawtooth National Forest.

As of · Source: USFS · Sawtooth National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Senate Meadows Loop is a 7-mile out-and-back hike in Idaho's Sawtooth National Recreation Area, part of the Sawtooth National Forest. The trail rises from about 7,300 feet to about 7,600 feet, with a total elevation gain of 392 feet. The Forest Service manages the land, and the route is rated hard. Summer is the most comfortable time to go. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Stanley show July and August highs around 80°F with lows near 39°F and only five or six wet days a month. That station sits roughly 1,100 feet below the trail, so temperatures on the loop run cooler. The trail is natural-surface and allows bikes, so it works for hikers and mountain bikers. Pioneer Cemetery Loop and Cemetery Loop both start within a quarter mile. For an overnight stay, Chemeketan Campground is about 5 miles away, and the Salmon River offers canoeing about 7 miles out.

Around this trail

Add any of these when you start a trip
  • Sleep close

    Prairie Campground

    Campground

    Campground · 4.2 mi from the trail
  • Eat after

    Lookout

    Restaurant

    On your way back · 19 mi
  • If it rains

    Sun Valley Museum of Art

    Museum

    In town

Places © OpenStreetMap contributors

More in Ketchum

Local outfitters

Not on Roamze yet. Their page has how to reach them.

  • Best time to go · Jun–Aug

    Best time to visit Senate Meadows Loop

    Best months: June–August. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

    1. Jan

      29° / 4°

      12 wet

    2. Feb

      35° / 7°

      12 wet

    3. Mar

      42° / 14°

      14 wet

    4. Apr

      49° / 21°

      12 wet

    5. May

      60° / 30°

      12 wet

    6. Jun

      69° / 35°

      10 wet

    7. Jul

      80° / 39°

      6 wet

    8. Aug

      80° / 37°

      5 wet

    9. Sep

      70° / 31°

      7 wet

    10. Oct

      55° / 24°

      9 wet

    11. Nov

      39° / 14°

      12 wet

    12. Dec

      28° / 6°

      14 wet

    Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Stanley Rs, ID, 25.3 mi away at 6,495 ft. The station sits about 1,100 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

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