Before Idaho became world famous for its potatoes, its fame rested upon how uninviting the interior of the state was viewed. The federal government backed away from significant management of Idaho due to this fact. So uninviting was much of Idaho that between the time it became a territory in 1863 and a state in 1890, four of its governors never even set foot within its borders.
The torturous landscape that scared away those governors and so many others was put to very effective use in the 1960s. What today is known as Craters of the Moon National Monument is an otherworldly landscape constructed of lava flows and cinder cones that was used to train Apollo astronauts before they set off for the moon.
The area that is today occupied by Idaho was a stop along the passage to the Pacific by Lewis and Clark. So rugged was the interior through which Lewis and Clark had to pass that it took them two separate attempts to successfully penetrate the expanse.
The deepest gorge on the continent of North America is not the Grand Canyon. Hell's Canyon is located in Idaho and reaches down nearly 8,000 feet. A stone tossed from the highest part of the canyon would not reach the ground until the person who had tossed the rock had counted to 30, according to "Atlas of America."
Idaho is a far cry from the famous Loch Ness in Scotland that is allegedly home to a sea serpent, but some people claim that Nessie may have a relative living in Bear Lake in Idaho. Sightings of a strange creature that called Bear Lake home began in the late 19th century. Like the more famous Scottish monster, the Bear Lake Monster was said to be serpentine in appearance, could swim faster than a horse could gallop and may have measured close to 100 feet in length.
The one fact about Idaho that most people seem to be familiar with is that it is home to the most famous potato crops in the world. More potatoes are raised in Idaho than in any other similarly sized region in the world. Billions of potato chips, French fries, baked potato skins and other food products are made every day using Idaho potatoes.
