Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge — Attraction in Nampa

This place has A LOT to offer, and I really enjoy coming here. Plenty of activities you can do, ranging from fishing, hiking, swimming, boating, hunting, disc golf, and wildlife viewing / nature photography. I only come here for hiking / walking, usually when I want to relax and unwind, and I've always enjoyed this place.

If you want to go hiking on some trails, I'd recommend parking at the parking lot at the intersection of W. Roosevelt Ave & S. Indiana. This is actually the official entrance to the refuge, where there is a small & windy road down to the upper dam and visitors center. Once you park at that initial entrance parking lot, you will find the trailhead start up right across from the lot. There are a couple side trails that you'll see branching off from the main trail. A great place to photograph the lake would be from the first trail that you'll come across to the left, right before the wooden observatory deck. It's a very nice vantage point down at the lake, best time to take pictures here would be evening since the sun will be behind you.

All the trails will lead you down to the visitors center / upper damn entrance, so you'll have to hike back to the parking lot, which you can do via the paved road the cars use (speed limit is slow there so it's safe to walk on). These trails do have inclines, but for the most part are super easy, and great for taking your dogs with you. On some days, you'll be the only one out there, and I really enjoy the isolated feel of "getting away".

For days I want to relax and walk next to the lake, I park at Lake Lowell Park and walk along the upper dam. It's quite long, but is 100% flat and paved with gravel. Lots of people ride their bikes & jog along this path. You'll see the boats / jet skis on the lake and people fishing as you walk, and I really enjoy walking the upper dam on a stressful day. This is a great place for photographers to capture sunsets as well, since the sun will set right on the lake rewarding you with some cool shots. I'd also recommend this path if you want a nice, relaxing, and romantic walk with your significant other at sunset.

I REALLY like coming up here when there's bad weather (lighting storms & snow storms). You can get some fantastic pictures, especially from the 2 side parking areas that you'll come across when driving down the main road that you'd take to get to the visitors center. During the winter, your backdrop will have the snow covered mountains, which is pretty cool.

Another good time to come here is during the winter months at sunset (when the mountains have snow on them). If you park at the parking lot where the trails start (intersection of W. Roosevelt Ave & S. Indiana), look east towards Roosevelt Ave. You'll see mountains in the distance that will be pink/purple at sunset due to the sun / sky, and since you're at a high vantage point, you'll have Nampa in the background as well. It's BEAUTIFUL.

Some days it can get super windy out there, like hurricane type winds. I hate the wind, so I'd recommend taking a look at the forecast before coming here. On some days, there's an absurd amount of bugs on the trails when walking, some days there are none. It's always hard to tell when the good days are, but when it's a good day, it's a fantastic time.

The only negative I can think of is you've got to watch your step when walking on the trails or the upper dam. There's dog poop that people don't pick up, and if you're not constantly looking down while walking, it all kind of blends in and before you know it you're cursing everybody off lol. I've even seen some bigfoot / sasquatch sized piles of poop, which either confirms that Nampa has a bigfoot roaming around, or people take their horses on the trails.

Wrapping things up, this place has so many activities and places to discover that you could write a review all day. For being a free place to visit, it's really incredible. 5...

I am SO impressed with Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge. In my experience, state parks and wildlife refuges are "second thoughts" and it shows in the availability of staff and information. That is NOT the case here. Their staff is very helpful and informative. The Visitor Center is full of information about the animals, hiking, boating, hunting, and fishing areas of the refuge. They have a kids corner perfect for the little ones, with tons of activities: books, a microscope, puzzles, furs, birds that you can play the noises of, bones, a sand pit with animal footprint stamps... obviously a lot of thought went into it. There is also an auditorium where they teach classes. Near the VC are paved paths for easy hiking and a bird blind for viewing the birds without disturbing them too much. Certain areas are off limits at certain times of year, but it by no means takes away from the experience. Overall it makes for a very fun, relaxing, and perhaps...

My wife and I drove out to the wilderness area and parked at the visitor center. They have indoor restrooms and nice dioramas for educational purposes. If you are home schooling kids a day out to Lake Powell would be a great experience. We took our dogs with us to go on a 2 mile nature hike on gravel trails. WARNING the area is covered with GOATS HEAD thorns. We spent a lot of time pull thorns out of dog feet. Dogs must be on a leash and clean up after them to preserve the walk for others. Our October visit was a dud as far as birds go. No bird noises, no birds. We sported 1 large red hawk as well as ducks and geese swimming in the lake. We had an enjoyable counterclockwise driving tour around the circumference of Lake Powell that was 29 miles long. There is a 41 mile tour for those with more time. Go for landscape beauty, but bring...