McCall’s Best Hike Takes You to an Abandoned World War II Plane

For many, Summer 2021 is going to be the summer of "yes" and this should, hands down, be one of the first adventures you say "yes" to! 

If there's one thing that the last fifteen months has taught us, it's to not take the opportunity to do cool things in Idaho for granted. After sticking close to home last summer, you're just itching to get out and explore. If that plan includes a trip up 55 to relax in McCall and you like hiking, set aside a day to hike the "Loon Lake Trail."

With over 500 miles of public trails, 300 lakes and 1,400 miles of streams, it's no surprise that the McCall Chamber has nicknamed their little corner of Idaho "Hiker's Paradise." The 10-13 mile round trip hike offers you the opportunity to see something that no other hikes in Idaho can, the wreckage site of an abandoned B-23 "Dragon Bomber" fighter plane.

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According to the placard placed at the wreckage site, on January 29, 1943 this particular was already low on fuel while trying to handle heaving icing. It crash landed at Loon Lake. The pilot and eight airmen on board survived, but it took nearly three weeks for all of them to be rescued from the raging blizzard.

Five of them stayed in the lean-to they built at Loon Lake and survived on woodpeckers, a squirrel and chocolate rations that they had on board the plane. The other three, including one with a broken kneecap, hiked over 35 miles in waist deep snow before finally finding a phone to call McCall for help.

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So, how do you get there? According to All Trails, hikers usually start at the Chinook Campground and loop across the campground bridge to Loon Lake and come back over the CCC Bridge. There's a trail that will take you around the east side of Loon Lake to the crash site. You can see their directions, waypoints and tips from others who've done the hike HERE!