Idaho might be famous for its potatoes, but there’s something far shinier hiding in its hills and rivers. Stories of lost treasures have been passed down for generations, from stolen gold bars buried by outlaws to caches hidden by miners who never returned.
Think about walking the same trails where stagecoaches once rolled, their strongboxes filled with gold destined for Salt Lake City. Somewhere near McCammon, a crooked sheriff’s loot worth millions might still lie underfoot.
These old stories are your real chances to uncover a piece of Idaho’s past, and maybe even strike it rich.
You don’t need a map marked with an “X” to start your own treasure hunt. Places like the City of Rocks or the banks of the Salmon River are packed with clues, from old mining tools to whispers of buried bullion.
Who knows? That glint in the creekbed or odd-shaped rock might be your ticket to a story worth telling for years to come.
The Hidden Treasures of Idaho Awaiting Discovery
Explore some of the most fascinating and valuable treasures still waiting to be unearthed in the state:
Portneuf Canyon Stagecoach Gold – $1,600,000+
In 1865, a stagecoach carrying gold from Montana mines rolled through Idaho’s rocky Portneuf Canyon. The area was dangerous, filled with thieves hiding in the trees.
Corrupt Ada County Sheriff “Big” Dave Updyke teamed up with outlaws Brockie Jack, Willy Whittmore, and Fred Williams to rob it. They blocked the road with boulders and attacked the coach, killing most passengers. Only one man, L.F. Carpenter, survived by pretending to be dead.
The gang stole $86,000 in gold bars and dust. They tried to escape but were hunted by vigilantes. Updyke was caught near Boise but refused to say where the gold was hidden. He died with just $50 in his pocket.
The heavy gold bars were never sold, so many think they’re still buried near the robbery site. Some say the gold is hidden near Ross Fork Creek or under old mine shafts. Others believe it’s buried in the Portneuf Wildlife Area.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The gold would now be worth over $1.6 million.
Butch Cassidy’s Bank Heist Loot – $250,000+
Butch Cassidy became famous for robbing trains, but his first big crime was a bank. In 1896, he rode into Montpelier, Idaho, with his Wild Bunch gang. They tied their horses outside the bank like regular cowboys.
Cassidy walked in alone, smiling at the teller. He pulled a gun and stole $7,000 in cash and coins. His gang kept watch outside. Townspeople didn’t realize it was a robbery until Cassidy rode off.
A posse chased them into the mountains. The gang split up, and Cassidy buried the loot somewhere along the trail. He later bragged about the heist but never said where he hid the money. Some think it’s near a creek or under a marked tree.
The old bank is now a museum. Hunters hike the backroads with metal detectors, hoping to find rusty cans filled with coins.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The stolen cash would now equal roughly $250,000.
Ed Long’s City of Rocks Treasure – $2,000,000+
Ed Long worked as a stagecoach driver in Idaho. In 1863, he teamed up with bandits to rob his own coach. They stole $100,000 in gold nuggets.
Long and his partner, Tom “Red” Jenkins, fled to the City of Rocks. This area has giant stone towers that look like a ruined city. They buried the gold under a juniper tree, planning to return later.
A posse surrounded them before they could leave. Red was shot and captured. Long died in the fight, but Red survived and escaped jail. He searched for the gold alone for years but never found it.
Today, hikers explore the strange rock formations. Some dig near trees or check cracks in the stones. A few have found old tools or buttons, but the gold remains hidden.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The cache could be worth more than $2 million today.
Chief Bigfoot’s Owyhee Treasure – $500,000+
Chief Howluck, called “Bigfoot,” was a Shoshone leader in the 1860s. His tribe fought settlers and miners invading their land. After raids, they took guns, food, and gold. Bigfoot hid these treasures to protect his people.
When U.S. soldiers attacked his camp near the Owyhee River, Bigfoot fled. He carried heavy sacks into the mountains. Legends say he buried the gold in a cave or under a pile of stones.
Bigfoot died soon after, and the secret died with him. Miners later found Shoshone artifacts in the area but no gold. The rocky cliffs and dry valleys make searching tough.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The lost gold might total $500,000 in modern value.
Plummer Gang’s Beaver Canyon Gold – $11,000,000+
Henry Plummer was a sheriff in Idaho, but he secretly led a gang of killers and thieves. In the 1860s, they robbed stagecoaches carrying gold from nearby mines. Their biggest haul was $575,000 in gold bars.
Plummer worried about getting caught. He ordered his men to bury the gold in Beaver Canyon. They marked the spot with a pile of stones. Before they could retrieve it, vigilantes arrested the gang.
Plummer was hanged in 1864. His gang members died or vanished. The treasure was forgotten until old letters hinted at its location. Many think it’s buried near an old mine shaft.
Modern hunters use maps from the 1800s. Some search at night to avoid attention. The canyon is remote, with steep walls and thick brush. Finding the gold would take luck and guts.
How much the treasure would be worth today
This fortune could now exceed $11 million.
Sunken Steamer Kootenai’s Ore – $12,000,000+
Lake Coeur d’Alene in northern Idaho was once a busy route for steamboats hauling minerals from mines. The Kootenai, a wooden-hulled steamer, carried tons of silver and gold from the Coeur d’Alene mining district to smelters.
On a foggy night in 1894, the ship hit rough waves near Stevens Point. Water flooded the cargo hold, dragging the vessel and its precious load to the lake’s bottom.
Salvage crews arrived quickly. They recovered some gold bars near the surface, but most of the heavy silver ore sank deep into the mud.
The Kootenai’s exact cargo is debated. Records mention 140 tons of silver ore and 685 pounds of gold. Some say the gold was stored in locked boxes, while the silver filled the lower deck. Treasure hunters argue the bullion might still be intact, protected by the icy lake.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The lost ore and bullion could be worth over $12 million today.
Robbers Roost Buried Gold – $9,000,000+
In the 1860s, stagecoaches carrying gold from Idaho’s mines followed the Oregon Trail through McCammon. In 1865, outlaws attacked a stage there, stealing 300 pounds of gold bars meant for a Boise bank.
The gang raced to Robbers Roost, a rocky hideout with caves and clear views of the valley. They buried the gold under a pile of stones marked with a knife slash on a nearby tree.
Days later, vigilantes stormed the hideout. Most gang members were killed, and the gold’s location died with them.
In the 1920s, a con man named A.B. Meyer sold fake maps to the treasure. Meyer fled when angry buyers realized the maps led nowhere. Today, the area around Robbers Roost is littered with old dig holes and rusted tools.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The buried gold would now be valued at nearly $9 million.
Lost Assayer’s Safe – $3,000,000+
In the 1880s, mines near the Snake River used assayers to test gold purity. One assayer loaded a heavy iron safe with raw gold nuggets and dust for transport to a bank. The safe was strapped to a wagon pulled by mules.
While crossing a wooden bridge near Twin Falls, the wagon’s axle snapped. The safe tipped into the river, sinking instantly. Divers searched for weeks but found nothing. Strong currents and shifting sand made recovery impossible.
The safe likely settled in a deep channel near the bridge’s original location. Over time, floods buried it under layers of silt. Modern hunters use underwater metal detectors, but the river’s murky water slows progress.
Some historians think the safe held over 200 pounds of gold. Others argue it contained assay records and smaller samples. Either way, its iron frame would have rusted, possibly spilling gold into the riverbed.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The safe’s contents could total over $3 million in modern value.
Jack Breen’s Hidden Gold Claim – $1,500,000+
Jack Breen, a penniless prospector, wandered Idaho’s forests in the 1880s. Near Hayden Lake, he found quartz veins speckled with gold. Breen staked a claim but lacked money to mine it. He begged investors in Coeur d’Alene saloons, drawing suspicion.
A group of miners offered to fund Breen in exchange for the claim’s location. He drunkenly described unclear landmarks. The miners jailed Breen to force answers, but a fire destroyed the jail and killed him.
Searches began soon after. Hunters found the bent pine and creek, but no gold. Over decades, storms eroded the area, burying clues under mud.
The claim’s mystery grows with time. A 1930s diary mentions a hunter finding gold nuggets near the lake, but he disappeared before sharing details.
How much the treasure would be worth today
Breen’s lost claim might hold gold worth $1.5 million today.
Sheep Wars Hidden Loot – $600,000+
In the 1880s, clashes between sheepherders and cattle ranchers turned Cassia County into a battleground. Basque herders from Spain brought flocks to graze, angering ranchers. To protect their earnings, herders hid money and jewelry in tins or pouches near Deep Creek.
One herder, Juan Etcheverry, buried $20,000 in coins after a gunfight with ranchers. Etcheverry was later killed, and the exact location faded from history. Ranchers burned campsites, scattering the herders and their treasures.
Today, the area around Deep Creek is quiet. Hunters search for rusted tins under sagebrush or near dry washes. Most finds are old bullets or broken tools, but rumors of a gold pocket watch keep hopes alive.
The loot’s small size makes it hard to find. Maps from the era show trails and springs, but the land has changed. Fences and plowed fields hide old landmarks.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The hidden valuables could now equal $600,000.
Lost Diamonds of Goose Creek – $5,000,000+
In the 1870s, miners working Idaho’s Goose Creek near McCall found more than gold. Mixed with ordinary gravel were rough, uncut diamonds and blue sapphires. The discovery shocked locals, as diamonds were rare in the region.
A prospector named Eli “Grit” Thompson reportedly gathered two bushels of these gems but feared thieves would steal them.
Thompson buried the diamonds in a leather sack near a bend in the creek. He marked the spot with a notch on a pine tree. When he returned months later, floods had washed away the tree. Searches by Thompson and others failed to find the sack.
In 1932, geologist Harold Frew claimed to have found diamond-rich gravel beds nearby. He mapped the area but died in a rockslide before sharing details. Modern hunters use Frew’s notes, focusing on a half-mile stretch of the creek.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The uncut diamonds could be valued at over $5 million today.
Buried Loot in Twin Falls County – $1,200,000+
In 1891, a stagecoach carrying payroll gold for miners was robbed near Salmon Dam. The outlaw, known only as “Red Hank,” shot the driver and fled with a heavy iron strongbox. A posse chased him across the desert to Brown’s Bench, a flat-topped mesa west of Rogerson.
Red Hank buried the strongbox under a rock pile shaped like a turtle. The posse cornered him the next day, and he died without revealing the spot. Years later, a sheepherder found the carved boulder but saw no treasure.
The strongbox likely holds 50 pounds of gold coins and bars. Iron from the box would rust, but gold survives underground.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The gold cache might total $1.2 million in modern value.
Lost Wheelbarrow Mine – $400,000+
Two prospectors named Casper and Joe found gold near Potlatch in 1887. They built a mine using a wheelbarrow made from whiskey barrel planks. The mine produced $20,000 in gold dust before the men argued over shares. Joe vanished, and Casper left, vowing to return.
Casper came back in 1901 but couldn’t find the mine. Landslides had buried the entrance. He searched until he died in 1915, leaving only a journal with rough sketches.
In 1939, loggers found a collapsed mine shaft. The mine’s coordinates (46.9975°N, 116.7833°W) are known, but the area is dense with pine trees and poison ivy. Old mine tunnels crumble easily, making exploration dangerous. Hunters sometimes find rusted tools or rotted barrel wood.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The mine’s remaining gold could exceed $400,000 today.
Lost Cherokee Gold of the Appalachians – $2,000,000+
During the 1838 Trail of Tears, Cherokee families were forced west. Stories claim some hid gold in the Appalachian Mountains to keep it from soldiers. How this tale reached Idaho is unclear, but rumors say a Cherokee group buried gold near the Salmon River.
A 1920s diary by settler Martha Cole mentions finding tribal carvings on a boulder near Challis. The carvings showed a sun symbol and arrows pointing north. Miners later found quartz veins there but no gold. Some think the carvings marked a trail to hidden treasure.
No Cherokee records mention Idaho gold, and historians doubt the connection. Still, the legend persists because of occasional gold nuggets found in odd places.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The speculated gold might be worth $2 million, though its existence remains unproven.
Mission Treasure on the Old Spanish Trail – $3,000,000+
Spanish priests explored the American West in the 1700s, seeking to convert tribes. Stories say they built a mission in Idaho and hid silver coins and religious relics. A diary from 1895 describes a settler finding an arrastra (a stone tool for crushing ore) near Silver City.
In 2016, a hiker found a rusted Spanish dagger near Elk Creek. The blade had a cross engraving, sparking rumors of a mission site. Explorers now check caves in the Owyhee Mountains for marks like crosses or dates.
Most historians say Spain never settled in Idaho. They argue the dagger could have been traded or lost later. Still, treasure hunters scan old maps for clues. Some focus on “Spanish Town,” a ghost town named after settlers from Mexico in the 1860s.
The treasure, if real, might include silver candlesticks or gold crosses. No missions have been found, but the dream of colonial riches keeps the search alive.
How much the treasure would be worth today
The mission treasure could total $3 million in today’s market.
