Where to Find Agate in Idaho
Idaho agate is built on three classic localities. Bruneau agate, from the Bruneau River canyon in Owyhee County, is a green-and-white banded chalcedony with a distinctive fortification pattern, eroded from rhyolite cliffs along the canyon. Graveyard Point plume agate, on the Idaho-Oregon line in Malheur and Owyhee counties, yields red and green plume chalcedony in welded tuff. The Spencer opal mines in Clark County add common and precious opal alongside opalized agate. Smaller showings of moss and dendritic agate occur along the Snake River breaks. Most Idaho agate ground is on BLM land with daily personal-use collecting limits.
Spot list checked against source data on April 1, 2026.
Every agate spot we track in Idaho
Best spotLittle Wood RiverBlaine County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper- Best spotParker MountainLemhi County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Chalcedony
Ada CountyAda County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper +2- LewistonNez Perce County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Aquamarine, Garnet +2
- Clearwater RiverNez Perce County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Jasper, Chert +1
Salmon RiverIdaho County, IdahoPermission required · Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper +1- Bruneau DesertOwyhee County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Chalcedony, Jasper
- Graveyard PointOwyhee County, IdahoCheck locally · Plume Agate, Moss Agate, Agate
- CascadeValley County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Petrified Wood
- HomedaleOwyhee County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Plume Agate
- Homedale (area)Owyhee County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Petrified Wood
- Malm GulchCuster County, IdahoPublic access · Agate, Petrified Wood
- Red Hills AgateButte County, IdahoPublic access · Chalcedony, Agate
- SweetGem County, IdahoPublic access · Agate
Standout agate spots in Idaho
Hand-picked from the full list above, with the reason each one earns a trip.
Little Wood River
Blaine County
Little Wood River is the strongest Blaine County pick because the same drainage is listed for green and moss agate by Idaho Department of Lands and has Mindat specimen records from the Little Wood Reservoir area.
Parker Mountain
Lemhi County
Parker Mountain gives Lemhi County a documented agate and chalcedony locality outside the crowded southern Idaho fields.
Best counties for agate in Idaho
Ranked by the number of mapped agate spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.
Before you go
Read the agate identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Agate in the encyclopedia.
Agate in Idaho FAQ
Where can you find agate in Idaho?+
How many agate spots are mapped in Idaho?+
Is it legal to collect agate in Idaho?+
Where else to find agate
More minerals to hunt in Idaho
Hunt agate in Idaho with the map in your pocket
RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.
