Camp Last Light — elk at sunset above the campfire

Joseph Plains, Idaho · Private & Off-Grid · Est. 2026

Camp above the elk. Watch the sun go down over Hells Canyon.

A private, off-grid campground perched high above the confluence of the Salmon and Snake rivers, in elk, mule deer, black bear, and bighorn sheep country — built by hunters, for hunters, and anyone chasing a little more dark sky.

Reserve Your Stay Explore Unit 13 & Beyond

Joseph Plains · Idaho County, ID · Hells Canyon Country

Who's Keeping the Fire

Eric & Veronica

Camp Last Light is a family operation—not a brand built by a company. Eric and Veronica live off-grid on the Plains year-round, and they built the camp on the same stretch of ground they love to hunt.

They are hunters first. Before moving to Idaho full-time, Veronica worked as a hunting guide in Montana, where she first met Eric. She is a skilled and passionate outdoorswoman who is just as comfortable skinning a mule deer or a black bear as she is making a batch of delicious pastries.

Eric is Harvard-educated and has practiced law for more than 20 years, but he places far more value on his ability to stalk wildlife, catch fish, and forage for mushrooms than on his professional credentials. A lifelong hunter and fisherman, he knows this country because he lives on it, hunts it, and spends countless hours exploring it.

Come spring, they're fanatical about one thing above all else: turkey season. Eric and Veronica chase gobblers through the breaks with the same intensity they bring to elk camp every fall.

Guests at Camp Last Light get Eric and Veronica's honest, firsthand read on the wind, weather, and where the elk and other wildlife have been moving that week—not information pulled from a brochure, but knowledge that comes from living on and spending time in this country every day.

"We built the kind of camp we always wished existed when we rolled in at last light, half-frozen, with an elk still to quarter."— Eric & Veronica

Eric and Veronica, owners of Camp Last Light, overlooking the Salmon River breaks at sunset

The Grounds

Rustic, off-grid, and built for hunters.

Primitive Tent & Rig Sites

Level ground tucked back in the timber, fire rings included, and room enough to hang and quarter an elk, mule deer, or black bear.

Room to Process Game

Open ground and a meat pole near each site, so there's no scrambling for space after a pack-out.

Dark, Quiet Nights

No light pollution for miles — just camp, the canyon, and more stars than you've seen in years.

Pack In, Pack Out

We keep this ground the way we found it — haul out what you haul in.

No water on site — plan to pack in what you need. Site counts, current pricing, and seasonal access dates are confirmed directly with Eric & Veronica — see "Reserve Your Stay" below.

Hunting Unit 13 & the Hells Canyon Country

You're camped in the middle of it.

Camp Last Light sits inside Idaho Unit 13, in Idaho County's Clearwater Region — bounded by the Snake River to the west and the Salmon River to the east and north. Unit 13 forms the Hells Canyon Elk Zone together with neighboring Units 11 and 18, one of the more rugged and storied elk-hunting corners of the state. Terrain runs from open Joseph Plains rangeland down through breaks timber into the canyon country itself.

Unit 13 is best known for its Rocky Mountain elk and mule deer, but it's genuinely wide-open ground: black bear and mountain lion prowl the same breaks timber, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep work the canyon rims, and gray wolf are present throughout. Lower down, chukar, forest and sage-grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, gray partridge, quail, and pheasant fill the upland-bird tags, with ducks, geese, coots, and snipe along the river bottoms. Come spring, Units 11 and 18 next door add wild turkey to the mix — a favorite of Eric and Veronica's.

Elk Mule & Whitetail Deer Black Bear Mountain Lion Bighorn Sheep Rocky Mountain Goat Gray Wolf Wild Turkey Chukar & Upland Birds Waterfowl

Hells Canyon Elk Zone — Units 11, 13 & 18
Unit	Where	Terrain	Big Game	Worth Knowing
13Home Unit	Idaho County — Snake River (west), Salmon River (east & north)	53% forest / 47% rangeland; no designated wilderness	Elk, Deer, Black Bear, Mtn. Lion, Bighorn Sheep, Wolf	71.5% private land — the most accessible ground of the three Plus forest & sage-grouse, chukar, pheasant, quail, waterfowl
11	Nez Perce / Lewis / Idaho counties	~54% dryland farmland, rest rangeland & draws	Elk, Deer, Bighorn Sheep, Wild Turkey	Camas Prairie grain country breaking into canyon draws
18	Idaho / Adams counties	71% forest, incl. Hells Canyon Wilderness	Elk, Deer, Rocky Mtn. Goat, Bighorn Sheep, Wild Turkey	56,535 acres of wilderness — the steepest ground of the three

Bighorn sheep and mountain goat are limited-entry controlled hunts requiring a drawn permit, and general-season structures, dates, and tag rules shift every year. Always confirm current seasons and drawing odds on Idaho Fish & Game's Unit 13 Hunt Planner and the statewide Big Game Seasons & Rules brochure before you plan a trip.

Plan Your Stay

Reserve your ground at Camp Last Light.

Online booking is on its way. Until then, reach Eric & Veronica directly — tell them your dates and party size and they'll hold your site.

Request to Book

info@camplastlight.com · Joseph Plains, Idaho