Boise Idaho Temple

The Boise Idaho Temple

My 19th Temple

The Boise Temple is located at 1211 S Cole Rd in Boise.  It was dedicated in 1984, and then rededicated twice -- in 1987 and again in 2012 after extensive remodeling.  

My daughter and I went on an Idaho Temple Tour in 2025 and the Boise Temple was one of the temples that we attended.  We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn, which is actually very close to the Meridian Temple.  We ate at the Olive Garden, which is only 4 minutes away from the Meridian Temple.  

My daughter and I noticed that the inside of the Boise Temple reminds us a great deal of Pemberley from Pride & Prejudice.  It is very regal, with deep wood and in a lot of ways reminded me of the Provo City Center Temple inside.  My favorite part about the temple is the painting of Hannah, which is inside the female initiatory office.  It was painted by Jenedy Paige.  I haven't been able to find the painting online, but it is beautiful.  Hannah is kneeling in front of Eli and looking up at him.  A temple worker told me that Jenedy's father was the model for Eli, and that he was not active in the Church at the temple.  She wanted very much for her family to be eternal.  She attended a church event where Elder Holland was in attendance. When she met him, he said that she could have anything she wanted.  A few years later her dad was a temple worker in the Ogden Temple, and worked there until the day he died, and her dreams of an eternal family had come true.  This same painting of Hannah is in the Fort Collins Temple.  Jenedy had lost a little boy at the age of three in a drowning accident.  She would have felt a special kinship with Hannah in her longing for a child.  The temple worker who told me about the painting said she'd asked if it was all right to share these stories with others, and she encouraged her to do so.  

The first time I attended the Boise Temple was in 2009.  My roommates from my days at Ricks College and I decided to have a roommate reunion in Boise where my roommate April lived.  So I drove from Wyoming, picked Amy up in Idaho Falls, and we all met in Boise.  Mary drove from Oregon to meet us.  We had a great time together!  We ate dinner at the Olive Garden and we stayed in a hotel together.  We also attended the Boise Temple together.  Boise was my 19th temple. 

My daughter and I attended the temple again in 2016 when we were in Idaho for a Suzuki violin camp.  That was the first time I had seen the remodeled temple.  Below are photos of the before and after - some from 2009, some from 2016, and some from 2025.  

The fountain at the Boise Temple

My Ricks College Roommates and I at the Boise Temple in 2009 before the temple was remodeled

Rebecca and I on the Boise Temple grounds in 2016

Rebecca at the Boise Temple in 2016

Lizzie and I at the Boise Temple in 2025

Twin Falls Idaho Temple

The Twin Falls Temple, in 2023.  The Twin Falls Idaho Temple was my 20th Temple, in 2009.

The Twin Falls Temple is located at 1405 Eastland Dr N in Twin Falls, Idaho.  It was dedicated in 2008.  It was my 20th Temple in 2009.  I've been to this temple a few times. In 2009, my roommates from my time at Rick's College decided to have a roommate reunion!  We decided to meet in Boise, so I went to Idaho Falls and picked up my roommate Amy, and we traveled together to Boise.  We met up with April and Mary there and had a great time hanging out again!  On our way home from Boise, Amy and I stopped in Twin Falls and attended the Twin Falls Idaho Temple.  A few years later, my husband James and I visited Twin Falls again and attended the temple.  We visited Twin Falls rather than Shoshone Falls on this trip.  I took both of my daughters on Idaho Temple Tours after they were endowed, my daughter Rebecca in 2023 and my daughter Lizzie in 2025.     

My favorite thing about the Twin Falls Temple is the beautiful mural of the Shoshone Falls in the endowment room.  Rebecca and I were in a very large session and I was the very last person to leave the room, so I got to stand and admire the mural for a few moments.  This temple reminds me very much of the Brigham City Temple.  It also has a chandelier in the Celestial room that I think may be the most beautiful chandelier that I have ever seen! I also like that you progress from the endowment room into the Terrestrial Room in this temple.  It is fun to have a change of scenery during the endowment.  

While Rebecca and I were in Twin Falls, we visited both the Shoshone Falls and the Perrine Bridge, which is the most famous bridge in Idaho.  I am afraid of heights, and I had a hard time at both places.  The overlook for the Shoshone Falls is on a platform, which does have a railing and is perfectly safe, but I was still pretty scared.  If you haven't been there to see the falls, though, you should make the trip and venture down to the platform even if you are afraid of heights!  I found out later that there was another viewpoint of the Shoshone Falls that we could have gone to that probably would not have felt quite as scary to me.  

Perrine Bridge was beautiful.  Rebecca dared to walk on the bridge, and she said that when cars would drive past she could feel the bridge sway.  I walked out on the bridge just far enough to take a selfie, and the rest of the time I was content to stay safely on the side or underneath the bridge.  While we were there, people were paragliding off the bridge, which looked pretty awesome but also terrifying! We didn't go to see Twin Falls, which is actually just one waterfall, on this trip but it sounds like it is only running sometimes because the power company keeps it shut down most of the year.  There are a lot of waterfalls in Twin Falls.

When Lizzie and I went on our temple tour in 2025, we visited Shoshone Falls and also Twin Falls.  Then we went to a new waterfall that I had never been to before -- Perrine Coulee Falls.  The really fun thing about this waterfall is that you can stand below it!  You can either hike to it on the official trail, or you can park at a pull-out on the winding road that leads to the hiking trail and just climb over the barrier in the road and climb down a very easy trail to stand under the falls.  I got a bit wet standing under there, but it was totally worth it!  We also visited the Perrine Bridge again and watched more paragliders jumping off.   The most exciting part of visiting all the waterfalls was that when we visited Shoshone Falls, we found an arch!  It's the Shoshone Falls Arch, and I didn't even realize it was there.  We just happened to find it as we were looking at the different waterfalls.  It is near the restrooms at the viewpoint area.

All of these sites are pretty close together and easy to access.  It doesn't take very long to see all of them.  To visit the Twin Falls, which is actually only one water fall because a power plant is there now controlling the water and they've closed off one of the falls, just put "Twin Falls Park" in your google maps and it should take you there.  It is only 3 miles from Shoshone Falls.  

2025

2025

2009

2023

The fountain with "twin falls"

Things to See in the Area

The five sites are all marked on this map as "want to go" green flags.  They are all close to each other:  The Twin Falls Temple, Perrine Memorial Bridge, Perrine Coulee Falls, Shoshone Falls, and Twin Falls.

Twin Falls

Twin Falls Park is located here:  Google Maps Location

James in 2012 at Twin Falls

Twin Falls in 2012

Twin Falls in 2025

Shoshone Falls

Here is where Shoshone Falls is located:  Google Maps Location

2025

At the edge of the lookout people have thrown hair bands, coins, and etc.

Rebecca at Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls Idaho, 2023

waterfall adjacent to Shoshone Falls

The two waterfalls on top are called Bridal Veil on the left, and Brides Maid (or Train) on the right.  Below them the large waterfall is called Bridal Falls.

These waterfall are to the right of Bridal Falls and are called the Two Graces (2 on the left) and the Sentinel (on the right)

Rebecca standing at the viewpoint taking a photo of the waterfall adjacent to Shoshone Falls.  I have not been able to discover what the name of the other waterfall is.

Rebecca on the edge of the overlook

Snake River Canyon

Shoshone Falls Arch

The location of Shoshone Falls Arch:  Google Maps Location

A historical photo of someone standing on the arch, before all the trees and fence blocked the view of the arch.  I wish I could have seen it back then!

Perrine Memorial Bridge

Perrine Bridge is located at:  Google Maps Location

view of Snake River Canyon from the Perrine Bridge overlook

Perrine Bridge with paragliders about to jump

Paragliders descending from the Perrine Bridge

Rebecca walking on the Perrine Bridge

Rebecca up on top of the bridge, 2023

Rebecca on the bridge in 2023

underneath the bridge

2023

The other side of the bridge

Snake River Canyon

on top of the Perrine Bridge

the walkway on the Perrine Bridge

the Perrine Bridge overlook

on the bridge

This is as far as I dared to go on the bridge.  My fear of heights took over

Rebecca and I on the Perrine Bridge

Rebecca and I at the bridge overlook, 2023

view from the overlook

Rebecca and I under the bridge

Paragliders off the Perrine Bridge:

More paragliders off the Perrine Bridge:

Panoramic view of Shoshone Falls:

Perrine Coulee Falls

The Perrine Coulee Falls are located at:  Google Maps Location

This is the barrier on the road that you climb over to get down to the water fall

Video of Coulee Falls:

Where to Stay

We stayed at the Hampton Inn in Twin Falls, which was only a few minutes from the temple.  We ate at Cold Stone ice cream the evening before we went to the temple the next morning.  It was pretty close to both the hotel and the temple.  The temple is only a short drive to Shoshone Falls and Twin Falls, as well as the Perrine Bridge and Perrine Coulee Falls.  The address of the Hampton is at 1658 Fillmore Street in Twin Falls.

Amy and I in 2009