If you have ever visited the Sun Valley area, chances are there is at least one image of our breathtaking locale in your Instagram feed. Or maybe you haven’t visited yet but hashtags like #seeksunvalley on our @Instagram page have caught your attention and have drawn you into exploring this amazing place. Whether you are a seasoned visitor or a first timer, we complied a list of the must see places in and around Sun Valley to fill your Instagram feed with the best there is to offer. The Sun Valley Barn An icon of Sun Valley, many a photo has been taken in front of this barn and numerous reproductions of it in paintings and memorabilia have been made over the years. Located on Sun Valley Road between Ketchum and Sun Valley, the red barn is hard to miss. Built in the early 1880s, its thought that this barn used to service ore wagons that traveled Trail Creek Road. Speaking of, swing by the Ore Wagon Museum for some more history and to grab a few grams there too. Across Sun Valley Road from the barn is a stop many make to photograph the beautiful horses that are occasionally …
What We’re Made Of: Graphic Designer Cara Shumate
written by Hayden Seder Even if you’re never heard her name, you’ve surely seen the work of graphic designer Cara Shumate, whose digital fingerprints are all over the Wood River Valley. From Tim’s Electric to the Board Bin, Johnny G’s, Gather Yoga, and so much more, her branding and designs have helped many of the area’s most beloved businesses rebrand in the last few years, calling upon Cara’s unique blend of extensive design experience and just overall radness, which translate into branding and designs that businesses young and old covet. Before moving to Sun Valley in 2009, Cara Shumate spent nearly ten years in Tahoe snowboarding and waiting tables before realizing she needed a change. After visiting Sun Valley for 48 Straight, the now-defunct multiday ski and music event, she met someone from Smith Optics who mentioned a potential internship. During that weekend, the community resonated with her, and she eventually made the move. Though the internship didn’t work out, she would eventually work for Smith Optics down the road—but not before working at several restaurants, then Sun Valley Magazine and Scott Sports. “It was not linear, but it worked, and it solidified my roots here.” How She Got …
5 Reasons Why Sun Valley Summers Shine
With the mountains in full bloom, a bevy of outdoor pursuits, and a seemingly endless array of festivals and special events, they make it their mission to ensure each weekend is more epic than the last. With plenty of room in the suitcase without the bulky boots and winter gear, get ready for playtime because there is no off-season in Sun Valley’s mountainous backyard.
Fall Festivals You Have to See
From iconic music to herds of sheep running down Main Street, Sun Valley’s festivals are designed to delight your senses. We invite you to experience how we celebrate fall in the mountains. But be careful, you may just find it hard to leave.
Ballet in Sun Valley, Idaho
When you think of Sun Valley, ballet is probably not at the top of your mind. We’re here to tell you why it should be.
Get Excited About the Sun Valley Food & Wine Celebration
words by Hayden Seder Now back for its fourth year, the annual Sun Valley Food & Wine Celebration is the area’s premier food and wine event. The brainchild of the Sun Valley Culinary Institute (SVCI), which offers affordable, professional culinary education, the Sun Valley Food & Wine Celebration is five days of VIP experiences and public events, including the gala opening dinner, private chef dinners, cooking classes, demonstrations, tastings, lectures, and more. Join SVCI January 27–31, 2026, for an unforgettable culinary experience. The Chefs Each year, SVCI is thrilled to welcome exciting new chefs as well as the return of favorite culinary masters to the Sun Valley Food & Wine Celebration, which has seen the likes of James Beard Award Winners, Chopped champions, Tournament of Champions participants, acclaimed restaurateurs, and Food Network celebrity chefs. This year’s lineup of seventeen chefs is no exception, and includes Barton Seaver, one of the world’s leading sustainable seafood experts and educators; James Beard Award nominee Brother Luck, nationally recognized for his appearances on Top Chef, Chopped, and Beat Bobby Flay; and Kelsey Barnard Clark, the fifth woman and first southerner to win the title of Bravo’s Top Chef and a 2024 James Beard Award …
What We’re Made Of: Satori Sake
Written by Hayden Seder In a small garage space by the airport in Hailey is the production facility for Idaho’s first sake brewery: Satori Sake. While the Wood River Valley may not seem like the most obvious place to launch a sake business, for owner and brewmaster Shin Hasegawa, quitting his job in tech, moving to the Wood River Valley, and tapping into his Japanese heritage ended up being a “satori” moment for him—and one that sake lovers in Southern Idaho have responded to with enthusiasm. How It Started Like so many others who move to the Wood River Valley, Shin was looking for a change. After leaving his home of Tokyo, where he trained as a sushi chef, he moved to California and worked as a sushi chef before eventually relocating to the Bay Area to work in tech. Though he had left Japan, he brought a piece of home with him, through making fermented foods at home: beer, kombucha, miso paste, soy sauce, and kimchi. Eventually, he quit his job and moved to Ketchum in 2020, unsure what his next move was. His “satori” moment (satori is the Japanese Buddhist experience of awakening) came on the chairlift, when …
What Not to Miss at the 29th Annual Trailing of the Sheep Festival
Aside from the brilliant transitioning leaves, The Trailing of the Sheep Festival is the highlight of Sun Valley’s fall season. Celebrating sheep and sheep herding traditions, Trailing of the Sheep offers a unique glimpse in to a part of Idaho’s past. Five days of dancing, music, wool classes, lamb dinners, sheep dog trials, and the famous Big Sheep Parade will tantalize the spectrum of senses.
What We’re Made Of: Kika MacFarlane
There’s a good chance you haven’t heard the name Kika MacFarlane, but you’ve likely seen her work in various spots across the Wood River Valley. The art director, designer, illustrator, and animator based out of Hailey has worked with various local companies and businesses, creating such fun works as the mural on the backside of Sturtevant’s in Hailey, a colorful bench that sits outside The Wylde Beet restaurant as well as a T-shirt for them, the art wrap for The Community Library’s bookmobile, posters for the Alpine Ski World Cup, or the new logo and branding for local women’s mountain bike apparel Wild Rye. After studying design and liberal arts, Kika went on to design graphics in-house for Patagonia and Stio, then eventually cofounded her own studio, Two Toes Creative (with cofounder Tala Schlossberg, who lives in New York) where she makes animated videos, designs for purpose-driven brands, and leads creative retreats. Prior to moving to the Wood River Valley three years ago, Kika was based in another mountain town, Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Though Jackson had a similar vibe to Ketchum, her and her then boyfriend (now husband), who grew up in the area, felt ready for a change and …
Sun Valley: A Place for Flannel-Loving Hipsters
Within a day’s drive of trend-setting Portland, and with the help of nonstop flights into Hailey’s SUN airport, big-town hipster culture has permeated the west. The influence of well-read, big-rimmed glasses-wearing and flannel-loving thirty-something’s has even infiltrated the small resort town of Sun Valley. Here, microbreweries, handcrafted cocktails, great coffee and beard-trimming locations abound, making the trend-adverse hipster, feel at home. Take a walk in a pair of Birkenstocks, and try out Sun Valley, “hipster-style”.