Every spring, the Sun Valley, Idaho area transforms from a skiing and snowboarding Mecca into a lush, wildflower-filled valley with miles of hiking and biking trails in the surrounding five mountain ranges. From mellow loops skirting lakes and rivers, to 12,000-foot rocky mountain peaks, there are plenty of hiking trails to please all levels of hikers throughout Hailey, Ketchum, Sun Valley and beyond.
Your Guide to the Holidays in Sun Valley, Idaho
The holidays in Sun Valley are magical, and these are just a few of the festive moments that await this holiday season. Don’t know where to start? We’ve compiled your 2018 guide of must-see events and happenings from Christmas festivities to rock-the-house New Year’s shenanigans!
3 Best Ways to Maximize Hiking in Sun Valley
With hundreds of miles of trail within easy reach of downtown, Ketchum and Sun Valley are a hiker’s paradise. The Wood River Valley is fenced in by the Smoky, Boulder and Pioneer Mountains and within an hour drive lies the Sawtooth, White Cloud and Lost River mountain ranges, each boasting their own unique hiking experiences. Views will have you channeling your inner Ansel Adams, with wildlife sightings virtually guaranteed. The best ways to maximize your hiking experience is to check out some local guide experiences, read up on some of our blogs, and educate yourself on trail etiquette. Guide Services Guides are the best way to take all the leg work out of deciding where to hike and puts the leg work on the trails. There are plenty of guides across the valley with decades of local knowledge and all the best spots to go at any time of year! Beyond just dodging the crowds, Guides are also a vital resource for trail stewardship and etiquette. With more and more visitors venturing to the outdoors to take advantage of the trails, they may feel busier than normal. Guided hiking trips and shuttles to your favorite trailheads are available for any …
Maximizing Shoulder Season in Sun Valley
Slack season is one of the secret times in Sun Valley. It’s a uniquely quiet moment when the crowds are gone, the hills are lush with greenery and the opportunities for spring rejuvenation are calling. We’ve compiled a go-to guide of how to maximize this unknown gem of a season that is spring in Sun Valley.
3 Reasons to Travel to Sun Valley for Opening Day
If you’ve never experienced an Opening Day in Sun Valley—don’t you think it’s about time? Here are 3 reasons to travel to Sun Valley for this double-holiday.
Local Beta for Planning Your Ski Trip to Sun Valley
If powdery slopes and mountain living is just what the doctor ordered, look no further than a trip to Sun Valley. With luxurious accommodations, perfect grooming, plentiful après activities, and unique off-mountain experiences, Sun Valley has everything you need to make it a weekend to remember.
Sun Valley + IKON Pass
No matter how much you might love your home mountain, there are always other resorts to try out. And if you’re a powder hound, you might just spend your winters hopping from ski hill to ski hill, going where the meteorologist says the next dump will hit. This kind of winter adventuring is a heck of a lot easier with the IKON Pass, a multi-resort ski and snowboard season pass that gives you access to a whopping 50 resort destinations across five continents, 10 countries, 15 states, and four Canadian provinces. The 2023–2024 season, marked the first year that the Sun Valley Resort was a part of the Ikon Pass, adding itself to the list of iconic mountains one can experience as a pass holder. Sun Valley also joined the Mountain Collective Pass for the 2023-2024 season. Sun Valley is no longer on the EPIC Pass. For the 2024-2025 season, Sun Valley continues to be on the IKON Pass & Mountain Collective Pass. What Are the IKON Pass Offerings? For the 2024-2025 season, the original namesake IKON Pass gets you unlimited access at 17 destinations and up to seven days each at 42 destinations. Included in those 17 with …
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 …
One Activity Day- Biking
Written By Hayden Seder Summer may be over, but fall is the best time for biking anyway: With the summer crowds gone, roads, paths, and trails are easier to navigate and the cooler, damper air makes the trails that much grippier and easier to rip! Morning: Fuel Up If you’re hoping to make the most of your bike-themed day, a hearty breakfast is the first order of business. Make a quick stop at Wrap City for one of their several breakfast wraps (the most basic of which, the Sunnyside, is eggs, bacon, and cheese, with each wrap adding on to these basic ingredients) that you can take on the go so you can get on the trails! For coffee, stop by Lizzie’s on your way north to the Adam’s Gulch trailhead. Mountain Biking: Adam’s Gulch For your first bike foray of the day, head to the Adam’s Gulch Trailhead, located about one mile north of Ketchum. There are numerous trails within Adam’s Gulch itself, but there’s also the ability to connect to all kinds of other trail systems, making this the perfect spot for all manner of biker to dip a toe into the plethora of mountain bike rides in …
A Runner’s Tour of the Sun Valley Area
With hundreds of summer trails and plowed paths throughout the winter, the Sun Valley, Idaho area boasts a year-round running season and community to boot. A known mecca for skiers and riders alike, the area triples as a high altitude runner’s paradise. Try any run on this list for inspiring views and challenging routes, just remember to calibrate your pacing to at least 6000 feet of elevation.
