Your guide to Leaf Peeping in Sun Valley has arrived! Discover stands of aspens crawling up the mountains to hulking cottonwoods along the Big Wood River.
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24hrs with a Local: Sun Valley Wine Company’s Dexter & Crystal McKenzie, September
Covid and quarantine brought many new people to town, who perhaps came just to hunker down for a few weeks or months but then couldn’t imagine living elsewhere. This was the case for Dexter and Crystal McKenzie, new owners of the Wine Co. along with Crystal’s parents Gayle and Jim Phillips. Gayle and Jim have been homeowners in Ketchum for 33 years, hosting the family each Christmas for a little skiing and vacay away from Dexter and Crystal’s home in Olympia, Washington. Like every other year, the couple came to visit the Phillips in Ketchum for Christmas of 2020 to ski, but two weeks turned into four months turned into “let’s put our house on the market and move to Ketchum,” in the words of Dexter. The couple has been running an online women’s boutique and decided to look for a new opportunity in Ketchum; Gayle and Jim were retired, but were also ready for a bit of adventure. After seeing a description of a 27-year-old Ketchum business for sale and realizing it was the Wine Co., the foursome put in an offer right after another had fallen through, and in a moment of kismet, they suddenly found themselves the …
24hrs with a Local: Sun Valley Wine Auction’s Peter Burke, August
Sun Valley Museum of Art’s Peter Burke has dipped a toe into most every part of the arts there is since graduating from NYU Tisch School of the Arts years ago; he has been at SVMoA since 2018, but before that he worked as an experiential and creative producer, producing events for Google, the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, and more. He is one of the co-founders of Ketchum theater The Spot and can often be seen gracing the stage in their productions. When not in his role as Development Director and Wine Auction Director at SVMoA, he continues to teach barre classes at Zenergy, which he has done for the last eight years. As a young 30-something who grew up in and out of this Valley, Peter knows just how to have a perfect summer day, whether that’s getting inner tubes at Les Schwab to float a section of the Big Wood River or getting blocks of ice from Veltex to sled down grassy hills. Peter and his husband, Daniel, live in west Ketchum with their cat, Zelda (who can often be found sneaking into Sushi on Second searching for scraps of fish). When there is a moment of free …
24hrs with a Local: Rescue Trainer & Brewer Paul Holle, July
Paul Holle is a man about town, someone who, even if you don’t know personally, you’ve probably seen at some point, whether it’s at one of the Sawtooth Brewery locations, teaching a Wilderness First Aid class, or shuttling his children around town. After homebrewing his own ales, Holle went pro in 2012 when he helped open craft brewery Sawtooth Brewery in both Ketchum and Hailey. The next year, Holle helped start Idaho Rescue Training, which offers wilderness emergency medical courses to everyone from lay responders to outdoor professionals. He, his wife, Colleen; their two kids, 4-year-old Bryce and 8-month-old Theo; and their dog and cat live in Hailey, spending their free time taking family camping trips in the camper, rafting, hiking, and enjoying life in the Wood River Valley. In the July edition of 24hrs in Sun Valley, we’ve asked Paul to describe his perfect day. How does your perfect morning start? Paul: Sleeping in, cooking waffles with the kids, and drinking coffee. I like to put fresh berries in them and whipped cream on top. Then maybe go for a hike with the kids with the little one napping in the backpack and the four-year-old hiking at toddler speed. We …
24hrs with a Local: Wyatt Caldwell, June
The Caldwell family is well-known in the Wood River Valley; as lifetime locals, their presence can be felt in various aspects of the community, such as patriarch Will Caldwell’s art gallery that was next to the Cellar for many years and his starting of the live music event Ketch’em Alive over 20 years ago (though he’s since passed it on to the city to run). Or mom Julie Caldwell, seen at every Farmer’s Market or daily Zenergy classes. After 20 years spent as a professional snowboarder traveling the globe and taking note of some of the best film and photo practices in the sport, Wyatt Caldwell has made a name for himself both in Ketchum and in media, partnering with his brother Yancy in their company Stellar Adventure Media which creates film content for clients worldwide, often involving outdoor brands and action sports. Wyatt and his wife, Lindsey, live in Northridge where they raise their two daughters, 3-year-old Fynnly and 1-year-old Rozalyn. Growing up in Ketchum with his brother and sister, Scarlet, Wyatt and Lindsey know first-hand how important it is to expose young kids to the beauty of this Valley. They do everything they can to give their daughters …
24hrs with a Local: A Day in the Life of Otis the Dog, May
Sun Valley is a dog town. It’s impossible to walk down the street, go on a hike, or even visit someone’s office without getting a friendly greeting from Ketchum’s favorite furry residents. And many businesses and areas strive to be as dog friendly as possible, making it even more fun for our fur babies to live alongside us in this beautiful place. In the May edition of 24hrs in Sun Valley, we’ve asked local dog Otis to describe his perfect day. How does your day start? Otis: Woof! I’m very happy to be sharing my favorite day. Though all my days are my favorite in Ketchum. But after waking my mom up with my cold snout, she feeds me breakfast and takes me to the dog park where I get to run around with all my other dog friends and eat grass and drink from the river. It’s huge! Then I got to go in the car with my mom to Java. She tied me up outside and lots of people gave me pets and she came back with a puppicino for me! We both enjoyed our treats sitting outside on the deck. Many people told me I was cute. …
How to Recreate Responsibly
There’s no wonder that folks such as John Muir have been preaching the benefits of venturing to the wilderness with its fresh mountain air, views for days, free recreation, wildlife abound, and so much more. While many have been drawn to these attributes for a long while now, an influx of others are discovering the incredible offerings out there. Like anything new, there tends to be a learning curve for figuring how to do things the right way. There’s no exception for recreating. To give you a head-start and ensure that everyone heading outdoors here has a good time, it’s important to recreate responsibly which means following trail etiquette, Leave No Trace, and geotagging responsibly principles. Trail Etiquette For the majority in the Wood River Valley, their first and most frequent access to the outdoors is through the area’s vast system of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding. With so many users, trail etiquette is of the utmost important to make sure the trails stay pleasant for everyone. Stay in control Know your limits, slow down around blind turns, step to the side to let others pass when appropriate. Maintain awareness of your surroundings by keeping music volume low …
24hrs with a Local: Community School’s Patrick Graham, April
As Outdoor Program Co-Director at the Sun Valley Community School, Patrick Graham spends roughly 75–80 days out in the field each school year, leading outdoor trips for students of each grade (in addition to other, less fun duties that fall under his purview). Before joining Community School in 2015, Patrick worked as a ski guide for Sun Valley Trekking and later as a licensed backcountry ski guide and an AMGA-certified climbing and skiing guide. He’s now been in the Valley for 17 years—specifically Hailey, where he lives with his wife and three kids. Read on as we dig into Patrick’s ideal 24hrs in Sun Valley for April. What’s your perfect morning start with? Patrick: Typically, it starts with coffee. I like to just have some quiet time in the morning to get myself centered, some sort of hot beverage. When putting my best foot forward, I often times write in a journal for half an hour or so and then prepare to go skiing. Skiing on Baldy? Backcountry? Patrick: To make the most of spring skiing, my day would start before the sun came up, and I would probably transition from coffee into looking at maps and determining the route …
Women’s History Month: Women Ski Racers of Sun Valley
We’re already into the third week of March and Women’s History Month! After commemorating the vast history of the Wood River Valley, starting with the Indigenous Peoples and then focusing on the early settlers with ties to the mining and ranching industries, it’s time to focus on those women who made fame with their ski racing careers. Ski racing has been central to the Sun Valley/Ketchum community since the inception of the resort in 1936, and we’re proud to boast numerous Olympic medalist women with ties to the area. These women represent the trailblazing spirit of Sun Valley and Ketchum and have impacted the history for women in sports for years to come. Gretchen Fraser Gretchen Fraser, born in 1919 and laid to rest in the Ketchum cemetery in 1994, was the first American to win an Olympic gold medal in skiing. She grew up in Washington, but came to call Sun Valley home in 1938 when she met her soon to be husband, Donald Fraser. Although both Gretchen and Donald were members of the 1940 Olympics team, the games were canceled due to WWII. Gretchen took that time to help rehabilitate wounded veterans through skiing, something she would continue …
Women’s History Month: Early Women of the Wood River Valley
For the second week of Women’s History Month, we are honoring four women who have shaped the history and heritage of Sun Valley. These ladies have all had an impact on the Wood River Valley, dating back to before the establishment of the ski resort and through its early years. Two of these women were integral in establishing the Community Library in 1955. They, along with 14 other trailblazing women, “founded the Community Library Association, a privately-funded, privately-governed public library to encourage intellectual and creative adventures in the remote mountains of central Idaho,” (ComLib). All four women contributed to the pioneer spirit of the Valley, fostering a momentum for woman-led innovation that is alive to this day. Marge Brass Heiss 1910-2007 Marge Brass Heiss, daughter of Ernest Brass, was born in Caldwell, Idaho in 1910. She moved to Ketchum two years later when her father bought what became known as the Brass Ranch until the family sold the land to the Union Pacific in 1936. He traded 3,888 acres for $39,000, and Sun Valley was born. In fact, Marge, along with her sister Roberta, gave a tour of their ranch property to Count Felix Schaffgatsch. Within a few months of …