It’s All Waiting for You in Idaho!
While still relatively unknown for its’ amazing skiing, Idaho has a long and storied ski past with 2026 being their 102nd anniversary of ski operations. 102 years ago, Idaho’s first ski area took shape as Blackwell’s Jump. According to “Ski the Great Potato: Idaho”* it was created for the inaugural McCall Winter Carnival, Jan. 24, 1924, and was maintained and operated through 1937. This marked the start of a skiing revolution that transformed small-town hills into world-class destinations. You may ask, “Why Idaho?”. Here’s why:
Idaho is uncrowded – Even on holidays and weekends lift lines with more than a 10 min wait are rare. Idaho offers a range of reasons to ski there. There are 19 Ski Areas with epic terrain. You’ll find a total of 29,000 vertical feet on over 22,000 skiable acres. From smaller, very affordable “breeder and feeder” ski areas to larger areas offering on mountain lodging; you’ll find a range of additional activities including cross country skiing, night skiing, award-winning restaurants, sledding, horse-drawn sleigh rides, indoor water parks, spas, skating, guided snowshoeing tours and more.
Resorts offering on mountain lodging include Schweitzer, Silver, Tamarack, Sun Valley and Grand Targhee. Many others have lodging (and relationships) with lodging partners in nearby towns including Lookout, Brundage, Bogus, Soldier, Pebble Creek and Kelly Canyon.
Beginners will find amazing programs and lesson packages at Rotarun, Bald Mountain, Pomerelle, Cottonwood Butte, Snowhaven and Little Ski Hill. Over half offering an extremely affordable daily lift ticket under $70. Please check out the comparison page at https://skiidaho.us/compare
There’s natural beauty with epic views all around. Schweitzer offers views of three states plus Canada. Grand Targhee offers spectacular views of the Grand Tetons (I know because I’ve been there). Silver has the longest gondola in North America with epic views of the Silver Valley. Sun Valley, perhaps Idaho’s best known resort, has 250 sunny days a year. Brundage boasts stunning views of nearby mountain ranges and Payette Lake. Tamarack offers similar views of Cascade Lake.
Bringing the kids along? Fifth graders can ride 18 mountains, three times each for only $29, sixth graders can ride two times each with the purchase of a 5th /6th grade Peak Season Passport.
Idaho enjoys high snowfall averages at all of its major resorts. And you can visit many of them in one trip. Idaho has six regions with two or more ski areas within easy distance of one another.
Idaho is served by two major airports: Spokane WA (GEG) and Boise (BOI). Additionally, we have four regional airports in Idaho Falls (IDA); Sun Valley (SUN), Pocatello (PIH) and Magic Valley (TWF). Please check out the Ski Idaho travel page at https://skiidaho.us/traveling-to-idaho for more detail or click on the Idaho banner ad and be sure to Visit Idaho.
*“Ski Areas Past and Present” by Margaret Fuller, Doug Fuller, and Jerry Painter.
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Please don’t talk about Idaho skiing too much. The low numbers of people are just fine like they are. You should all go to Colorado or Utah, your friends will be way more impressed.