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Oct 06, 2023

Idaho ski areas offer summer biking, disc golf, adventure courses

Grand Targhee Resort offers 2,200 vertical feet of lift-served downhill, 17

Grand Targhee Resort offers 2,200 vertical feet of lift-served downhill, 17 miles of downhill trails, more than 70 miles of multi-use trails for biking and hiking and trail running, and a mountain bike school.

Eleven Idaho ski areas offer summertime mountain biking, eight of the operations are lift-served all season, many are debuting new trails this season, and three destinations – the Route of the Hiawatha, Silver Mountain Resort and Soldier Mountain – opened their bike trails Memorial Day weekend.

The lifts will start turning at Brundage Mountain Resort, Grand Targhee Resort, Tamarack Resort and Schweitzer on June 16. Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area will kick off its summer season June 23, and Pomerelle Mountain Resort and Sun Valley Resort will begin summer operations on July 1. Lookout Pass Ski and Recreation Area has not announced an opening date, but it will not offer lift-served mountain biking this summer.

Highlights this summer include a new three-story Aerial Adventure Course at Bogus Basin, a new mountain-biking school at Brundage Mountain Resort and a new trail connecting its network to Bear Basin, an additional 5 miles of trails and more self-loading chairlift bike trays at Tamarack.

The Route of the Hiawatha, which Lookout Pass Ski and Recreation Area operates under a special-use permit from the Forest Service, opened May 26. Considered the crown jewel of the nation's rails-to-trails initiative, the family friendly bike trail celebrated its 25th anniversary last summer and will operate seven days a week through Sept. 17.

Close to the historic town of Wallace, the 15-mile Route of the Hiawatha's gentle 1.6% to 2%, all-downhill ride straddles the Idaho-Montana state line, delves 10 tunnels, crosses seven sky-high train trestles and has a shuttle service back to the top. Attracting just under 70,000 riders each summer, the Route of the Hiawatha is by far the most popular ski area bike trail in the country.

Full-moon night rides are planned for June 3, July 3, Aug. 1, and Aug. 30 by reservation only. In fact, the Route of the Hiawatha strongly encourages guests to make reservations for the day they want to ride – especially when renting equipment.

Meanwhile, Lookout Pass will offer scenic chairlift rides up and down the mountain, but the ski area will not offer lift-served mountain biking this summer. Its five family friendly woodland hiking trails and the mountain summit nine-hole frisbee golf course will remain open, and guests can pick huckleberries later in the season.

Lookout Pass will operate Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays through Labor Day, Sept. 4, but the ski area has not announced an opening date yet.

Visit SkiLookout.com and RideTheHiawatha.com for more details.

In nearby Kellogg, Silver Mountain Resort will begin summer weekend operations – which include mountain biking and scenic rides on North America's longest gondola – May 27-29. Daily operations commence June 16 and run through Labor Day, Sept. 4. At that point weekend operations will continue through Oct. 1.

Voted Best in the Northwest for four consecutive years in the MTBparks.com Riders' Choice Awards, Silver Mountain Bike Park sports nearly 40 singletrack trails that span 3,300 vertical feet.

Silver Mountain has made some major improvements to its newest jump trail, "Ghost Pepper," which debuted last summer. The black diamond jump trail has a variety of machine-built and hand-groomed jumps that cater to more-experienced riders. The bike trail maintenance team is constantly making small improvements to trails, including reroutes and new berms.

The resort also operates the state's largest indoor waterpark, Silver Rapids, which opens for weekends over the Memorial Day holiday and begins daily operations June 17. Access to the waterpark is included in every lodging stay, plus a limited number of day tickets are available on the Silver Mountain website for those looking to enjoy the park for the day.

Activities at Silver Mountain include trail hiking and running, and the resort's exquisite nine-hole Galena Ridge Golf Course is tucked away in the mountains of the Silver Valley. Plus, its ebike rental fleet allows guests to more easily explore sections of the nearby Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes. Visit SilverMt.com for more details.

Summer at Schweitzer near Sandpoint runs June 16-Sept. 4 this year, with details about daily operations and highlights yet to be announced.

The resort maintains more than 40 miles of mountain bike trails and offers a two-hour hosted ebike tour daily.

Schweitzer's summer visitors also can play disc golf on its nine-hole summit course and enjoy scenic chairlift rides on the Great Escape Quad to the summit. Both serve up breathtaking views of Lake Pend Oreille and the Selkirk and Cabinet mountain ranges.

Other summer activities include hiking and trail running, geocaching, bungee trampolines, a 25-foot climbing wall, gold panning, huckleberry picking and horseback riding. Visit Schweitzer.com for more details.

Just across the border in Alta, Wyoming, Grand Targhee Resort affiliates with the Idaho Ski Areas Association because the resort is only accessible via Driggs, Idaho. It will open for downhill mountain biking June 16 – weather and conditions permitting – with the Shoshone and Dreamcatcher lifts running daily through Sept. 17.

Grand Targhee offers 2,200 vertical feet of lift-serviced downhill, 17 miles of downhill trails, more than 70 miles of multi-use trails for biking and hiking and running, and a mountain bike school.

Summertime activities at Grand Targhee also include scenic chairlift rides, hiking and trail running, a nature center, horseback riding, swimming in the outdoor pool, a bungee trampoline, a summer kids camp, the GTR Mining Co., and an 8,000-foot-long, 18-hole disc golf course.

In addition to slopeside lodging, Grand Targhee Resort boasts a parking lot camping area that can accommodate pull-behind trailers, sprinters, and camper vans. Visit GrandTarghee.com for more details.

The mountain bike park at Soldier Mountain opened for the season May 27. However, the lifts will only turn this summer on holiday weekends, so riders must pedal under their own power uphill most days. Holiday weekends include July 1-2, and Sept. 2-3. In addition, the resort will host a National Interscholastic Cycling Association youth mountain bike race Sept. 15-16 and will spin the lifts Sept. 17 for participants and the public.

Lift tickets will cost $25 on the days they turn. Otherwise, Soldier Mountain is charging riders $10 per day, although it is free for 2023-2024 ski season passholders. Riders must purchase their tickets on its website.

Soldier Mountain's network of five trails spans 9 miles. One of the trails is designated as an uphill route that riders ascend to access the other trails, which include easy, intermediate, and advanced hand-cut trails and an extreme machine-cut jump trail. The resort also maintains a skills park.

Staff will inspect and maintain the trails and skills park on a weekly basis. The resort points out riders must understand there is no emergency personnel on the mountain. Visit SoldierMountain.com for more details.

Pomerelle Mountain Resort near Albion is booked for many private events this summer and fall and only plans to open to the public for lift-served mountain biking and hiking two weekends this summer and fall.

The first weekend is July 28-30 during the Pomerelle Pounder, one of the oldest mountain bike races in the Gem State.

The lifts will turn a second weekend Oct. 7-8 during Pomerelle's two-day co-ed skills clinic for mountain bikers. Certified instructors from A Singletrack Mind, which offers fundamental workshops for all abilities, will conduct the event, with registration and other information available at https://asingletrackmind.com/events.

During both events, the rest of the mountain will be open to the public for mountain biking, hiking, scenic trail rides and hamburger eating.

Otherwise, riders can bike uphill under their own power and ride the trails beginning July 1, but they must understand there is no emergency personnel on the mountain, according to the resort.

Pomerelle also maintains an 18-hole disc golf course. Visit Pomerelle.com for more details.

Seven-days-a-week lift access to hiking and mountain biking trails at world-famous Sun Valley Resort begins July 1 via the Roundhouse Express gondola and the Christmas Chair. Meanwhile, golf season at the resort has begun with the opening of White Clouds and the back nine holes of the 7,214-yard-long Elkhorn Golf Course. The front nine of Elkhorn and the 6,986-yard-long Trail Creek championship course will open later this spring.

America's first destination resort and birthplace of the chairlift, Sun Valley sports a dozen biking and hiking trails, including the longest purpose-built downhill mountain-bike trail in the United States, dropping 3,350 vertical feet. Plus, riders can access more than 30 miles of paved, car-free bike paths and over 400 miles of singletrack throughout the Wood River Valley.

In addition, the resort offers an array of activities, including scenic gondola rides, horseback trail rides and horse-drawn wagon rides, bike rentals for bike path or trail riding, and a full menu of pampering options at the Sun Valley Spa. Visit SunValley.com for more details.

Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area near Boise intends to open for summer June 23. Daily operations will continue through Aug. 20, with the ski area open Fridays-Sundays Aug. 25-Sept. 1 and Saturdays-Sundays Sept. 9-Oct. 1.

The 20-plus miles of trails at The Basin Gravity Park and Bogus Basin have become a regionally renowned mountain bike destination and include "Around the Mountain," Idaho's top mountain bike trail as ranked by MTBprojects.com. The nation's largest nonprofit ski area, Bogus Basin will unveil several miles of new trails this summer.

Standing 42 feet tall , the new three-story Aerial Adventure Course at Bogus Basin serves up a variety of obstacles and challenges, as well as three ziplines.

Other summertime activities at Bogus Basin include scenic chairlift rides, the Glade Runner mountain coaster, a climbing wall, a bungee trampoline, a tubing hill and food and beverage services. The ski area will also host guided weekend nature hikes throughout the summer and a six-week-long Community Race Series of fun and friendly competitions for trail runners and cross-country and downhill mountain bikers. Visit BogusBasin.org for more details.

Early in the season, Brundage Mountain Resort, in the West Central Mountains near the resort town of McCall, will open Fridays-Sundays June 16-18 and June 23-25. It will open Wednesdays-Sundays during the regular season, June 28-Sept. 3, with bonus days on Monday, July 3, Tuesday, July 4, and closing day Monday, Sept. 4.

Its 30-mile trail system offers plenty of variety, appeals to all types of mountain bikers and includes a 360-degree loop around the mountain. New this summer is an 8.4-mile trail the Forest Services calls "BMR2BB" (for Brundage Mountain Resort to Bear Basin) that, while not technically in Brundage Bike Park, connects its network of trails to the popular Bear Basin trail system.

The new trail – the result of public-private-nonprofit partnerships spearheaded by CIMBA, the Central Idaho Mountain Bike Association, and assisted by Brundage and the One Track Mind Foundation – has been in the works since 2009. Crews completed construction last fall, so the trail had the opportunity to winter under the snow. The trail's grand opening will likely take place in early July after the snow melts and crews can clear brush and debris from the singletrack trail.

Also new at Brundage this summer are mountain bike lessons through the Mountain Sports School. Brundage Bike School's team of certified mountain bike instructors offer private lessons, learn-to-ride group lessons, and social group rides. Visit brundage.com/mtb-lessons for more details.

Meanwhile, the resort's scenic chairlift rides afford a 360-view at the summit that includes silhouettes of Idaho's Seven Devils Wilderness, Oregon's Eagle Cap Wilderness and sweeping vistas of the Payette Lakes. Hikers can take the chairlift to the top and explore short, scenic trails from the summit or choose longer multi-use routes to soak in more of the mountain's beauty. Visit Brundage.com for more details.

At Tamarack Resort near Donnelly, summer operations will begin May 27, with daily lift service starting June 16 and continuing through Sept. 10. Zipline, waterfront, and whitewater activities will commence Memorial Day weekend depending on weather.

This summer the resort is opening additional mountain biking trails, adding a sweets shop to its food and beverage offerings, and introducing new amenities like a summer camp and Adventure Pack lodging add-ons.

Tamarack will debut nearly 5 miles of new mountain biking trails this summer, expanding its International Mountain Bicycling Association-created network to nearly 33 total miles of lift-served downhill and cross-country trails. Plus, the resort is adding more self-loading bike trays on the Tamarack Express lift to easily accommodate both downhill bikes and ebikes.

Summer amenities include scenic chairlift rides, an outdoor axe-throwing facility in The Village and a nine-hole disc golf course just steps away at the base of West Mountain. Plus, The Waterfront on Lake Cascade offers kayak, paddleboard, pontoon boat, surf boat and jet ski rentals. Work to restore and reopen the award-winning Osprey Meadows championship golf course continues, with the driving range completed last summer and opening Memorial Day weekend.

The resort's zipline canopy tours explore 3,500 feet of terrain, including eight different ziplines, two suspension bridges, and a 105-foot-high treehouse. Plus, Tamarack conducts guided whitewater rafting trips on the Cabarton stretch of the North Fork of the Payette River and guided fishing excursions on Lake Cascade.

The new Camp Tam summer camp will offer kids various mountain, meadow, and lake activities. And its new Adventure Pack lodging add-on will provide guests with discounts on activities such as biking, kayaking, paddleboarding, pickleball, disc golf, and axe throwing via an RFID wristband. Visit TamarackIdaho.com for more details.

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