Choices for skiing, riding in SW Idaho are increasing as snow gets deeper inch by inch

This is why we go to Grand Targhee ... 

Pomerelle earlier this week ... 

Magic Valley skiers were happy at Pomerelle last weekend ... 

Everyone was all smiles at Bogus, too ... 

Easy Street is groomed and ready to roll at Brundage Mountain. 

Gateway Parks in Eagle over Thanksgiving weekend.

Hi all,

Well, we're still in the transition to full-on winter. We need more snow storms to really get all the ski areas running full-bore and provide deep enough snowpack for excellent backcountry skiing in SW Idaho. That said, it's totally possible to plan a skiing, snowboarding, xc skiing, snowshoe or fat biking adventure this weekend.

Don't forget that the closest place to go play in the snow is right here in the valley at Eagle Island State Park. It's called Gateway Parks. They've got tubing, snowboarding, skiing and a terrain park.

Most of the downhill areas will be open open this weekend, and with a new storm moving in on Friday, there should be a few inches of new snow to enjoy. Check the resort web sites for early-season pricing and lodging deals.

Here's the skinny on the alpine areas:

Pomerelle - got 13 inches of snow this week! This is your best pick for *best pow.* They'll be open Friday-Sunday this weekend, with fresh powder for all to enjoy! Plus, more on the way! They're reporting a 21-inch base on the summit, with 13 inches of fresh this week. No one has been skiing there all week!

Bogus Basin - will be open Saturday and Sunday, with the Deer Point and Coach lifts running. 17-inch base as of Thursday. The tubing hill will be open as well. Be sure to make advance reservations for the tubing hill. Nordic ski trails and the Nordic lodge will be open Saturday-Sunday.

Brundage Mountain - is opening Saturday for a sneak peek. 20-inch base. They'll be running the Bluebird quad, Bear and Easy Street lifts on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. I heard the Activity Barn tubing hill just opened for business as well. Three tubing lanes will be open this weekend.   

Sun Valley - has a bunch of groomers open thanks to their robust snow-making capabilities. Go get some thigh-scorching runs on the groomers and get your legs broken in for ski season.

Magic Mountain - yes, Magic Mountain in the South Hills near Twin Falls is opening Saturday. It's a cool little homespun resort with about 750 vertical feet of drop. They're reporting a 22 inch base. Lift tickets are cheap!  

Pomerelle - got 13 inches of snow this week! This is your best pick for *best pow.* They'll be open Friday-Sunday this weekend, with fresh powder for all to enjoy! Plus, more on the way! They're reporting a 21-inch base on the summit, with 13 inches of fresh this week. No one has been skiing there all week!  

Grand Targhee - is a great pick. They're reporting a base depth of 29 inches. Seventy-four of 97 trails are open. A few inches of new snow is predicted over the weekend. It's Global Fat Biking day on Saturday, with free demos. 

As for cross-country and backcountry conditions:

• Mores Creek Summit has 15 inches of snow according to the Snowtel web portal. Backcountry conditions are still brushy, but you could definitely tour up to Pilot Peak or Sunset Mountain on the main roads and then tuck into the backcountry once you reach the higher elevations. After Friday's storm, there could be 4-5 inches of new snow to enjoy.  
• Bear Basin in McCall has excellent cross-country skiing conditions. Wendy and I skate skied there several days last week. They have a foot of snow and 1 inch of new. Right now, they're the only Nordic destination that's open in Valley County. The annual Snow Ball is Saturday night. Great fund-raiser for Bear Basin and the Little Ski Hill.
• Wood River Valley - The Blaine County Recreation District has more K's open than any other area for Nordic skiing. Galena Lodge trails, the Harriman Trail, Prairie Creek are all open.  
• Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas - are reporting 4-8 inches on the lower trails, up to 12 inches at the higher elevations. It's still not enough snow to groom. They've done a little grooming at Gold Fork and on the Banner Ridge Trail. Call the snow line for the latest conditions: 208-514-2423. Might be OK conditions for snow biking, depending on how packed the trails are by human use. 

There you have it on the snow conditions! 

With the weather warming up this weekend, it's likely that the Boise Foothills trails will get muddy and gummy in the lower elevations. Please avoid the trails when they're in that condition. Check with the Ridge to Rivers web site or Facebook page to check on the latest trail conditions. 

Have fun! 

- SS 

Go play in the snow! Boot-hiking, xc skiing, snowshoeing, snow biking all are doable

Pic from Grand Targhee parking lot 

Thanksgiving ski vacation in the Tetons? How can you go wrong? 

Snow biking to Skyline Yurt last Saturday ... 0-4 inches of snow at that time. 

Fat biking on the Boise Ridge Road (courtesy Aileen Frey)

Hi all,

If you're like me, and you get excited about the prospect of playing in the snow, this weekend looks like a perfect time to do it. The weather gods have been generous lately in providing a new coating of snow in the mountains of SW Idaho. This means you can head out to your favorite sledding spot, or go boot-hiking, xc skiing, fat biking or snowshoeing in the mountains.

None of Idaho's ski areas are opening quite yet, but Grand Targhee, located just over our eastern border in Alta, Wyoming, is opening on Friday (tomorrow)! Isn't that way cool! I wish I were heading over there right now. Targhee is reporting a 25-inch base with 50 inches of snowfall so far this year.

Check out Grand Targhee's lodging deals as we look ahead to Thanksgiving week. I saw a 4-day, $85 per night ski-and-stay package ... that's hard to beat! Sun Valley should be opening on Thanksgiving Day with natural and man-made snow. Watch their web site for pre-season deals.

Remember, it's early season so expect to get your equipment scratched up. Hint: Take the rock skis.

Closer to home, here are my top recommendations for playing in the snow:

• Deer Point Service Road - Bogus Basin likes to keep its slopes clear of pre-season skiers/riders but a few miles before Bogus, you can park in a pull-out on the right, and boot-hike, snowshoe or xc ski on the Deer Point Service Road. This is the road that utility trucks take to the top of Deer Point to service cell and radio towers, etc. It climbs at a steady pace for 2 miles to the Bogus boundary, and then a right-hand turn takes you over to the Boise Ridge Road. Bogus is reporting a base of 15 inches, so there should be plenty of snow up there. 
• Mores Creek Summit - East of Idaho City, you can go snowshoeing or xc skiing on the road tracks to Sunset Mountain or Pilot Peak or points along the way. The Mores Creek Snowtel site shows a depth of 11 inches of snow as of Thursday evening. Might be a good weekend for a nice backcountry tour! 
• Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas - A little farther east of Idaho City, the snow depths in the Gold Fork area are ranging from 3-6 inches of snow as of Thursday night. Leo Hennessy reported 3 inches of new snow on Thursday. Should be good for boot-hiking, xc skiing, fat biking or snowshoeing with potential scratchy conditions! The trail to Stargaze Yurt should be great, too. 
• Big Creek Summit - East of Cascade on the way to Warm Lake. You can hit a hot springs on the way home! 
• Brundage Mountain - Brundage doesn't seem to mind backcountry skiers carving it up before the area opens. I've been seeing great Facebook pics of people skiing at Brundage in the last week with skis and skins. Brundage reported a foot of new snow at the base this week. Awesome! Snow depths are 16 inches at the base and 22 inches on top as of Thursday evening. Watch their web site for information on if/when they may open next week. 
• Wood River Valley xc trails - A few of the trails are open in the North Valley, particularly the Harriman Trail from Sawtooth SNRA to Galena Lodge and the Prairie Creek Loop. Those are some of my favorite skate skiing areas. See the Blaine County Recreation District grooming report. 

One other thing: I wanted to mention that I've revamped my web site at SteveStuebner.com so that it's mobile-friendly. But it has all of the cool content from before ... you can buy hard-copy books and maps on my site, as always, but you also can buy full-color digital books and maps or individual hikes, biking trips or paddling routes a la carte for 99 cents each. Plus there's information about renting our Cozy Cabin in McCall and my PR and Marketing services. Just FYI ... 

Enjoy the snow!
- SS

Hi Ho! Go play in the snow! Latest storms create lots of fun for xc skiing, snowshoeing and more!

Fresh pow! 

Time to find fresh tracks this weekend. Be safe out there! 

Hi all,

The slow start to winter this year has certainly tried my patience, and I'm sure you feel the same way. But finally, we got a great dose of snow in the last few days, with more on the way, so it's time to get out and play in the snow!

The kids already get that as they've been making snowmen and sledding in the foothills. But finally, there's enough snow in the mountains to enjoy xc skiing, snowshoeing, backcountry skiing and alpine skiing.

Leo Hennessy of the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation tells me the Idaho City Park n' Ski Areas got hit with 14 inches of new snow in the last two days! Finally, they'll be able to groom more than 35K's of trails in the area. Leo said they'll be grooming through the weekend to make sure they get all of the trails smoothed out and ready to xc ski or snowshoe.

But this means that all of the key Park n' Ski Areas, including Gold Fork, Skyline Loop, Banner Ridge Loop, Whoop 'em Up and the trails leading up to Stargaze Yurt are all ready and poised for you to enjoy.

Getting read to skin up to Stargaze Yurt 

Getting there: Go east of Boise on Idaho 21 to Idaho City. Stop at the Sinclair gas station in Idaho City to pick up a Park n' Ski pass (either daily or season passes are available). A three-day pass costs $7.50 and a season pass costs $25. Pretty cheap, and the parking passes pay for the grooming operations, so it's a good cause.

Mores Creek Summit received another 5 inches of snow in the last 24 hours. And there's more on the way. So Pilot Peak, Sunset Mountain and Freeman Peak should all be great skiing. That's where I'm going to go! Be safe, dig a pit and check on avalanche conditions before you ski down.

High winds coming Saturday afternoon: I'd get out and play in the snow today and early tomorrow, because Saturday afternoon, high winds are moving in from the West Coast, and that may create white-out conditions and severe avalanche issues.

Here's the high-wind winter storm warning from the National Weather Service ... * SNOWFALL AND WIND... STORM TOTAL SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF 6 TO 12 INCHES BY SATURDAY NIGHT. MANY AREAS NORTH AND WEST OF SUN VALLEY POSSIBLY COULD SEE 15 TO 20 INCHES. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 20 TO 40 MPH AND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 50 MPH ESPECIALLY FOR THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS. 

* LOCATIONS INCLUDE... SUN VALLEY... KETCHUM... GALENA SUMMIT... STANLEY... .BANNER SUMMIT... SMILEY CREEK AND COPPER BASIN.

The lucky ducks who have the yurts booked this weekend are going to have a blast! 

In the Idaho Statesman Outdoors section on Thursday, I read the following snow forecasts coming up for the greater SW area through the weekend:

• Brundage Mountain - 9-27 inches
• Tamarack - 8-17 inches
• Bogus Basin - 10-21 inches
• Pilot Peak - 9-19 inches
• Sun Valley Galena area - 4-11 inches
• Stanley - 11-21 inches

Sock it to us, I say to the great Ullr, the snow Norwegian snow god. Bring it on! 

New snow also provides a fresh base on the xc ski trails in McCall and the Wood River Valley. 

McCall Nordic reported 4 inches of new snow today. All of the trails at Ponderosa State Park, Bear Basin and Jug Mountain Ranch have been freshly groomed for you to enjoy. If you're going to be in McCall, the xc skiing should be sweet! 

In the Wood River Valley, the Blaine County Recreation District reports improved conditions with fresh snow. The entire Harriman Trail is being groomed from Galena Lodge to Sawtooth NRA headquarters. Prairie Creek is open. Most of the lower valley trails are still closed. Alturas Lake xc trails are groomed and ready to go, too ... wouldn't that be a nice place to go!

Have fun out there! Hope you get some fresh tracks!
- SS