Sun Valley

If you don’t like Colorado then the next state from my To Be Visited  list with a timeshare exchange is Idaho and there’s only one option, Sun Valley.

Gondola-Wcable1-FIN

I always thought of Sun Valley as a ski area but I guess they have year – round activities.

Landscape

I found a Sun Valley Bucket list on the internet but it revolved around skiing, mountain biking, skiing, golf, white water rafting, skiing, you get the picture. I don’t ski and I don’t like cold.

sun valley summer

I turned to my trusty 1000 Places to See Before You Die. The first thing they list is Almo, Idaho, the City of Rocks. According to MapQuest it’s a 3 hour drive from Sun Valley and 159 miles.

city-of-rocks-national

The 2nd Idaho must see is Craters of the Moon in Arco, Idaho. That’s a little better. It comes in at an hour and 40 minutes and 85 miles. The pictures remind me of the lava fields in Hawaii.

craters

Hells Canyon sounds interesting but that’s another long distance drive of 5 hours and 265 miles.

jetboating-hells-canyon

If I drive an hour and 45 minutes I should be able to connect with the Salmon River Scenic Byway. Then it’s just another 162 miles to drive that.

Salmon-River

Another  possible item listed is the Snake River Birds of Prey Conservation area. I could see myself setting up and taking bird pictures. That’s only 2 hours and 40 minutes from Sun Valley and 150 miles.

bird

I’m getting a little tired of these drives and I haven’t even gone there yet. The Sawtooth National Recreation area located in Stanley seems to be a bit closer, only 62 miles and 1 hour away.

Idaho_Sawtooth_Mountains_md

There were a few more recommendations but they were all 3 hours + from Sun Valley.

I’m not sure using Sun Valley as a base would be a good choice. Idaho looks like a beautiful state with lots to see but it’s so spread out that I almost think an RV would be a better way to explore.  If I were a skier and liked the cold, then  Sun Valley would be an American Classic.

Any thoughts? Suggestions?

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