CRUD, CRUST and CORDUROY!

PHOTO COURTESY BOGUS BASIN

IdaHome’s Guide to the 2021-22 Ski Season

BY MICAH DREW

BOGUS BASIN: All Good For All!

Projected Opening Day: Thanksgiving

Distance from Boise: 18 miles (40 minutes)

Terrain: 2,600 acres, 1,800 vertical feet

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $73 / Senior (70+) $49 / Teen (13-17) $52 / Junior (7-12) $29

For the third winter in a row, BOGUS BASIN will begin winter operations with a guaranteed Opening Day!- thanks to dedicated investments in snowmaking equipment over the last few years. But as every powder hound knows, we must never ignore the ironic blessing of nature, which can always allow the mountain to open with a generous heap of its own white stuff -just like last year.

“There’s nothing like installing a $6 million snow system to bring the early season natural snow,” said Director of Community & Customer Relations Susan Saad. “However, it’s a nice insurance policy as we progress into the season and fill in those spots that get a little bare.”

On the heels of last winter’s real estate surge coupled with great snow, Bogus saw record visitation. Saad attributed the boom to having the longest operating hours of any mountain-west resort, as well as making the choice to lower cost on mid-week season passes, which continues this year to encourage visitors to enjoy nonpeak hours.

“The new appreciation people have to be able to escape to the outdoors seems to be a lasting thing,” Saad said. “We’re so fortunate to have Bogus Basin right here and our bright spot was definitely the enthusiasm we had for our night visits.”

Recently, Bogus has completed 53 capital improvement projects, totaling $6 million. The resort added nearly 200 parking spaces, including expansion of the ski in/ski out lots and pavement on the main lot. The installation of web-cameras to six parking lots will also benefit guests, allowing drivers to monitor available spaces before making the 172 turns up the mountain and plan ahead, in order to spend more time carving turns down Greenie’s run.

After two successful years of snowmaking, the number of fan guns on the slopes has doubled to fifty, ensuring full slope coverage in just half the time. Three new snowcats, including one dedicated for Nordic trails, will better buff the terrain.

Saad also said that the resort made investments in efficiency by adding new chairs to the Superior and Morning Star lifts, boosting capacity by 30%. Without last-year’s COVID-protocol limitations on loading, the resort projects will facilitate swifter operations. Translated-than means shorter lift lines.

To enhance the après experience, the lodges have received some interior design updates with new furniture and advanced circulation systems, and dining options expanded to the slopes with a new food trailer at the base of the Pine Creek lift.

As a nonprofit resort, “everything we make goes back into the operation,” Saad said. “Everything hinges on the success of the season and the ongoing support of the community. If seasons continue going well, we anticipate having the resources to put into the area to keep improving.”

In 2016, Bogus outlined a 10-year development plan, but completed the plan in just five years, paving the way for a new proposal this year. While the latest plan is awaiting Forest Service approval, it includes a footprint expansion that will push the resort’s terrain over 3,000 acres. The proposed expansion will include a mile and a half, green trail, five blue trails and two black lines, plus copious amounts of steeper tree-skiing terrain. We all want to believe there is no math involved when we hit the slopes- but if you add up all that new vertical feet- Bogus will almost have a new ski resort within itself!

TAMARACK RESORT: You’ll Never Know Until You Go

Projected Opening Day: November 26

Distance from Boise: 95 miles (2.5 hours)

Terrain: 1,100 lift-accessed acres, 2,800 vertical feet

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $80 / Seniors (70+) & Teens (13-17) $52 / Youth (7-12) $34

Photo courtesy Tamarack Resort

Entering the Alps-inspired mountain modern TAMARACK Village feels like visiting European Disneyland–it’s meant to impress.

After years of ups and downs at the Lake Cascade-adjacent resort, Tamarack is two years into a grand relaunch that you won’t want to miss.

According to Tamarack President Scott Turlington, more than $40 million has been invested in the resort since it reopened two years ago, with upgrades to mountain operations as well as the snippets of luxury between each powder run that truly set a ski weekend apart.

The Village continues to expand its offerings–an enhanced skier service shop, Tamarack Outfitters, as well as the Jon Reveal Ski and Sports School, are new for the upcoming season, but the additional dining options offered at the Rendezvous Food Hall are certainly a highlight.

Turlington believes that emphasizing every ounce of off-slope experience is what will truly set Tamarack apart from its competitors–and the resort is certainly aiming to call out all mountains, including Sun Valley, as competitors.

It’s not enough to have great snow, breezy lift lines, and full-slope views of Lake Cascade. Turlington wants resort visitors to feel pampered from morning to night, starting with a boost of spoiled luxury from the full-service Tamarack Spa, opening just in time for Thanksgiving.

Photo courtesy Tamarack Resort

While après is a hallmark of any ski resort, Tamarack is taking dining to another level. In The Village you can get the three Bs–Breakfast, Beer, and Burgers. Breakfast includes donuts made from scratch with a huckleberry glaze, the final touches are being put on a beer wall, and Turlington has his eye on Tamarack claiming the “best burger in Idaho” title.

“I want this to be an experiential opportunity where people leave and say ‘the mountain was great and the burger was better,’” he says.

On the operational side, Tamarack is working to pair luxury with inclusivity, with initiatives such as the SKY Pass (Student-Kids-Youth), which gives all students from kindergarten through 12th grade in Valley County and New Meadows a free year-round pass to the resort.

“You can start in kindergarten, and you can graduate, and this can be your home mountain,” Turlington explains, adding that around 400 students currently have SKY passes. “It’s all about making sure the mountain is accessible to all. It’s an expensive sport, no question about it.”

To increase basic access to the lifts, the large domes at The Village have been removed, giving the area a more open, integrative feel. The resort will speed guests onto the lifts with a new express ticketing system that allows the purchase of scannable passes ahead of time so visitors can avoid the lines and receive discounted tickets at self-serve kiosks.

Other improvements include expanded snowmaking equipment, WiFi upgrades (to ensure that lift line selfies can be posted in record time), more than 200 added parking spots, and a new outpost in McCall where patrons can pick up passes, and book lodging, lessons and guided trips, while also making Tamarack a more visible brand in town.

As with all ski resorts, Tamarack has a proposal into the U.S. Forest Service, and theirs proposes a 3,300-acre terrain expansion and a network of six new lifts including a 10-passenger base-to-summit gondola that will drop passengers at a new facility atop Lone Tree Peak.

Until that happens, Tamarack will offer a bread-and-butter slopeside experience to visitors: beautiful runs with a beautiful view of Cascade Lake and mountains beyond mountains.

“We don’t try to be anyone else, we just try to be us,” Turlington shares. “We’ll expand to improve our diversity in terrain, but I’ll say, in my opinion, that our best run is a blue run, called Bliss. It’s just over two miles and you can’t get a better experience top to bottom than that.”

Truly, you’ve got to see the progress this resort has made during COVID to believe it. Personally, I think they should make a bumper sticker–“Tamarack: Idaho’s Magic Kingdom–great snow, killer burgers, and axe-throwing!”

GRAND TARGHEE RESORT: Paow Paow

Projected Opening Day: November 19

Distance from Boise: 338 miles (5.5 hours)

Terrain: 2,600 acres, 2,270 vertical feet

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $93-$115 / Seniors (65+) $72-$85 / Junior (6-12) $42-$49

Photo by Shannon Corsi

GRAND TARGHEE isn’t the Treasure Valley’s backyard ski resort, or even in the top handful of slopes nearest the valley, but it’s well worth the cross-state trip for the experience of skiing in the shadow of the Tetons.

While the resort shares its mountain range, and weather patterns, with the louder, flashier resorts closer to Jackson, the Wyoming-based but Idaho-accessed resort continues to provide a warm, friendly community spirit. To Treasure Valley newcomers, the resort might be considered a ‘hidden gem,’ but to everyone who knows snow, we know it’s there and hope it remains on the down-low.

Targhee made big moves last season by joining the Mountain Collective Pass. This program consolidates and discounts lift tickets to Targhee along with several big-name resorts, including Aspen, Alta, and Big Sky, as opposed to the spendier Epic and Ikon passes.

Within the resort itself, the 21/22 season doesn’t bring many flashy upgrades, although Operations Director Mark Neff says that behind-the-scenes improvements are key to future expansions. Then again, half of the charm of Targhee is its gem-in-the-rough aura. The other half of its allure is just the pure joy of the untouched steep.

Photo by Ryan Zimmer

Neff points out that the completion of a new maintenance facility will take the entire mountain to a new level of efficiency and safety, especially focused on managing interaction between guests and the resort’s snowcats and snowmobiles. The entire operations team is now based out of the new facility, with improved communications.

Mirroring Idaho’s population surge, like most all the resorts mentioned, new parking spaces have been added. The biggest change is an impending one–this is the last year that cat skiing will be offered in the Peaked area’s 600 acres of trails. Next season a new Doppelmayr D-Line 6-pak will open to transport skiers up 1,815 vertical feet in just five minutes. This development is sure to make some skiers weep and others rejoice.

“I’m sure there are some people who have experienced that terrain over the years of snowcat service, but there are other guests who don’t want to spend the extra cash and I think they’re anticipating the change,” Neff says. “It’s not really terrain expansion, just lift expansion, but people’s eyes are going to get really big and bright when they see the access.”

Targhee’s future plans also include an 860acre footprint increase, which will double the resort’s skier capacity, add several new lifts, and include a 6,000-square-foot restaurant.

“In this industry, if you’re standing still, you’re going backwards,” says Neff. “Everyone wants their hometown mom and pop ski resort feel, which Targhee has the reputation of having, but we’re delivering a product that most people don’t deliver without charging $200 a lift ticket.”

‘Paow’ is slang for the driest, fluffiest, most lightweight kind of snow that some powder hounds spend season after season seeking like the Holy Grail. Next to your dreams, it’s the closest thing to floating you can feel in your own body. It may be a long drive, but floating on Targhee’s 500 inches of paow is damn close to heaven in Idaho.

BRUNDAGE MOUNTAIN RESORT: Chill Baby, Chill

Projected Opening Day: November 27

Distance from Boise: 116 miles (2.5 hours)

Terrain: 1,920 acres (18,000 guided backcountry), 1,921 vertical feet

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $80 / Senior (70+) & Teen (13-17) $52 / Youth (7-12) $34

Brundage Mountain Resort

Photo: April Thomas Whitney

As the calendar flipped over to November, voters were submitting their opinion on the best ski resorts in the nation for USA Today’s People’s Choice Awards and for the second year in the row, BRUNDAGE MOUNTAIN RESORT was nominated as a finalist for the Top 10 Resorts–last year, only Banff’s Sunshine Village beat out this central Idaho treasure!

McCall’s backyard ski resort saw record visitation last year, which marketing manager, April Whitney, attributes to a combination of the Treasure Valley’s growth and more opportunities for remote workers to sneak away from their laptops for a powder excursion.

“We’re expecting vibrant visitation again this year,” Whitney says, noting that Brundage season passes sold out by November. “We want to maintain the chill vibe of the mountain while sharing the experience with as many people as possible. Nine times out of ten you’ll be able to get a day ticket last-minute. We’re trying to preserve that classic Brundage experience.”

That experience is tied to Brundage’s identity as an independently owned ski resort since 1961. Along with nearby Tamarack, the mountain is part of the Indy Pass, which offers access to more than 70 indy resorts across the country. Brundage was recently featured in a Teton Gravity Research film, In Pursuit of Soul, which documented 12 independent resorts in North America.

“The film isn’t your typical powder extravaganza, but it’s a really cool story about some of the unique challenges that independent resorts face,” Whitney says. “It makes the point that there are these community-oriented ski areas in the country and that moniker doesn’t mean they’re not amazing.”

Brundage Mountain Resort

Photo: April Thomas Whitney

In fact, that down-home independence is exactly what makes Brundage amazing. Many locals claim that the McCall resort regularly bags the best snow within two hours of the Treasure Valley for half the price within comparable distances. The view of Payette Lake is postcard-pretty and its proximity (the lake effect) contributes to a deep base with few rocks and more runs in the spring.

New to Brundage this year is executive chef Sam Hess, who will bring a Cajun flair to the mountain’s cuisine. More relaxed COVID restrictions will mark the return of the Bear’s Den Snowcat Dinners. Guests can treat themselves to long evenings of cozy conversation and a four-course meal at the mid-mountain log den.

Also new for the 21/22 ski season is a redesigned website that offers a more user-friendly grooming report and snow report snapshot so you’ll have all the mountain’s updates before you finish your morning brew. The mountain has updated its partnership with the city of McCall to turn the Brundage Express shuttle into the BLUEBIRD EXPRESS Blue Line, which features a new, 35-person capacity shuttle. Après-ski is always more fun with a designated driver to drop you close to your bed.

While this season will mark a return to normalcy with a few updates, the excitement spikes as the lens peers into Brundage’s future. The resort just released its 10-year plan in November, highlighting an astonishing makeover.

Next year, Brundage will break ground on a new 20,000-square-foot base lodge with an Adventure Center and three new dining options, estimated to open in 2024. In addition, the first phase of residential development will also soon begin. What could be better after a long day of burning quads than the convenience of ski in/ ski out access to 88 overnight accommodations.

Brundage has also updated its master development plan to include proposals for lift and terrain expansions, and expanded snowmaking.

“For years, we’ve been listening to feedback and suggestions from our guests,” says Brundage Mountain President Bob Looper. “Three common themes always rise to the surface: add more lifts and terrain, improve the lodge facilities, and offer overnight accommodations. Our plan is to deliver on all three of those requests.” Change can’t be escaped anywhere or anytime, especially these days in Idaho. Glistening little north stars like McCall and Brundage mountain are fighting to maintain their chill, while facing the reality that their economic survival requires tourists. Lots of tourists. But progress isn’t all bad, as long as it’s managed with foresight, which is why I’m going to start asking for a ski-in brewery now.

SOLDIER MOUNTAIN: Mom and Pop’s Black Diamond in the Rough

Projected Opening Day: December 4

Distance from Boise: 112 miles (2 hours)

Terrain: 1,150 acres, 1,425 vertical feet

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $49 / Senior (70+) $19 / Youth (6-17) $29

Photo courtesy Soldier Mountain

Small and unassuming at first glance, SOLDIER MOUNTAIN SKI AREA’s two chairlifts offer access to varied terrain, but its real secret lies in the more than 2,000 acres of cat-skiing reaching the summit of Smoky Dome at over 10,000 feet. In fact, Soldier is the only resort to provide overnight backcountry trips with pristine powder right out your yurt’s front door. If you really want to feel exclusive, rent the entire mountain for $7,500 a day and ski with only your closest 100 friends!

For more info: SOLDIER MOUNTAIN REBOOTS in IdaHome

SUN VALLEY: Destination Luxury

Projected Opening Day: Thanksgiving

Distance from Boise: 154 miles (2.5 hours)

Terrain: 3,000 acres, 3,400 vertical feet (Bald Mountain)

Single-Day Lift Ticket: Adult $104 / Senior (65+) $82 / Child (5-12) $62

PHOTO COURTESY SKI IDAHO

For two years in a row, SKI Magazine has named SUN VALLEY as the top mountain in its Annual Ski Resort Awards. If you haven’t been there and skied Baldy since the mountain opened in Ketchum in 1936–now is better than never since one thing is certain–skiing in Sun Valley will never cost less than it does today.

INDY PASS

Fast Facts: 80 resorts, 2 days each

Price: Adults $589 / Teens $489 / Child $169

With Brundage, Tamarack, and Soldier Mountain as part of the Indy Pass, it’s worth buying just to ski four days at those two resorts. An additional day can be purchased at a resort for 25% off the regular price. Also included is Idaho’s Silver Mountain and Pomerelle Mountain, as well as Lost Trail Powder Mountain on the Idaho-Montana border.

IKON BASE PASS

Fast Facts: Unlimited access at 13 resorts, up to 5 days at 31 more

Price: Adults $879 / Young Adult (13-22) $679 / Child (5-12) $339

Pick from among 40 worldwide destinations including Zermatt Matterhorn, Revelstoke Mountain Resort, Jackson Hole, Deer Valley, and Aspen Snowmass. Ikon Pass holders get designated First Tracks days at each resort for the chance to ski untarnished corduroy before the lifts are spinning for the rest of the public.

EPIC LOCAL PASS

Fast Facts: Unlimited access at 26 resorts, limited access at 24 more including 11 Japanese resorts

Price: Adults $774 / Teens (13-18) $604 / Child (5-12) $394

While not Rocky Mountain-saturated, the Epic Local Pass can have you getting your powder fill at Breckenridge, Keystone, and Vail as well as days in Park City and Whistler Blackcomb. Two additional days at Sun Valley, plus half off additional lift tickets, makes this the perfect pass for the luxury resort skier.

PHOTO COURTESY BRUNDAGE MOUNTAIN RESORT