Sun Valley, Idaho. 

The name alone denotes vacation. While it is true that Sun Valley is where people come to play, relax, and get away, it is also home to an outdoorsy, eclectic, and passionate group of people. Many of whom aren’t originally from the area, including myself. I am what people call a “transplant”-seeds that are planted indoors that eventually need to get moved outdoors to thrive. There are many “transplants” in Sun Valley, some who come for the winter and stay for the summer or some who come for the summer and stay for the winter. Those seasons turn into years and before people know it, they have planted roots.

In the 1930’s, Averell Harriman, chairman of Union Pacific Railroad, sent Count Felix Schaffgotsch to scour the countryside for America’s first destination ski resort. After almost giving up, the Count overheard locals talking about “America’s Shangri-La ” called Ketchum, an old mining town in the mountains of Central Idaho. When he went to see for himself, he was immediately spellbound by the magestic mountains, clear, blue skies, and friendly locals. He wrote to the Chairman about Ketchum and said, “This combines more delightful features than any place I have ever seen in Switzerland, Austria or the U.S. for a winter resort.” Soon after the land was purchased, the resort was built, and flocks of people started arriving to ski, hike, fish, and play in the mountains of Central Idaho. 

This same sense of awe greets me every time I take a left at the “blinking light” onto Highway 75. Driving the thirty or so miles to Sun Valley takes me past Bellevue, Hailey, and Ketchum. Each town has its own flavor and mixture of amenities. Some people prefer the down-home, rancher life of Bellevue or the quirky, residential life of Hailey, while others prefer the glamor and resort life of Sun Valley. Ketchum rests somewhere in the middle of this continuum. The alluvial layout of the Valley creates a community that is separated geographically, but joined spiritually by the mountains, rivers, and forests. 

Whatever your pleasure and whatever the season, Sun Valley has it all. After living here for 22 years, I have distilled my perfect day into a few elements: coffee at my new favorite cafe/wine bar, Velocio, mountain biking with friends on the myriad of single track around the Valley, jumping in the Big Wood swimming hole, followed by a picnic dinner and drinks on the Sun Valley Pavillion Lawn listening to the sweet sounds of violins and violas played by the Sun Valley Summer Symphony. Laying on my back, I look up at the blue sky and smile to myself; happy to be alive and happy to be thriving in the place that I love.