Weekend Getaway: Boise, Idaho

Above and Beyond

A major annual Boise attraction is the Idaho Shakespeare Festival, which runs from June through September. It features modern plays, as well as the traditional Shakespearean repertoire.

You can relax on a blanket, take in a performance and then watch the stars come out over the Boise River -- one of my favorite ways to experience the local scene.

A large percentage of Idaho's land is devoted to parks and recreation areas, and since Boise is located centrally in the state, scenic day trips are easy to take.

Heading north from the city, the Sawtooth National Forest and Sawtooth National Recreation Area offer some of the most stunning mountain scenery you'll ever encounter.

Nestled at the southern base of the Sawtooths is the former mining town of Ketchum, which serves as the gateway to the Sun Valley resort area.

Ketchum offers a variety of outdoor recreational activities, such as hiking, biking and horseback riding. And the Ketchum Cemetery includes Hemingway's final resting place; the great writer spent his last years in the area.

In 1935, in an effort to attract passenger rail traffic to the West, chairman of the board of Union Pacific Railroad W. Averell Harriman engaged Austrian Count Felix Schaffgotsch to search the West to find the ideal site to develop the best ski resort in the world.

The result was Sun Valley. Once a top destination for celebrities like Clark Gable and Gary Cooper, it's still one of the best resorts in the world for ski fans of all types.

Sun Valley is less than three hours from Boise by car, and is serviced by Alaska Airlines, Delta and Sky West.

And if you've got the time, don't miss the 750,000-acre Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve.

Its massive lava beds, spatter cones and craters were formed not by one volcano, but from long fissures across the Snake River Plain known collectively as the Great Rift.

	Otherworldly Craters

Beginning about 15,000 years ago, lava welled up from the Great Rift, covering a vast area.

The most recent eruption occurred a mere 2,000 years ago, and geologists believe that future events are likely.

A 7-mile loop road, open May through October, includes access to hiking trails that take you around the highlights.

Even if you're not a fan of Tater Tots, a few days in the crisp air of Boise will clear your head and broaden your horizons -- both visually and culturally.

---

Enjoy the Good Life? Email us with what you'd like to see in future articles.

« Previous Page

1 2 3

Next Page »