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The Sun Valley Guide magazine is distributed free twice yearly to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area communities.


Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express newspaper will receive the Sun Valley Guide with their subscription.


Click to enlarge. Map by E.B. Philips 


Galena's best
kept secret

Horse Creek Loop
 

by Matt Furber

Skis waxed? Check. Warm clothing? Check. Ski pass? Check.

Time to grab a bus to the loops of the North Valley Trails around Galena Lodge, arguably one of the best Nordic skiing destinations in the country.

Just 22 miles north of Ketchum lies a total of 130 kilometers of skiable terrain. Much of it is just out the door of the cozy lodge, complete with fireplace, drinks and gourmet food. Most of the terrain is groomed to a fresh corduroy texture on a daily basis.

Perhaps the best-kept secret is a path through the woods called the Horse Creek Loop.

“This is not actually a one loop trail, but a series of our favorite trails,” says Blaine County Recreation District Trails Director Shelly Preston.

The loop starts at the lodge and returns the skier back to the lodge, via a different route, seven kilometers later.

“Why is this our favorite?” Preston asks. “(There is a) variety of terrain, beginning with fun, but gentle, rolling ups and downs, a beautiful glide through Horse Creek meadow, a short grunt up to the top, followed by a fun, exhilarating ski down, and then an easy glide back to the lodge.”

The only drawback to the route is that skiers have to remove their skis once to cross the highway, but the break comes after a solid warm-up at the start of the tour.

To start the loop from Galena Lodge, cross Highway 75 to the North Wood Trail. Ski the trail about two and a half kilometers to where it crosses Highway 75 and becomes the Horse Creek Loop.

Staying left on the Horse Creek Loop takes skiers to the Horse Creek Connector. The trail climbs to the top of a hill and drops down into the Gladiator drainage. At the bottom, take the first right onto Gladiator Loop and ski another two and a half kilometers back to Galena Lodge.

On the way back to the lodge, don’t forget to stop on the Gladiator trail to look back at the gorgeous view of Gladiator Peak.

The North Valley Trails system is inexpensive and family oriented. It combines natural beauty and athletic challenge with a variety of terrain that follows streams, passes through open meadows, and spans the Boulder Mountain range.

The lodge offers amenities, including ski rentals and lessons, snowshoe rentals and packed snowshoe trails. Hearty lunches, moonlight dinners, and overnight yurt accommodations are also available. Historic Galena Lodge has been preserved through generous contributions from residents and friends of the Wood River Valley. Ski passes are also available at the lodge. •


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