Sun Valley

By all accounts, Idaho is rich with adventures and sights.  I'd really like to take as much of it in as possible.  Once we have been here awhile longer, I fear that we will be like so many locals; hearing about places but never seeing them.  Because, after all, we live here and there is time.  We were that way when we lived in California.  I'd like to not be that way here.  I've mentioned that to several local friends.  Larry and Carol Wintersteen have taken it to heart.  "You've got to see Sun Valley," Larry told us several times.  And so he planned a trip there, to show us one of the brightest spots in Idaho.


Just outside Boise; look at all that water!  I continue to be amazed at all the water in Idaho, despite the desert that surrounds many of the lower lakes and streams.

I've not paid much attention to, or heard much about, the famous Sun Valley.  It was developed by a railroad man named Harriman in the 1930's.  He dreamed of making the valley, surrounded by mountains, into a ski resort for the wealthy, to attract more riders on his train.  Over the years, many of the wealthy and famous have come.  Even today, it seems to be a quiet snow mecca for them.  We became one of the observers of life in a wealthy town, for a few days.

Larry directed us north, through some of the forests of Idaho and along the Blue Tooth Mountains, on a beautiful country drive.  In spite of the heavy rain (in summer!), the sights were breathtaking in places.  We stopped at an almost ghost town called Idaho City.  There we happened upon a map at the visitor's center that showed the oldest home in the town--the "Galbreith House."  We couldn't resist checking that out.  Sure enough, there it was.  Not only that but a pioneer cemetery was located nearby, where we found a group of Galbreith graves.  There are not many Galbraiths in this world, no matter how the name is spelled.  Layne was excited.  "Perhaps," he said, "we were inspired to find these souls, lost in an isolated cemetery in the wilds of Idaho."  He hopes to do a bit of research to see if we are connected.

Layne at Idaho City, an almost ghost town.

Here is the Galbreith House, the oldest in Idaho City.

Sun Valley is a well planned community, laid out years ago by the wealthy owners of the area.  It stands as a contrast to most places that simply evolve.  It is a lovely place as a result.  I wish all places could be so well laid out.  There are fewer people there in the summer as it is a ski town.  We stayed in a condo Larry arranged for in the nearby town of Ketchum.   It was a lovely time, highlighted by a ride on a lift up the side of the biggest mountain, filled with a wide variety of ski runs.  We rode to the top, where the views were panoramic.  The countryside was filled with wildflowers and green views.  I cannot imagine it being lovelier in winter.  No, I don't think it could be.

Sun Valley with the lift we rode in the background.  It is one of many.  Lifts were invented here, to carry the wealthy up the mountainside.

Looking up from our lift.

Layne and me at the top of the mountain.

View from the top.  You can just barely see the town below.

View from the lift on the way down.

 We had some sweet conversations with Larry and Carol.  The kind where you can see into one another's souls.  It was the bonding kind.  We came home more rested and relaxed than when we left.   And I believe that we strengthened our friendship with the Wintersteens.

Larry and Carol Winterstein.

And so we can check off one of Idaho's most famous sights.  We have seen it close up and been embraced by its beauty.  Not so many of the rich and famous were here without the snow.  I like it better that way and feel happy to have seen it in the quiet days of summer.