SEASONAL ACTIVITIES
IN SOUTHWEST IDAHO
Start off the year celebrating all things snowy at the McCall Winter Carnival. The annual festival takes over McCall, bringing larger-than-life snow sculptures, races, music and more. Hit the slopes at Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain Resort, Tamarack Resort or Little Ski Hill. Snowmobile in the mountains around McCall, Lake Cascade or the Pine-Featherville area.
JANUARY
Start off the year celebrating all things snowy at the McCall Winter Carnival. The annual festival takes over McCall, bringing larger-than-life snow sculptures, races, music and more. Hit the slopes at Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain Resort, Tamarack Resort or Little Ski Hill. Snowmobile in the mountains around McCall, Lake Cascade or the Pine-Featherville area.
FEBRUARY
Idaho’s winter beer event, Destination: Beer brings dozens of Idaho breweries to McCall. Have a weekend adventure in a backcountry yurt outside of Idaho City. Fat bike or snowshoe at Jug Mountain Ranch. If ice fishing is more your thing, Lake Cascade State Park is one of the best spots to do it.
MARCH
Treefort Music Fest brings hundreds of bands to downtown Boise for five days of music, art and cultural events. It’s the best time to venture out into the otherworldly Owyhee Canyonlands before the summer heat.
APRIL
April is Idaho Craft Beer Month — a great time to explore the 25+ breweries in Southwest Idaho. Spring brings wildflower blooms to the Boise foothills and the mountains of McCall. It’s a beautiful time to go on a zipline tour at Cascade Rope Challenge and Ziplines or Tamarack Resort.
MAY
Hop on a mountain bike and cruise more than 2,000 miles of singletrack, or stick to the pavement and cruise the 46-mile Boise Greenbelt or the 84-mile Weiser River Trail. Idaho Shakespeare Festival kicks off mid-May, hosting five world-class plays in its stunning state-of-the-art outdoor amphitheater.
JUNE
June is Idaho Wine Month. Visit the Sunnyslope Wine Trail in Caldwell or do an urban tasting tour through Garden City or Downtown Boise. Attend the annual Emmett Cherry Festival, which celebrates one of the first fruits to ripen in Idaho.
The North Fork Championships, an annual whitewater kayaking extreme race, takes place on the North Fork of the Payette River just north of Banks, Idaho. In Weiser, The National Oldtime Fiddlers’ Contest & Festival begins — a week-long event that has been taking place since 1953.
JULY
With more miles of raftable whitewater than any other state in the lower 48, experiencing the thrill of clean, rushing rivers is just part of summer in Southwest Idaho. Raft down world-class whitewater, take a jet boat tour through Hells Canyon or spend a few leisurely hours floating the Boise River.
In Nampa, the Snake River Stampede takes place as it has for more than a century. It’s one of the top ten regular season professional rodeos in the nation. Every five years, thousands descend on Boise’s Basque Block for Jaialdi, a celebration of all things Basque with traditional food, drink, dancing and games.
AUGUST
Huckleberries have been sweetening under the summer sun and are finally ready to pick by late summer, which means berry picking and the Donnelly Huckleberry Festival. The tiny mountain town of Yellow Pine comes alive during the annual Yellow Pine Harmonica Festival. Hundreds of professional cowboys and cowgirls convene at the annual Caldwell Night Rodeo. Late summer is also one of the best months to camp out in Southwest Idaho.
SEPTEMBER
For three magical days, the skies of Boise are filled with hot air balloons during the Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic. The Peregrine Fund’s World Center for Birds of Prey hosts Fall Flights, a once- in-a-lifetime opportunity to see birds like eagles, hawks, falcons and owls show off their aerial skills up close.
OCTOBER
Cruise one of the nine scenic byways that cross the region or get out and hike through the fall colors. See the City of Trees from the foothills or step back in time visiting ghost towns like Silver City, Atlanta and Idaho City. Relive daring escapes (and possibly see an apparition) at the historic Old Idaho State Penitentiary. Fall is the best time to catch a Boise State University Football game on the blue turf.
NOVEMBER
As the temperatures cool off, the many natural hot springs in Southwest Idaho are the place to be. Soak in a natural pool like Pine Flats or Kirkham, or take the family to a developed spring like The Springs at Idaho City and Gold Fork. Just after Thanksgiving, holiday lights dazzle at Winter Garden aGlow in the Idaho Botanical Garden and Caldwell Holiday Lights at Indian Creek Plaza.
DECEMBER
Ring in a New Year like you never have before at the Idaho Potato Drop in Boise or the Cherry Rise in Emmett. Dash through the snow on a horse-drawn sleigh ride. Glide and slide on ice skates at The Village in Meridian or Indian Creek Plaza in Caldwell.
