Snow is in the forecast for the Treasure Valley. Here’s where to tube or sled near Boise
Whether you’re looking for a place to bring your sled for a gentle downhill glide or a thrilling tubing adventure, there are options in and around the Treasure Valley. Here are four places to go this season:
Bogus Basin
Bogus Basin started seven-day-a-week tubing at its Pepsi Goldrush Tubing Hill on Dec. 19. Daily operations will continue through Jan. 3. After that, the hill is open Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Reservations are required, and Bogus Basin spokeswoman Susan Saad said the tubing hill is operating at 50% capacity due to COVID-19 restrictions. Reservations can be made online at BogusBasin.org and cost $20 per person for a 90-minute session.
Tubes are provided at the 800-foot tubing hill, which is located to the left of the main parking lot. A conveyor belt lift returns riders to the top of the hill.
Be sure to bring a mask and plan to use your vehicle as a “home base” while you’re at Bogus. The ski area is limiting entrance to its lodges and requiring face coverings indoors and in areas where social distancing isn’t possible, such as lift lines.
Eagle Island State Park
The Gateway Parks-operated tubing hill at Eagle Island State Park is open for business, with several inches of snow on its tubing hill thanks to snowmaking operations.
The hill, located at 165 S. Eagle Island Parkway in Eagle, supplies tubes and features a magic carpet lift to bring riders back to the top of its structure. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
Tickets must be purchased online at gatewayparks.com. Tickets cost $20 per person for regular tickets or $18.50 for “twilight” tickets between 7:30 and 9 p.m. Each ticket is good for a 90-minute session. It also costs $7 per vehicle to enter the state park unless you have a state parks Passport sticker.
According to the Gateway Parks website, the park is limiting the number of guests allowed per session and recommending — but not requiring — that guests wear face coverings and maintain social distance from one another.
Steamboat Gulch
After a rocky start to the season last year, this Idaho City-area sledding hill opened for the 2020-21 season without incident.
Steamboat Gulch is operated by a lessee on an Idaho Department of Lands parcel just southeast of Idaho City. From Idaho 21, turn right on Forest Service Road 304 (Bannock Creek Road) as you’re leaving town and follow signs for Steamboat Gulch. It’s $10 to park at the hill or $2 for walk-ins.
You’ll need to bring your own sled or tube to ride this hill. A concession stand is available on-site, according to the Steamboat Gulch website.
No information was available on the website regarding COVID-19 safety protocols.
Brundage Mountain
The Activity Barn in McCall is one more spot for snow tubing.
The tubing hill opened Dec. 11 and will be open for daily operations through Jan. 3, after which it will operate Fridays through Sundays. Hours are 2 to 6 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.
Tickets can be reserved online at Brundage.com for $20.
The Activity Barn boasts five tubing lanes across its 800-foot run. Tubes are available on-site, and riders can take the Moonrider magic carpet lift back to the top of the hill.
The Activity Barn’s indoor space is closed to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Visitors must wear face masks indoors as well as on the magic carpet and at the launch area at the top of the hill.
This story was originally published December 22, 2020 at 4:00 AM.
