Soldier Mountain Ski Area is an
alpine
Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to:
Places Europe
* Alps, a European mountain range
** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range
Australia
* Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village
* Alpine National P ...
ski area
A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...
in the western United States, in the
Soldier Mountains
The Soldier Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Idaho, spanning northern Camas and eastern Elmore counties. The highest point in the range is Smoky Dome at , and the range is bounded on the west and north by the South Fork B ...
of
Sawtooth National Forest
Sawtooth National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest that covers 2,110,408 acres (854,052 ha) in the U.S. states of Idaho (~96 percent) and Utah (~4 percent). Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the United States Depart ...
in south central
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
. Located north of
Fairfield in very rural
Camas County, its summit elevation is
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...
with a vertical drop of . The area has two
chairlifts
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tr ...
in series on its east-facing slopes, and a
magic carpet
A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet and common trope in fantasy fiction. It is typically used as a form of transportation and can quickly or instantaneously carry its user(s) to their destination.
In literature
On ...
was installed in the fall of 2012 near the base.
The magic carpet was replaced in 2020 after the original was destroyed in a fire.
During its seasonal operations, Soldier Mountain is open from Thursday through Sunday, except for the Christmas holiday season when it is open daily.
History
After watching the
1948 Winter Olympic tryouts in nearby
Sun Valley, Bob Frostenson and his friend, Harry Durall, decided they could not turn their backs on the sport of skiing. That summer they raised $10,000 (equivalent to $ today) and began work on a base lodge, and purchased two
rope tows, the first powered by a 1938
Chevrolet
Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...
engine. They cut timber, installed lifts, and built lodges by hand.
The first
chairlift
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...
was installed in 1971, and the upper chairlift ''(Bird's Eye)'' was added in 1974. Soldier has of variable terrain including a terrain park, glades, bowls, and tree skiing. Soldier maintained
snowmaking
Snowmaking is the production of snow by forcing water and pressurized air through a "snow gun", also known as a "snow cannon". Snowmaking is mainly used at ski resorts to supplement natural snow. This allows ski resorts to improve the reliabilit ...
capabilities, although it has not operated since 1996. Four miles (6 km) west of Soldier's summit is
Smoky Dome, with an
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...
of . In between there are several peaks well over : Peak 1 at and Peak 2 at are used in Soldier's
backcountry skiing
Backcountry skiing ( US), also called off-piste (Europe), alpine touring, freeriding or out-of-area, is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas either inside or outside a ski resort's boundaries. This contrasts with alpine s ...
operations, served by
snowcat
A snowcat (a portmanteau of snow and caterpillar) is an enclosed-cab, truck-sized, fully tracked vehicle designed to travel over snow. Major manufacturers are PistenBully (Germany), Prinoth (Italy), and Tucker (United States).
Snow groomer ...
.
Actor
Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting (TV series), Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and has appeared in over one hundred films, gaining ...
, a part-time resident of
Hailey, bought the ski area in the mid-1990s. It was speculated that Willis planned lift service to Peak 1 or Peak 2.
An early morning fire on Monday, March 30, 2009, destroyed the 61-year-old base lodge. The cause was attributed to electrical wiring, and occurred shortly after the final day of the ski season.
A new base lodge was constructed and Soldier Mountain reopened ten months later, on January 28, 2010.
After nearly two decades of ownership, Willis donated it to a
non-profit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
, "Soldier Mountain Ski Area, Inc", in 2012. Many of its members were from the area and had been skiing/boarding the mountain since childhood.
Craigslist
Craigslist (stylized as craigslist) is a privately held American company operating a classified advertisements website with sections devoted to jobs, housing, for sale, items wanted, services, community service, gigs, résumés, and discussi ...
in 2019, and eventually sold it to an investment group called Ascent Ventures from Lehi, Utah
Lehi ( ) is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. The population was 75,907 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, up from 47,407 in 2010, and it is the center of population of Utah. The rapid growth in Lehi is due, in part, to t ...
, in 2020.mountain bike
A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling (''mountain biking''). Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in r ...
single track trails that were set to open on August 7, 2020. However, a lightning strike started a wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...
on August 5 that spread through most of the area, either damaging or destroying most of the equipment on the mountain while leaving the lodge area untouched.
Lifts
Video
You Tube
Soldier Mountain lodge fire - March 30, 2009
References
External links
*
Visit Idaho.org
- official state site - Soldier Mountain
- photos of Soldier Mountain's chairlifts
Ski Map.org
– trail maps – Soldier Mountain
- The Soldier Mountains - photos
- Smoky Dome - 10,095'
{{Idaho Ski areas navbox
Ski areas and resorts in Idaho
Buildings and structures in Camas County, Idaho
Tourist attractions in Camas County, Idaho