When summer in Sun Valley, you mountain bike. Mountain biking is to summer what skiing is to winter. It is athletic, thrilling, and beautiful. Sun Valley offers some of the premier mountain biking trails in the country. The Sun Valley area boasts more than 400 miles of single-track. I can’t wait to contribute so much more to the mountain biking experience of this region in this blog. But, I’m surrounded by mountain biking novices, including my wife and two daughters, so I’ve got to break them in, show them the magic, show them that when you conquer a single-track trail that all you can think of is ‘what’s next?’.
A good friend suggested I take the girls to Galena Lodge. The Blaine County Recreation District is in the process of adding 47 miles of new trails that offer something for everyone, including my beginner riders. We all rented mountain bikes at the Galena bike shop and set out on a trail called Lodge Loop. Even this beginner trail caused white-knuckle riding from my youngest, but she persevered and we conquered several laps on the Loop, her taking pride in not having to stop for long stretches. After dropping the kids at the Lodge for grilled-cheese sandwiches on the deck, I took Barb out to Galena View Loop to Senate Meadows Loop to Pioneer Cemetery Loop. She loved it. Mild, meandering single-track biking through open meadows and dense woods, allows you to take it easy or let it rip. I can’t wait to get back to try out the rest of the Galena trail system. And, to my great surprise, neither can the girls.
