A Year after Being Derailed by Wildfire, Soldier Mountain Bike Park Opens in Idaho

A forest fire prevented Soldier Mountain bike park in Idaho from debuting as planned. This weekend, it will finally open to the public.
Photo by Cameron Lloyd

The Soldier Mountain Bike Park was supposed to open last year. Then, forest fires ran rampant through the West and the Phillips Fire prevented the new bike park from opening in Idaho. A year later, Soldier Mountain is ready to rip as of Memorial Day weekend.

“We’re excited to be opening our bike park,” Soldier Mountain’s general manager, Paul Alden, said in a press release. “These trails are built to world-class standards, and we look forward to being the preferred local mountain-biking destination for riders of all ages and abilities.”

Soldier Mountain has been around since 1947 and prides itself as a “family friendly mountain resort” near Fairfield, Idaho in the Soldier Mountains of the Sawtooth National Forest, around two hours from Boise.

This Saturday, the resort is having a grand opening celebration from 1:30PM to 4:30PM, and the park will be open regularly from 1:30PM to 7PM on Fridays, and 11-7PM on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. The opening celebration will include a live band, a 50% discount on in-person lift ticket purchases, and folks will get a free dessert (the release didn’t clarify, so hopefully not a pack of Ho Hos) with their purchase.

Idaho Cycles will have a mobile repair shop on hand to assist with repairs and tune-ups. Unfortunately the park will have limited rental opportunities due to pandemic-related supply chain issues.

The bike park opens with 7.7-miles of trail, with a mix of easy, intermediate, advanced hand-cut, and extreme machine cut jump trails. Soldier Mountain also has a skills park and is planning on adding another natural, hand-built trail this summer.

A lift ticket costs $29 for adults, and $24 for youth, while the resort is extending a $10 discount to seniors, veterans, and military personnel. Season passes for adults and youth are $179 and $129 respectively. See the Soldier Mountain website for more information.