Enjoy Sledding At Steamboat Gulch Before The Weather Says No

My kids absolutely abhor the cold weather because they hate being bundled up. But they also love snow and being outside in it. You can see the conflict in that. I'm not going to let my kiddos out and about in cold wet weather without proper attire. But this weekend seemed the absolute perfect weather for a day of sledding. Still cold, but not layer yourself up like crazy cold.

So we (can't go anywhere without my bestie and her daughter) packed up my SUV and the kiddos for an hour and fifteen minute road trip into Idaho City to sled down the Steamboat Gulch tubing hill. The view driving in from Boise was absolutely stunning. Snow covered mountains, a myriad of trees, and sparkling streams on either side of the road. "Mommy, take a picture!" "Ooooo, trees!" Toddlers are easily fascinated, but I can't say I didn't appreciate the majesty in my surroundings.

After getting slightly lost, we finally arrived around noon, which gave us about 6 and a half hours to exhaust ourselves climbing up the hill and zooming down holding on to our sleds for dear life. Operating hours are longer on Sunday, from 11:00am- 6:30 pm. Then as follows:
Monday: closed
Tuesday: closed
Wednesday: Noon- 5:30pm
Thursday: Noon- 5:00pm
Friday: Noon- 5:30pm
Saturday: 11:00am- 6:30pm

Oh my gosh, the thrill of going full speed not knowing if you're going to fly off the sled and tumble down in shambles! I might have had more fun than the kids. But I'm totally jealous at how apt they were at not falling off. I must say I did hold my own. Check out this video of my first time ever down the hill:

It was an absolute blast of the day. And really you only need a pair of hours to get the full experience. It also wasn't terribly crowded at all. Social distancing was easy. The only issue was driving back onto the main road. As much as I loved the slightly warmer weather, it caused the snow on the road to get really sloshy and create these soggy trenches. My car totally got stuck sinking diagonally. A kind stranger in a truck towed us out.

Other than that, it's a 10/10 recommendation from me. Definitely not gonna ding the experience because I drove a car without all-wheel drive. Oops! Just be careful with the sloshy road as the weather is still a little warmer than normal.