Dear Young Folk of Sun Valley, Can’t afford a daily lift ticket (or has the corporate pass already been snagged)? Feeling confused about what to do on a beautiful Saturday? Even if hitting the slopes or the backcountry tracks isn’t an option, there is always something fun to do in Sun Valley. To prove our point, we gathered some of our craziest friends for an afternoon and evening of free fun around town. Five activities . . . 5 Free in 5B. Our first stop was to the legendary Gold Mine—the world’s greatest thrift store—where you can often find a brand new Spyder jacket or perfectly decent food processor for pocket change (Sun Valley pocket change, at least). Grazing the racks for wacky finds is fun whether you need them or not, and fashion showing to your finds to friends is simply a bonus, and free until you find that 15 dollar Bogner.
Look at all this goodness… Cheap. Always free to look!
The Gold Mine is located at 331 N. Walnut Avenue in Ketchum (Right off Sun Valley Road). You can find just about anything here – for cheap. It's profits go to benefit the Ketchum Community Library, but keep in mind the fun of just looking is always free – as is the fun of donating!
Next we headed over to the free skating rink at Atkinson’s Park, open dawn to dusk, where you can grab a pair of skates, and a puck and hockey stick if needed . . . we opted for just flashing our fabulous Gold Mine finds.
Once our legs were warmed up it was time to hit Penny Hill to show off our sledding skills. The athletic abilities of our group seemed to fall short, though; and even after being triple-dog-dared by a little girl, we were all too chicken to fly the big jump. Despite being shown up by people less than 4-feet tall, we laughed our way up and down the hill, happy to be enjoying the snowy afternoon.
Even the best sledders crash – So be careful!
Time to hit the Sun Valley Village price… NADA. Take a stroll people watching and ice sculpturing.. oh and look great doing it.
Now that we were all sopping wet in every area of our bodies, it seemed like a good time to head over to the Sun Valley village. Looking at ice sculptures, a full gingerbread replica of the resort, and old photographs in the lodge may not sound like the most exciting activity for a group of 20- and 30-somethings, but if you question the fun to be had you should come with us next time. . . .
Sun Valley has tons of these ice sculptures scattered all around. Take a family picture by one. – or -Take a picture with a random family. This is loads of fun. Usually they will come up to you because you look so ridiculously good looking. They may even ask if you are Austrian Ski Instructors… in this case we said yes, and they wanted a picture taken. This entertainment . . . 100% free.
No joke Sun Valley had someone or some team build an exact rendition of the village in gingerbread. Go act like Godzilla… FREE. Paying bail… not free.. Maybe just go take a look thats free. Its pretty impressive.
The final act of the evening (and entire purpose of the day’s attire) was the Ugly Sweater Christmas Party hosted by the Sawtooth Brewery. Capping off the day with a cream ale while listening to friends talk and laugh could not be sweeter than when you are so fully exhausted from fun.
But all in all, and discounting the cost of a few good beers, spending a free day in Sun Valley is easy to do. The activities abound, and all you need is a great crew to enjoy them with. ~Martha