Located in the Silver Valley of Idaho’s Panhandle region, Silver Mountain Bike Park overlooks Interstate 90 and the tiny town of Kellogg. This bike park is a bit of a sleeper in the sense that many people outside the neighboring riding communities have never heard of it. Despite being voted the #1 best bike park in the Northwest four years in a row, most of the people we’ve talked to in our travels had never been, or heard of Silver Mountain. Although we’re probably going to ruffle some feathers from local riders who love this park’s under-the-radar vibe, we’d be remiss if we didn’t say this park has some incredibly fun and challenging terrain that riders will truly love.
Silver Mountain has one of the longest gondolas in the world and the longest in North America covering a distance of 3.1 miles. Total elevation gained on the massive gondola is 3,400 feet while a second chair services another section of the mountain and provides riders with a quick turnaround to shred 800 vertical feet on several trails of various levels. Many beginning riders spend time on the Chair 3 zone and get comfortable on the mellower trails before tackling the full 3,400-foot descent back to the village. For comparison Whistler Bike Park’s elevation change from the Garbanzo zone to the village is roughly 3,800 feet and the lower Fitzsimmons zone which houses crowd favorites like A-Line, Dirt Merchant and Schleyer drop just over 1,100 feet of vert. Needless to say, Silver Mountain has the terrain to challenge the greats. Now it’s just about adding to the infrastructure.
About 40 gravity-oriented trails wind down Silver Mountain and funnel riders into downtown Kellogg where a short and scenic pedal back to the gondola gives visitors a unique perspective of this town and Dave Smith’s impressive collection of new Dodge trucks and cars. After a pedal through downtown riders pass by the small pumptrack and camp-friendly parking lot before returning to the Morning Star Lodge and Gondola Village for another ride back to the top. We’d suggest grabbing a huckleberry lemonade from Noah’s for the long ride back up.
LODGING AND ON-SITE AMENITIES
Kellogg is a quiet town with a rich mining history. Over the years mining jobs and revenue have slowed due to environmental protection and northern Idaho has shifted focus to more recreational avenues to support communities and locals, well that and Dave Smith’s inescapable grasp on everything from car dealerships to repair shops and vehicle storage. While the town is small, there are plenty of places to stay in the form of camping, Airbnb, motels and the very nice Morning Star Lodge.
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