In the Sun Valley area, the Sawtooth National Forest offers over a thousand miles of hiking trails leading to alpine lakes, remote wilderness cirques and peaks, and even high country cabins where you can enjoy a piece of paradise for the night.

Locals recommend the North Fork of Hyndman Creek trail, where overnight hikers can access historic Pioneer Cabin, built by the Union Pacific Railroad in 1937. There's a herd of wild elk nearby, and easy access to the Mount Hyndman trail, a non-technical (yet strenuous) route to the top of Mount Hyndman. It's one of the highest peaks in the state at 12,009 feet. Maps are available at the SNRA headquarters, eight miles north of Ketchum, the Ketchum Ranger District office on Sun Valley Road in Ketchum, the Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center on Main Street in Ketchum, and at any of the many sporting goods shops. From the top of the Lookout Express, 27 miles of summer trails fan out across the slopes of Bald Mountain. Most popular are the Broadway trail which links up with Seattle Ridge and goes through a carpet of wildflowers, and the Warm Springs trail, an eight-mile hiking/biking track which offers panoramic views as you cruise through open meadows and down into fragrant forests. (Don't miss the views on Little America Point.) On Bald Mountain's south face, the Cold Springs trail offers stunning views of the Pioneer Mountains and the opportunity to view wildlife at lower elevations as the trail descends below treeline.