The Bacon Strip

The Bacon Strip has been spotted in Idaho. This picture was taken at an undisclosed location that will be obvious to any skier or climber with the most modest of pattern-recognition skills.

It’s the world-famous singletrack of places like Ketchum, Sun Valley, and Stanley that have long had some baconstrippers coveting ownership of one of those lovely “World Famous Potatoes” license plates. Is it the spuds? Hardly. But something magical is in that Idaho soil, and it’s responsible for the inviting brown skin of the trails and taters alike. Not that travelers have been aching to experience something other than the buttery smooth wonderfulness of Adams Gulch, Chocolate Gulch, Fisher Creek, et. al. BUT, if you happen to find yourself about 6 hours east of there, rest assured, ribbons of tasty, fast, windy, and downright BEAUTIFUL trails await in the small, soft folds of the hills rising from waving seas of spud blossoms.

I wish I had a better image of the map to show y’all, but I do now have a copy of it. If you’re a local ’stripper, just ask and I’ll bring it to the next beer swill or bike ride. Of course, you’re welcome to borrow it, but only on condition that you promise to add your own personal yet unobtrusive graffiti to it. Map info and a copy can be purchased here.

Alas, I have no pictures of the trails, as I was alone and, well, I was RIDING, duh. Suffice it to say they were good enough that I wouldn’t have stopped to take pictures even if the camera were handy. Names of the trails ridden (should you wish to search ‘em on MTBR) - “Red Creek,” “Channel Lock,” “Bovine,” and about three or four others in Horseshoe Canyon I can’t remember.