Bogus Basin

Bogus Basin is a ski resort located in southwest Idaho, found in the Boise Ridge mountains. Bogus Basin offers alpine skiing with 20 miles of skiable, groomed runs as well as 23 miles of cross-country skiing trails or Nordic skiing. Bogus Basin is family friendly and great for beginners, though it also offers more challenging skiing too.

If you are looking for a fun and challenging place to ski for the whole family, with tasty food on offer in the mountain restaurants and a super-fast network of lifts to take you up the mountain, then Bogus Basin is the resort for you. With enough ski pistes to last you for a week holiday and 4 high speed quad lifts to take you up into the clouds, there is plenty of entertainment available for the whole family.

A huge advantage to take note of for this resort is that waiting times are so quick! Having to wait around for hours can sometimes ruin a day skiing, whether it is the wait time for lifts, ski rentals or food. If you compare this resort with some of the better-known resorts such as in California or in Colorado, you will be shocked at how quickly everything moves here. Not only does it allow you to get the most value for your money in terms of kms skied, but it also makes the day so much more pleasant not having to wait around for other people to clamber onto the chairlift after the 6 year old has fallen off twice already.

Bogus Basin offers a good range of ski runs, with something for the absolute beginners, so thing for the absolute experts, and a lot of something in between! With 50% of pistes being red (intermediate difficulty) and around 40% of pistes being black or double black (difficult & expert, the resort will provide you with a range of challenges, and offers excellent progression and you find yourself progressing on skis or a snowboard throughout the holiday, and need a bigger challenge. What I love about Bogus Basin is how spread out the resort is. With some smaller ski resorts I find myself getting a little bored sking up and down the same mountain for hours. With Bogus Basin, because it is spread over 3 different hills, you feel like you are going on more of an adventure when you ski, and are doing a bit more exploring! This is part of the fun of ski holidays!

Why is it called Bogus Basin?

It is still up for debate as to how Bogus Basin was given its strange name. There are a number of different theories for how this ski resort got its name. The most popular and most widely accepted is earning its name during the 19th Century gold rush. A group looking to make some money quickly (and illegally) headed up to the area to make bogus gold dust. They then made a fortune by selling it off as the real deal before fleeing and never being seen again!

How far is Bogus Basin from Boise?

How far is skiing from Boise? The answer is not far at all. Bogus Basin can be reached from the city of Boise in 45 minutes by car, bus or shuttle. The ski area is only 16 miles northeast of Boise, so if that is where you live, or if you can get flights to Boise airport, you will have very easy and quick access to the ski resort.

What elevation is Bogus Basin?

Bogus Basin has its base at a very respectable 5,800 feet, with its summit stretching all the way up to 7,00 feet! This impressive elevation is one of the reasons this ski resort receives such huge amounts of snow each year. Bogus Basin on average received between 150 inches – 200 inches of fresh snow each year, and is known to be an amazing spot for getting fresh snow turns on a powder day.

Is Bogus Basin open for night skiing?

Bogus Basin prides itself on the night skiing opportunity the resort offers. Ski from 3pm to 10pm every night of the week throughout the ski season! The 2020/21 ski season offers an extra hour of night skiing compared to previous years. Given that night skiing tends to take place from around 5pm to 8pm in most other resorts, this allows for night skiing far above the hours offered by most other place around the world. I'd recommend making the most of it!

The other huge advantage of night skiing at Bogus Basin is the incredible value for money of night skiing costing $39 per day + tax, compared to the day pass cost of $69 per day + tax.

What mountain range is Bogus Basin in?

Bogus Basin can be found in the Boise Ridge mountains. This mountain range is in southwest of Idaho. The resort is only 16 miles northeast of Boise.