Adventure Outdoors Magazine Fall 2016 | Page 144

& TRAVEL EXCURSIONS Pocatello, ID Easy access to outdoor recreation and scenic beauty grace Pocatello. World-class mountain bike trails and challenging rock-climbing are some of the offerings located right in Pocatello. The valley is surrounded by mountains laced with incredible trails. The City Creek Trail System is 52-miles of maintained trails for hikers and mountain bikers on the doorstep of the west bench with everything from green circle to double black diamond trails. The Portneuf Greenway trails run through the city for thirteen miles along the Portneuf River and lead to public land trailheads that surround the city. Rock-climbers often travel to Pocatello just to scale the “Shady" and “Sunny" side of the basalt lava cliffs of Ross Park right in the city. The “Pocatello Pump,” the nation’s oldest rock-climbing competition, takes place here each September. If you’re arriving on the Polar Express, you’ll find the same incredible mountains, trails, and meadows covered in snow and ready to provide cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, or snowmobile adventures Idaho-style! The East Fork Mink Creek Nordic Center hosts about 20k of groomed skate and classic ski trails, as well as separate snowshoe trails. The Mink Creek Park N’ Ski Idaho State Park program offers an additional 29k on five trails. Trips to the yurt system are also popular with hearty winter lovers. Groomed snowmobile trails loop Scout Mountain, Garden Creek, and South Mink Creek for miles of powder and mountain trails with fresh Idaho air. Pebble Creek provides all the downhill or snowboarding ecstasy you can absorb. After an invigorating outing covering 2,200 vertical feet per run and jumps, rails, boxes and rollers at three terrain parks, you can be back in town for dinner in less than 20 minutes. The local saying is that if you can ski "the rock,” you can ski anywhere. For more information go to VisitPocatello.com 142 Fall 2016 Adventure Outdoors