Conditions Report
Report from Friday, January 9, 2026
My trip to Lookout Pass, a hidden gem located on the Idaho-Montana border, started out in my favorite way to start ski days, with a shuttle ride. The night before, I had been staying at the incredible Stardust Motel, located in the small, historic town of Wallace, Idaho. The Stardust Motel launched a shuttle program over the summer to various recreation spots in the area, including the Trail of the Hiawatha, and is continuing the service over the winter with regular trips up to Lookout Pass on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. I hopped on at the Stardust after a fabulous breakfast at The Tin Snug with some freshly baked pastries to go. The ride was easy and skipping parking was an added advantage with an influx of people brought by the recent snowfall.
Lookout Pass offers a little over a thousand acres serviced by five chairlifts and gets an average of 400 inches of snowfall every winter. After a few hard days of pow skiing on early season legs, I was looking forward to a relaxing day of skiing at Lookout Pass. With minimal lift lines, I lapped groomer after groomer on Peak 1 and on Eagle Peak, soaking in the laid-back vibes from the other skiers there. Lookout Pass would be an ideal place to learn how to ski or continue to progress towards intermediate and advanced terrain, and Lookout Pass has hosted the longest running free ski school in the country. Since 1942, Lookout Pass has offered a series of free one hour ski classes, with this year’s offering running over seven weeks. The ski area website estimates that more than 38,000 people have learned how to ski through its free program.
Even though the forecast predicted only a small chance of snow in the morning, chicken feathers fell steadily all day, accumulating a few inches while I was there. I poked around in the Bigfoot and Paradise Glades and found some fun tree skiing in addition to a great groom with some frosting on-piste. Smaller sized ski areas like Lookout Pass preserve the soul of skiing, and offer an irreplaceable way for many to access the sport. I was thrilled to visit on a day when the stoke was so high after a much needed storm opened new terrain.
I hopped on the shuttle back to Wallace after a beer and some cheese curds in The Loft and continued the après at Wallace Brewing Company, a short walk from the Stardust Motel. I rounded out the day and the Panhandle portion of The Gem Line with a $34 fillet mignon at The Blackboard Cafe, which offers an impressive menu at shockingly low prices. Come for the steak or the Oso Bucco, and stay for the Limoncello Cheesecake. Throughout my time in Wallace and at Lookout Pass, I was blown away by the hospitality and kindness of everyone I met.
Thanks, Lookout!
Those interested in skiing the Gem Line Idaho ski resorts should visit VisitIdaho.com.
