Dollar Mountain

There is no water on Dollar Mountain.

From downtown Ketchum, it is a 2-mile drive. Click here for directions. There is plenty of parking in the lodge lot. When the lot is closed, park across the street from the lodge’s front entrance.

There are bathrooms in the lodge.

May to October

The trail begins at the wide path between the lodge and the base terminal for the classic Quarter Dollar lift. Follow the path/road as it winds to the left and crosses a small wooden bridge. The path climbs and comes to a T-intersection at .25 miles. Turn right.

The trail heads towards the top terminal of the Quarter Dollar lift. At the lift, turn to the left and scramble up the trail that runs to the right of the Train Yard sign.

This begins the toughest section of the climb, a 3/10th mile march up a narrow path. At about .65 miles, come to an intersection marked by a sign for Bitterroot Bowl and turn left to follow a wide path.

The path winds around a small knob and comes to the top terminal of the Dollar Lift at about .8 miles. Cross under the cables keeping the terminal to your left, then pass between the ski patrol cabin and an electrical shack to head to the radio tower, which is the apex of the hike. Take time to snap a few photos.

To find the descent, stay close to the radio tower, keeping it to your left and then look left to see the clearly defined trail heading southeast.

Your goal is to get to the valley floor that is to your right as you start the descent. The path winds around the mountain and just after the mile mark, come to an intersection. Turn right (to the northwest and back towards Dollar Lodge) to continue the descent.

The descent steepens and footing gets tough on the dusty trail. Poles will come in handy. At about 1.25 miles, come to another intersection and turn right to continue towards the lodge.

From here the trail braids through a small valley. This section of the trail sees heavy use by Sun Valley’s team of horses which carry tourists down to the nearby stables, so be ready to control your dogs if the horses are present. A few trails shoot up to the right. These are alternate paths to the apex, but we avoid these during horse season.

Keep braiding your way down the mountain, but make sure to keep the “Closed Area” signs to your left. If you find yourself passing one of the signs, simply turn to the right, re-connect with the trail and continue downwards.

Continue to wind along the trail, which widens again as you near the bottom. You will reconnect with the loop at that small wooden bridge.