Idaho’s Trailing of the Sheep Festival

Summer seems to usher in festivals aplenty. Each June, the Spin Off staff looks forward to a local tradition: attending the Estes Park Wool Market, which is only about an hour’s drive from our office. Read on to learn about Idaho’s annual festival, which includes thousands of sheep parading down main street! —Editors

Idaho’s Trailing of the Sheep Festival takes place in October each year in Sun Valley, Ketchum, and Hailey. The festival began with the need to share a story. It all started in the early 1990s: a bicycle path was built along a traditional sheepherding route, but area sheep retained the right-of-way through the Wood River Valley. Some of the newer urban residents found this arrangement disagreeable, and local ranchers saw an opportunity to educate the newcomers about the rich history surrounding sheep ranching and herding in this region of the Mountain West. The two groups initially met over coffee, and through their joint effort to resolve their differences, a festival was born.

Come for the sheep, stay for the mountains and gorgeous scenery. Sawtooth Range, near Sun Valley, Idaho. Photo by Alex Bertha on Unsplash

Today, the story continues. About 25,000 people representing 37 states and 23 countries attend the festival and celebrate the region’s sheepherding heritage. The event includes something for everyone. Fiber lovers can select from 18 different fiber classes on topics such as needlefelting, botanical dyeing, and rug hooking. Other popular happenings at the festival include storytelling at the Sheep Tales Gathering, the Sheep Folklife Fair, sheepdog trials, and the Big Sheep Parade, during which local herds wind their way through Ketchum. There are also cooking classes and farm-to-table dinners.

As Idaho’s urban population continues to grow, the festival remains an important and engaging way of sharing in rural history.

Visit the Trailing of the Sheep festival website for more information about this year’s Trailing of the Sheep Festival.

Attending your first festival? Find a few tips here!

Elizabeth Prose is a former associate editor of Spin Off.

Originally published September 24, 2018; updated June 12, 2023.