Ketchum is located in the Wood River Valley in Blaine County, Idaho. From its mining and ranching heritage, the town maintains an old west small town atmosphere. Ketchum is located a mile from world famous Sun Valley and shares many resources with Sun Valley. Tourism is a very large part of the economy. People come from around the world to ski Baldy which has over 3,000 feet of beginner to expert runs. The trout fishing in nearby Silver Creek is considered world class. There are countless other outdoor activities including road and mountain biking, hiking, and golfing on one of the five valley 18 hole golf courses, tennis, horseback riding, kayaking and airport serving the Ketchum, Sun Valley areas and it is located 12 miles to the south in the town of Hailey.
Ketchum Community
Although Ketchum had its roots in mining and ranching in the frontier of central Idaho, in the mid 1930's the city increased in tourism and popularity with high profile stars frequenting the idyllic location including Ernest Hemingway and Gary Cooper. Hemingway was a longtime resident of the valley where he fished, hunted and lived a rustic life in the valley. His final resting place is in the Ketchum Cemetary. The song from "Something to Remember Me By" by singer Ben Lee was inspired by the town of Ketchum.
Ketchum community events and celebrations bring families together and the community does get together every Labor Day weekend in Ketchum to celebrate Wagon Days of the Old West. This is a long weekend celebration based on the old west. One of the most interesting activities is the Big Hitch Parade down Main Street in Ketchum. The parade features old ore wagons like the ones they used to carry ore in during the mining days and these are pulled by large teams of mules.
