These 8 Roller Coasters Are Worth The Drive From Boise

There may not be a roller coaster in Boise or anywhere else in the Treasure Valley, but there are roller coasters within eight hours and are worth the trip. Here are the most exciting roller coasters that, once you ride, you won't mind hearing, "Are we there yet" from the back seat of your car. There are three places to go for extreme thrill rides that we would consider driving to. All three are far enough away that you will need to make a vacation out of it and spend the night. Fortunately, there are plenty of things for you and your family to do in those places that will be totally worth it.

If you love roller coasters, the park with the most extreme coasters is Silverwood Theme Park. In addition to the amusement park, they also have a good water park called Boulder Beach. The drive is 7 1/2 hours from Boise, which is the furthest of our three suggestions and home to the most coasters. Their coasters make up half of our top 8.

Aftershock is probably the most famous of the Silverwood Coasters. With 4.5 G-Forces and a drop of 177 feet, this 65 miles per hour coaster will twist you and flip you upside down before coming to an end in just over a minute and a half! As far as coasters are concerned, it's pretty new. It was built in 2008, and the Travel Channel named it the Top Hanging Coaster in 2012.

Timber Terror is the oldest of the coasters at Silverwood, and I love the feel of a good wood coaster. It gets up to 55 miles per hour, while Tremors, which opened in 1999, is a much more exciting wood coaster. With drops of over 100 feet, speeds of 63 miles per hour, and the only coaster in Idaho that takes you underground.

Opening this weekend is Stunt Pilot, the latest and greatest from Rocky Mountain Construction. This Idaho company has built some of the best coasters in the world. The history of stunt planes and Silverwood dates back decades, so this theme celebrates the park's history while giving you three inversions at 52 miles per hour. We can't wait to see it in action.

We can't mention theme parks without mentioning Lagoon. Salt Lake City's park is the closest and most convenient to get to from Boise. They have three of the top 8 coasters on our list.

Cannibal is the newest coaster at Lagoon and the fastest on the list. It has speeds of 70 miles per hour, 116 degrees beyond vertical free fall, which is the tallest in the world, and a 140-foot tall inverted loop. This is a coaster designed by the park itself and not by a roller coaster manufacturer, making it very unique.

Like its name, Wicked is pretty extreme. It takes you straight up its 110-foot tower at 41 miles per hour and drops you down the other side at 55. Inversions, steep drops, and high banked turns will have your heart pumping in the 96 seconds of actual ride time.

Colossus: The Fire Dragon is the oldest coaster on our list, built in 1983. It was one of the best coasters in the country, according to People Magazine in 1984. For a ride that old to get to 55 miles per hour is pretty impressive. It takes you up 88 feet and has 65-foot loops. If you love wood coasters, you have to ride this.

Oaks Park in Portland has one coaster on our list, but it's competitive with the Silverwood and Lagoon coasters.

Adrenaline Peak features a drop of 70 feet and gets up to 45 miles per hour. It has sharp turns and a vertical loop. It's one of the newest coasters on our list, as it opened for the 2018 season.