Since 2012, Boise has been ringing in each new year by lowering a 17-foot potato from a crane in downtown Boise. The spud wears white wings and is illuminated, dubbing it the “GlowTato”.
The Idaho Potato Drop has brought Boise national recognition. USA Today ranked the event as the second best New Years Eve celebration in the nation several years in a row.
Rupert, Idaho is counting down to midnight with another root vegetable.
“They have a potato, we have a sugar beet,” said Kit Karney, President of Square Events, the organizer of the Sugar Beet Drop.
Over 1,000 people are expected to gather in the town square to watch the eight foot tall metal beet drop 200 feet, surrounded by fireworks.
“We have it filled with lights. It's a bright white, teardrop, shaped beat, and it's got some metal leaves on it that make it look like the iconic sugar beet from the Amalgamated Sugar logo,” Karney said.
The City of Kuna will enter 2026 by dropping a gem. Keely Perez, recreation and events specialist, says the idea behind the event is simple.
“Idaho's known for the gem state,” said Perez.
Although Kuna is near Boise’s potato drop, Perez said she hopes the gem can keep the celebration local.
“This is more like, small hometown. Kind of coziness, I suppose, instead of going to downtown,” said Perez.
In addition to midnight drops, Idahoans can ring in the New Year across the state with a variety of events.
Ada County
- Idaho Potato Drop
- Kuna Gem Drop
- “Noon Years Eve” at participating library branches
McCall
Canyon County
Magic Valley
- Rupert Sugar Beet Drop
- Twin Falls Ball Drop
Stanley