You’ve probably heard that Idahoans aren’t afraid of gorillas (and if you haven’t, look it up), but despite our fearlessness of large, hairy primates, Idaho folk really aren’t much different from anyone else. However, we do have a few quirks, cultural norms, habits, and preferences that make us, well, unique. Here are 13 weird things people from Idaho do:

  1. We enjoy our personal space more than your average Joe.

Jess Johnson/Flickr “Frank! I can still hear you chewing from here…”

  1. “BOISEEEEE!”

Blue Thunder Marching Band/Flickr You know how this one goes.

  1. Our cultural staples include fry sauce, finger steaks, and ice cream potatoes (but not all at once, because that would be weird).

Chrissy Wainwright/Flickr A few other states claim to have invented fry sauce, but we’re a little doubtful.

*Disclaimer: No potatoes were harmed in the making of this chocolaty, delicious dessert.

  1. We’re determined to tough it through any weather Idaho throws at us.

Jason Kuffer/Flickr Snow day? What’s a snow day?

  1. We also vehemently prefer mom-and-pop stores to big box ones.

Nicholas D/Flickr Kroger? What’s a Kroger?

  1. Idahoans don’t mind getting a little muddy…

Mark Doliner/Flickr …because dirt is our favorite color.

  1. Mountain Dew is our lifeblood (#sorrynotsorry).

Thomas Hawk/Flickr

Airmonger/Vimeo We even have a Mt.Dew skatepark to commemorate our love of this sweet heaven-sent nectar.

  1. We also bend our hats to make them… umm, bendier.

Luyen Chou/Flickr A new hat always gets a few quick folds around the bill, or is rolled up into a back pocket. Don’t ask why… we just like them that way.

  1. We really, REALLY like huckleberries and hold festivals for them during picking season.

Eliza Adam The end result? Huckleberry jam, huckleberry ice cream, huckleberry syrup…

  1. But our bread serves multiple purposes.

Steve Wertz/Flickr Hamburgers, hot dogs, garlic bread, the occasional pizza crust… we’re not afraid to improvise.

  1. We can buy bait at any gas station in town if we want to… but we’d rather wrangle our own.

Paul Swansen/Flickr What? You don’t have live worms next to your slurpee machine?

  1. We’re also pretty patient drivers… maybe because our traffic jams are a little different than yours.

Russ Garcia/Flickr Sometimes it’s tractors instead of cows… or geese.

  1. But most of all, we recognize home by the smell of the cow pasture down the road.

Elizabeth Haslam/Flickr Country fresh air for the win.

Here in Idaho, we like to poke a little fun at our oddities. What else would you add to this list? Speaking of our quirks, here are some strange phrases Idahoans say.

Jess Johnson/Flickr

“Frank! I can still hear you chewing from here…”

Blue Thunder Marching Band/Flickr

You know how this one goes.

Chrissy Wainwright/Flickr

A few other states claim to have invented fry sauce, but we’re a little doubtful.

*Disclaimer: No potatoes were harmed in the making of this chocolaty, delicious dessert.

Jason Kuffer/Flickr

Snow day? What’s a snow day?

Nicholas D/Flickr

Kroger? What’s a Kroger?

Mark Doliner/Flickr

…because dirt is our favorite color.

Thomas Hawk/Flickr

Airmonger/Vimeo

We even have a Mt.Dew skatepark to commemorate our love of this sweet heaven-sent nectar.

Luyen Chou/Flickr

A new hat always gets a few quick folds around the bill, or is rolled up into a back pocket. Don’t ask why… we just like them that way.

Eliza Adam

The end result? Huckleberry jam, huckleberry ice cream, huckleberry syrup…

Steve Wertz/Flickr

Hamburgers, hot dogs, garlic bread, the occasional pizza crust… we’re not afraid to improvise.

Paul Swansen/Flickr

What? You don’t have live worms next to your slurpee machine?

Russ Garcia/Flickr

Sometimes it’s tractors instead of cows… or geese.

Elizabeth Haslam/Flickr

Country fresh air for the win.

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Address: Idaho, USA

The OIYS Visitor Center

Weird Things People In Idaho Do March 12, 2021 Leah What stereotypes are there about Idaho? There are some weird things people in Idaho do that are true, and other stereotypes that are just completely false. For example, while potatoes are a thing that is grown here, not all Idahoans are potato farmers or have anything to do with potato farming. Some people also think Idaho is in the midwest based on some other stereotypes, but that’s far from true as we know. Maybe they’re thinking of Iowa? A lot of people also have all of their Idaho knowledge from Napoleon Dynamite, and while some of it is accurate for the state’s small towns, not everywhere looks like that. What are some fun facts about Idaho? Other than weird things and unusual stereotypes, there is fun state trivia to learn about the Gem State. Speaking of gems, did you know that Idaho’s state gem is the Star Garnet. That’s not the only gem you can find here: over 70 types of precious stones and semi-precious stones can be found. The state is one of the only places in the world, other than India, that has them. Idaho is home to the deepest gorge in North America, Hell’s Canyon, which is a whopping 7,900 feet deep. What words or phrases do people from Idaho say? If you want to become a true Idahoan, you need to know some important Idaho sayings. Instead of asking for ketchup on their fries, you might hear an Idahoan ask for fry sauce. It’s a combination of ketchup and mayo, and it’s well-loved here. What other states call a glove compartment in a car is called a jockey box in the Gem State. When an Idahoan references somewhere being in BoDo, they mean Boise Downtown. And what you might call a prairie dog or ground squirrel is a whistle pig here.

The OIYS Visitor Center

Weird Things People In Idaho Do

March 12, 2021

Leah

What stereotypes are there about Idaho? There are some weird things people in Idaho do that are true, and other stereotypes that are just completely false. For example, while potatoes are a thing that is grown here, not all Idahoans are potato farmers or have anything to do with potato farming. Some people also think Idaho is in the midwest based on some other stereotypes, but that’s far from true as we know. Maybe they’re thinking of Iowa? A lot of people also have all of their Idaho knowledge from Napoleon Dynamite, and while some of it is accurate for the state’s small towns, not everywhere looks like that. What are some fun facts about Idaho? Other than weird things and unusual stereotypes, there is fun state trivia to learn about the Gem State. Speaking of gems, did you know that Idaho’s state gem is the Star Garnet. That’s not the only gem you can find here: over 70 types of precious stones and semi-precious stones can be found. The state is one of the only places in the world, other than India, that has them. Idaho is home to the deepest gorge in North America, Hell’s Canyon, which is a whopping 7,900 feet deep. What words or phrases do people from Idaho say? If you want to become a true Idahoan, you need to know some important Idaho sayings. Instead of asking for ketchup on their fries, you might hear an Idahoan ask for fry sauce. It’s a combination of ketchup and mayo, and it’s well-loved here. What other states call a glove compartment in a car is called a jockey box in the Gem State. When an Idahoan references somewhere being in BoDo, they mean Boise Downtown. And what you might call a prairie dog or ground squirrel is a whistle pig here.

The OIYS Visitor Center

The OIYS Visitor Center

There are some weird things people in Idaho do that are true, and other stereotypes that are just completely false. For example, while potatoes are a thing that is grown here, not all Idahoans are potato farmers or have anything to do with potato farming. Some people also think Idaho is in the midwest based on some other stereotypes, but that’s far from true as we know. Maybe they’re thinking of Iowa? A lot of people also have all of their Idaho knowledge from Napoleon Dynamite, and while some of it is accurate for the state’s small towns, not everywhere looks like that.

What are some fun facts about Idaho?

Other than weird things and unusual stereotypes, there is fun state trivia to learn about the Gem State. Speaking of gems, did you know that Idaho’s state gem is the Star Garnet. That’s not the only gem you can find here: over 70 types of precious stones and semi-precious stones can be found. The state is one of the only places in the world, other than India, that has them. Idaho is home to the deepest gorge in North America, Hell’s Canyon, which is a whopping 7,900 feet deep.

What words or phrases do people from Idaho say?

If you want to become a true Idahoan, you need to know some important Idaho sayings. Instead of asking for ketchup on their fries, you might hear an Idahoan ask for fry sauce. It’s a combination of ketchup and mayo, and it’s well-loved here. What other states call a glove compartment in a car is called a jockey box in the Gem State. When an Idahoan references somewhere being in BoDo, they mean Boise Downtown. And what you might call a prairie dog or ground squirrel is a whistle pig here.