Breckenridge Real Estate Blog

Colorado Back Country Skiing

Back country skiing used to mean hazardous conditions and buddying up in case of emergency, but ski resorts have increasingly begun to offer backcountry experiences without the dangers of doing it on your own out of bounds. Usually when skiers and ‘boarders think back country, they think no lift access. Some think of Loveland or Berthoud passes, but those are out-of- bounds areas, without avalanche control or patrols, said Nick Bohnen- kamp, spokesman for Colorado Ski Country USA.

“It’s ’ski at your own risk,”‘ he said. “When you ski back country, there are a lot of variables that come into play to do it safely. The benefit of resorts providing inbounds back country access is as long as you feel confident skiing the terrain, everything else is provided for you - the avalanche-controlled terrain and the ski patrol.”

Many of Colorado’s ski resorts are now offering inbounds back country via hike-to terrain and Sno-Cat operations to access hard-to-reach powder terrain. Some are guided tours, and others even allow intermediate skiers and ‘boarders to participate. Most hikes are within 10 to 40 minutes and ski right down into the main resort and lift areas.

Resorts are not seeing huge dollars from the back country options but are providing a service they say has a following. At Monarch Mountain last year, the Sno-Cat operation served 1,100 people, which raised more than $220,000. Other resorts did not have numbers on how many use their hike-in or Cat operations Costs for Sno-Cat skiing can range from free at places such as Copper Mountain to $400 a day with Steamboat Powdercats. Monarch charges $230 a day for high-season Sno-Cat skiing.

Hard-core back country enthusiasts say what the resorts offer is not really back country at all and is still resort skiing, said Brian Holcombe, executive director of Back country Snowsports Alliance. “Back country skiing in a lot of places is being seen as sexy and as being a way to chase better snow, so a lot of resorts are trying to capitalize on that,” Holcombe said. “It’s an easy way to open new terrain without having to put in a lift.”

Back country skiing is defined by areas that are skiable but not within the confines of a developed ski area, Holcombe said. These areas include easy-to-access roadside areas or farther-out hike-in slopes and mountains. Several Sno-Cat operations take skiers and ‘boarders to out-of-bounds areas, including the San Juan Ski Co., with access to 35,000 acres of the West San Juan Mountains. Steamboat Powdercats works under special-use permits from the Bureau of Land Management and Routt-Medicine Bow National Forest to access 10,000

The only heli-skiing operation in Colorado is Helitrax, based in Telluride, which ferries skiers and ‘boarders from various locations across the state to out-of-bounds areas.

Better Gear Better Skiing

Backcountry gear sales have spiked 500 percent year over year since 2005, according to Bohnenkamp. “The gear sales alone are a testament to the number of people experiencing back country,” he said. At Monarch Mountain, where Sno- Cat tours have been ongoing since 1991, Mirkwood Basin is also hike-in and provides 130 acres with a 1,100-foot vertical drop. This is also the third season Monarch will offer Elation Ridge as part of its back country. “It’s definitely needed; we get a lot of natural snow up here, being as high as we are, and you have the demand from the upper-level back country skier,” Ralph said. “It’s nice to have access to the back country and the thrill of the back country without too many of the threats.”

Independence Bowl was added last year and increased Keystone’s hike-to and Sno-Cat terrain to 1,138 acres.A full-day Sno-Cat tour at Keystone is $199 and includes lunch, lift ticket, avalanche-beacon rental and powder-ski rental. The KAT also offers one-way $5 unguided shuttle rides to the Outback Bowls.At Copper Mountain, Tucker Mountain offers 273 acres and 1,200 vertical feet of high alpine back bowls from the Otto Bahn trail. ‘Boarders and skiers can hike to Tucker Mountain, but Sno-Cat rides are offered as well.The service began seven years ago, and in the ‘05-06 season Copper added a second 12-passenger Sno-Cat to the operation because it was so popular. “Copper is very proud that we can continue to offer the Tucker Mountain Sno-Cats as a free experience,” said Lauren Pelletreau, spokeswoman for Copper Mountain.

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