Steamboat (tel. 970-879-6111; www.steamboat.com) is the ski area and Steamboat Springs is the classic Western town a couple of miles away. People are always confusing them, but there's nothing confusing about the ski terrain itself. Steamboat is a big ski area -- beefy as the surrounding ranchland -- that rises above the broad Yampa River Valley like a gentle white giant. Located in northern Colorado, not far from the Wyoming state line, Steamboat is known for reliable and abundant, feather-light snow that resort management has trademarked as Champagne Powder.
The modern resort development is anchored at Ski Time Square, currently under aggressive redevelopment. This includes new condos and commercial space, and the just-completed makeover of the Sheraton Steamboat (tel. 866/716-8134; www.sheratonsteamboatresort.com), the resort's original hotel. These accommodations, plus abundant ski-in, ski-out lodging on the lower mountain, make Steamboat a convenient place to ski. This is especially true for families, not trivial since Steamboat pioneered Kids Ski Free, with free lodging, lift tickets, and rentals for children under 12 and discounts for teenagers.
The terrain is gorgeous and varied, from sweet beginner slopes to challenging steeps. In addition to beginner lifts at the base, the eight-passenger gondola unloads at Thunderhead, where a large, mid-mountain lodge is located. Skiers and riders disperse from there. Some return 2,200 vertical feet to the base, either via Christie Peak or straight down the gondola line. Thunderhead is the spot where enduring skiing superstar Billy Kidd meets guests daily at 1pm for a free ski-down whenever he is in town. But most of the time, the majority head off to Mt. Werner, Morningside Park, Storm Peak, and Sunshine Peak, which among them offer silky cruising runs, mogul-studded steeps, terrain parks, the awesome Mavericks superpipe and some of the best glades on the planet.
To the skier's left from Thunderhead is the Burgess Creek drainage, with lifts to Storm Peak, Mt. Werner, and back up to Thunderhead. Mt. Werner's steeps and Morningside Park's fairly gentle backside glades lure experts to steep, largely ungroomed terrain. Named after the late, great Steamboat ski racer, Buddy Werner, Buddy's Run between Mt Werner and Storm Peak can be considered Steamboat's signature trail. Skier's right is the Priest Creek drainage and the beguiling runs of Sunshine Peak.
The lifts will be operational this year through April, and the resort is offering unprecedented late-season lift/lodging values, including free skiing in April when a minimum three-night package is booked through Steamboat Central Reservations (tel. 877/783-2628). The ski area's massive 3,668-foot vertical means that snow conditions are often wintry on top, even as there's corn and melt-off at the base. And if spring conditions are iffy at the bottom, it is possible to download on the gondola.
Steamboat Springs boasts that it has sent more athletes to the Olympics than any other town in the land. Most of them cut their teeth on the super-steep slalom hill, ski jump or Nordic Trails at Howelsen Hill (tel. 970/879-4300; https://steamboatsprings.net). Geared to local youngsters, the area operates afternoons and on weekends. The ski season at this municipally run hill is shorter, ending this year on March 29. Other diversions include shopping and gallery-hopping in downtown Steamboat Springs, visiting the Tread of the Pioneers Museum or dipping into natural hot springs either downtown or Strawberry Hot Springs, a few miles north of town. Cross-country skiers, snowshoers and snowmobilers ply the marked trails high on Rabbit Ears Pass well into spring.
Steamboat Stats
Lifts: 1 gondola, 1 high-speed six-seater chairlift, 5 high-speed detachable quad, 1 fixed-grip quad, 6 triples, 2 doubles, 2 surface lifts; uphill capacity, 41,465 per hour
Vertical: 3,668 feet
Skiable Acres: 2,965; snowmaking on 375 acres. Average annual snowfall, 343 inches
Trails: 165 (14% beginner and novice; 42% intermediate; 44% advanced and expert, including glades)
Terrain Parks: 3 terrain parks, 2 halfpipes (one a superpipe)
Talk with fellow Frommer's travelers in our Winter Sport Forum today.