Snowy Range

We wanted to go backcountry skiing yesterday, but all the new snow made for some slightly dangerous avalanche conditions. Erring on the side of safety, we decided to go elsewhere. Snowy Range is a small ski hill west of Laramie WY, and we had always wanted to go and check it out since it was relatively close.

To start with, the drive was way better than going to Summit County. We just headed up 287 to Laramie and went west. All told, I think it took us about 1:45 to get there, and not sitting in traffic was a big bonus. Unbeknownst to us, Snowy Range was holding their annual "Winterfest", so our lift tickets only cost $20 each. I can imagine the snow at this place can get pretty hard because of all the Wyoming wind that blows through there. The snow that made our backcountry trip dangerous made the conditions at Snow Range decent. It was a little cold, but it felt like we had the whole mountain to ourselves sometimes. It wasn't uncommon to do a whole run without seeing anyone, and there was never more than a dozen people in front of us at the lift. Sure the runs are short and it's not the greatest resort in the world, but for $40 and a pleasant drive it was a killer day.