Snowy Range is a hidden gem of the West

Having successfully navigated his way through 25 EV charging stops between Waterbury Center, Providence and 10 other states along the route west, he and the EUV Bolt landed in Laramie, Wyo.

Wyoming is a little out of the way when your end point is New Mexico but there was method to the madness — he was delivering his ebike to a great bike shop in Laramie called the Pedal House. Holly, Joel and Dewey had promised to tune up the machine, affix his paniers and spare battery and have everything ready for The Scribe’s return in early May to begin a 1,500-mile odyssey from Laramie. His route will take him up and over the Continental Divide and all the way to Indianapolis along an adventure cycling route named the Eastern Express Connector.

But there was another reason to be in Wyoming and that was to go and sample the charms of a small but very beloved ski area 35 miles to the west called Snowy Range. In recent years, your scribe has become quite enamored of small out-of-the-way ski areas, like last year’s favorite, Mt. Bohemia, in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Snowy Range is nestled into the Snowy Mountains, foothills to the larger mountains of the Rockies. The drive from Laramie is unique. The landscape is a slowly rising high plain which, for almost 25 miles, is entirely devoid of trees — but not coyotes or pronghorns.

Finally, you come into a tiny hamlet, named Centennial with a population of 263 and four saloons — guess where the skiers and riders do their post-ski imbibing. Then the road climbs steeply up into the national forest and five miles later Snowy Range, sitting at just over 9,000 feet above sea level is ready and waiting for the skiers and riders who for decades have called this their mountain.

On the day The Scribe arrived, the wind was howling, which made for some challenges for the lift operators, but a couple of inches of fresh snow combined with gusting wind produced a delightful ski surface. Take a run down a trail running through the tall evergreens that dominate the landscape and by the time you reached the top for your next lap, your tracks were gone.

Snowy Range has an interesting profile among ski areas in the West. Everyone knows the biggies — Jackson Hole, Vail, Aspen and Telluride. However, for so many people who love to ski, a place like Snowy Range has huge appeal. It is affordable and rarely crowded. In fact, Becky Maddox, who owns the resort with her husband Aaron, said “weekdays are mostly empty, but on the busier weekends the regulars start to whine about five-minute lift lines.”

Snowy Range started back in 1960 according to a veteran patroller named Neal, whose career at the Range goes back more than 35 years. In those days, lift service came from two T-bars — one that was of modest length, the other much longer — reaching the highest point of the ridge now serviced by the Chute double chair. Under the original owner, there was a gradual expansion as chairs replaced T-bars. Then disaster struck. The base lodge burned down and soon there was a PR problem, folks started saying Snowy Range burned down. Now, buildings burn down but ski areas don’t, but it still took a while to reestablish the Range’s place among local areas. Times were tough and soon a local bank was operating the area, without much enthusiasm.

Then it all changed a decade ago when the young and energetic Maddox couple worked out a deal to take Snowy Range off the bank’s books. Since then, it has been a great resource for local skiers. The new owners’ motto was simple, as told to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, “we advertise an easy, cheap fun experience” that stands in stark contrast to the way so many of today’s resorts operate.

Roughly a thousand feet of vertical, 75 acres of trails — 30 percent protected by snowmaking and four fixed grip chairs — make for a compact area that draws skiers and riders from a surprisingly wide area. The University of Wyoming in Laramie feeds plenty of business but skiers drive here also from much of adjoining Colorado. The appeal is obvious — quiet trails, good snowpack and a nice simple base lodge. There is another factor. For the huge population of Denver and its suburbs, skiing in Colorado can often come with three-hour car rides and a parking lot on Interstate 70. For many Coloradans, with 75-mph speed limits, Snowy Range just isn’t that far away.

For your scribe, Snowy Range provided a great opening scene for this year’s ski trip. Soft snow and enjoyable runs down modestly steep terrain, but the lift rides up were almost as enjoyable. One ride partner was a home-schooled 16-year-old from Louisiana visiting family in Laramie. Turned out the kid had been a bull rider until he got thrown one too many times and opted to take up broncos instead. Another skier was a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force stationed nearby and tasked with guarding missile silos.

A third skier was a Utahn — a Wasatch native who spent 35 years in Oregon skiing Mt. Bachelor who then abandoned Oregon when the politics got too liberal for his taste. He headed to Greeley, Colo. and found Snowy Range as the perfect quiet spot to continue with his lifelong love of skiing.

In the end, over two enjoyable days at this quiet resort, The Scribe kept finding one thing that everyone seemed to have in common. “We come here because it’s mellow, it’s fun and it’s cheap.” For Becky and Aaron Maddox, their plan is working: stay simple, don’t put on airs and, just like that Iowa ballfield in “Field of Dreams,” “if you build it, they will come.”

Kim Brown, a ski bum by winter and a hacker by summer, lives in Waterbury Center with his very understanding family.