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Chicago Ridge SnowCat Tours
Summit Elevation: 12,600 feet
Vertical Drop: Depends on your ability
Average Annual Snowfall: 250 natural inches
Skiable Acres: 2,400
http://www.skicooper.com/snowcat-skiing-c4.html

Still Dazed After Chicago Ridge SnowCat Tour
Pretty much all snowcat tours, from Powder Cats in Steamboat, Colo., to the tours offered at Kicking Horse Resort in British Columbia, Canada, provide a mind-blowing, powder experience, unmatched by anything except heli-skiing.

So why Chicago Ridge in tiny Leadville, Colo? Well, if you fall into the same tax bracket my friends and I currently qualify for, wheere spending $600 for a day of thrills just doesn’t get past the wife, then places like Chicago Ridge make sense on both a fiscal, physical, spiritual and emotional level.

Visions of my recent adventure on Chicago Ridge linger in my mind and torture me at work: floating through clouds of the finest fluff on our first run down Frosty’s glades; airborne turn after airborne turn in what we were told was almost eight feet of powder, as our second run, Funnel Shot, housed some of the biggest face shots I’ve ever tasted.

Unfortunately, my photos (or lack thereof) simply don’t do the skiing experience justice. The clouds were low the day I visited and it was snowing, which makes for great skiing, but lousy photos.

Our guide, Ralph Wentz, who has worked the Chicago Ridge for 19 years, told me over lunch that he has skied all over the Rocky Mountain region, and that guiding at Chicago Ridge has allowed him to, “ski one of the best powder stashes in the Rockies for close to two decades, on an almost daily basis.”

There are some who would rather ski via helicopter. Considering the price of heliskiing, coupled with the no fly day policy, the CAT experience seems much more reasonable for for those looking to rack up 15,000 vertical feet in snowy conditions without breaking the bank.

Warm, comfortable and loaded with plenty of bottled water to guzzle between runs, the CAT drove us to untouhed lines all day while its passengers jammed to some old Rolling Stones tunes and high-fived each other. The added comforts, which included a gourmet lunch of salmon steaks, rice, salad, rolls and chocolate cake, and then pitchers of beer at the end of the day in the Ski Cooper lodge, were a major bonus.

For those looking to experience the backcountry in a stash of powder that rivals anything the Rockies have to offer, without dropping big bucks on a helicopter that may, or may not fly each day, the Chicago Ridge SnowCat Tour is the ultimate way to ride.

Cost? $325 January — February 28 (prime time), $290 the rest of the season

Favorite ‘Runs’:

• Frosty’s — we hit Frosty’s on our first, third and fourth run, following Ralph down a short open section that led to an area of drifts that launched us into a sea of knee-to-waist deep powder.
• Funnel Shot — uh, did anyone get that on film? Didn’t think so. They should change the name of this run to Face Shot.
• Sawmill — we took Sawmill from every angle, starting right after lunch. Sawmill is a land like no other, unless of course, you are used to riding in abandoned logging sites. Short stumps protrude from the snow, making the scenery truly unique.

*A Note on Fat Skis
The powder stashes at Chicago Ridge are deep enough that fat skies should be considered mandatory. The Chicago Ridge SnowCat Tours rents Rossignol B3′s to guests at a reasonable rate. For those looking to go even wider, we recommend Christy Sports’ demo program (see www.christysports.com for locations in Colorado) where you can try before you buy. Go with the Volkl Gotama, K2 Pontoon, or the Line Prophet. Any of Christy’s demo’s boards will keep you floating.

 

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Tags: cat skiing, Chicago Ridge, Chicago Ridge SnowCat Tours, pow, powder, rockies, rocky mountain skiing, rocky mountains, Skiing News and Notes, snow sports, snowboarding, snowcat skiing, where to ski in colorado