Montana Ski Resorts

Lungdeflator · Dec 20, 2018

My wife and I have to make a trip out to Pullman, WA late January. We want to make a little vacation out of it and want to do some snowboarding.

Anybody have experience at any resorts out there? I hear a decent amount about Red Lodge and Whitefish, but not much about anything else.

It would be kind of nice not to have to stray too far from I90 (Missoula) in case the roads are crap.

Kurtr · Dec 20, 2018

Brider bowl in Bozeman is awesome

dank · Dec 20, 2018

Discovery Ski area is not far from I 90 near Anaconda, MT and is fantastic. You will not run into long wait times at Discovery and it has a variety of terrain from steep and deep on the backside as well as long "cruising" runs on the front side. Lift tickets are reasonable compared to many of the more well known areas around Bozeman.

Josh Havelka · Dec 20, 2018

I second the Discovery Ski area. Used to make many trips there when my grandparents lived in Deer Lodge. Bridger Bowl is a lot of fun also.

ndskeeter · Dec 20, 2018

You can hit Lookout Ski area which is right at the top of the pass on I-90 before dropping into Idaho however there really isn't anywhere to stay there.

LOV2HNT · Dec 20, 2018

I was just at Big Sky last week and they had plenty of snow. For this early in the season they had more of the mountain open than in the past. Their new Ramcharger8 lift is now open and that thing is sweet! So much terrain there to ski that finding an area that isn't crowded is never a problem. It is about 60 miles south of I-90 though.

Fly Carpin · Dec 20, 2018

Disco. Dank is spot on in his assessment. And they've been getting a decent amount of snow already. Avoid anything in the Bozangeles area that time of year. Red Lodge and Whitefish are probably my 2 faves in the state, but as you noticed, they're none to close to the Interstate. I'll be skiing Great Divide this winter, as it's 15 minutes from my front door

Bfishn · Dec 20, 2018

I have a buddy that boards Lookout a lot, it gets dumped on and there is nobody there and cheap$. Whitefish is one of my faves but it sucks to get to, and the fog can be a bitch if you don't know the Mtn. Bozeman is easy for us Bismarckians, i like it because a guy can stay in Bozeman and get up and the morning and check snow reports and hit Bridger or Bigsky. I think Big sky had its best Nov ever for snow, I was there two weeks ago and was impressed with conditions. I have a hate relationship with Red lodge aka rock dodge.

nybs · Dec 20, 2018

I’ve only been to Big Sky but really enjoy it up there. I’ve heard lift passes are more expensive than red lodge ($100+ Per day) but nice atmosphere, everything is close in the Mtn village, etc. stop by the yeti-dog stand and get a Lifty and a pounder for $5.

Bfishn · Dec 20, 2018

Big sky is getting spendy these days with all the fancy lifts and Village. They are really trying to make it a destination. I think it’s up to $155 reg. season now. It was only $55 two weeks ago when I went :;:rockit

dblkluk · Dec 20, 2018

Red Lodge is of course a cool town. Skiing can be great or so-so. Not alot of challenging terrain but if you are an intermediate you'll have more than enough to choose from.
Bridger Bowl is great. I call it "little jackson" as the ridge terrain is comparable to Jackson Hole and has some of the best in bounds terrain around. But you'll need avy gear to access it. On powder day or weekend it can be a complete gong show though. Good value for your $$
Big Sky is not what it once was and is getting crazy expensive and ultra corporate. Everything from parking to food to lift tickets have gone nuts. More terrain than you can ski in a week. That's a good or bad thing IMO. I dont even bother going there until April when the deals start showing up and you could have a mid winter powder day or you could be skiing corn in 50 degrees and sun.
Whitefish has a cool vibe and on a good year its one of the best in MT IMO. They've started out a little slow this year but have been getting some leftovers of the storms hitting BC and the PNW lately. Cost isnt bad and the town is super fun. Beware of the fog though.
If you are willing to travel north a bit, Schweitzer near Sandpoint ID is IMO one of the best values in skiing. Its a complete sleeper resort that should get alot more pub than it does, but that's not a bad thing.
I haven't skied Discovery or Lost trail but I have heard good things.
I can see how Great Divide near Helena can be fun but I've never been there in good conditions, not sure I'd make it a destination spot though.

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LOV2HNT said:
I was just at Big Sky last week and they had plenty of snow. For this early in the season they had more of the mountain open than in the past. Their new Ramcharger8 lift is now open and that thing is sweet! .

Screw that.. No one should ever be forced to ride a chairlift, under a bubble with 7 people from Texas..

Birdsnwalleyes · Dec 20, 2018

Big Sky is expensive, but is pretty tough to beat in my opinion. We try to go there for a long weekend once a year. We ski Red Lodge quite a bit if they have snow just because it’s closer & cheaper. On just a one-time or rare trip through MT, I think I’d splurge & hit Big Sky.

shorthairsrus · Dec 20, 2018

Silver Mtn and Lookout -save some dollars and ski by the highway

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worlds longest gondola

tikkalover · Dec 20, 2018

Blow..............and the ones in Minnesota suck!!!! ;:;popcorn

Mort · Dec 20, 2018

Talking skiing...cool...Been to most that have been mentioned already, drove to Big sky, took train to whitefish. Red lodge is hit and miss with snow, but like others said, its cool rustic western town. I like whitefish, hoping to go back someday.

Bfishn · Dec 20, 2018

dblkluk said:
- - - Updated - - -

Screw that.. No one should ever be forced to ride a chairlift, under a bubble with 7 people from Texas..

Perfect time to let those morning beer farts go.

LOV2HNT · Dec 20, 2018

dblkluk said:
Red Lodge is of course a cool town. Skiing can be great or so-so. Not alot of challenging terrain but if you are an intermediate you'll have more than enough to choose from.
Bridger Bowl is great. I call it "little jackson" as the ridge terrain is comparable to Jackson Hole and has some of the best in bounds terrain around. But you'll need avy gear to access it. On powder day or weekend it can be a complete gong show though. Good value for your $$
Big Sky is not what it once was and is getting crazy expensive and ultra corporate. Everything from parking to food to lift tickets have gone nuts. More terrain than you can ski in a week. That's a good or bad thing IMO. I dont even bother going there until April when the deals start showing up and you could have a mid winter powder day or you could be skiing corn in 50 degrees and sun.
Whitefish has a cool vibe and on a good year its one of the best in MT IMO. They've started out a little slow this year but have been getting some leftovers of the storms hitting BC and the PNW lately. Cost isnt bad and the town is super fun. Beware of the fog though.
If you are willing to travel north a bit, Schweitzer near Sandpoint ID is IMO one of the best values in skiing. Its a complete sleeper resort that should get alot more pub than it does, but that's not a bad thing.
I haven't skied Discovery or Lost trail but I have heard good things.
I can see how Great Divide near Helena can be fun but I've never been there in good conditions, not sure I'd make it a destination spot though.

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Screw that.. No one should ever be forced to ride a chairlift, under a bubble with 7 people from Texas..

Haha..that's why you bring your own friends

dblkluk · Dec 20, 2018

shorthairsrus said:
Silver Mtn and Lookout -save some dollars and ski by the highway

- - - Updated - - -

worlds longest gondola

North America's

Neat fact..but I cant say I go skiing for the long lift ride.

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LOV2HNT said:
Haha..that's why you bring your own friends

No friends on a powder day Jerry..

Traxion · Dec 20, 2018

Bfishn said:
Perfect time to let those morning beer farts go.

When Ramcharger 8 was mentioned I was thinking high school, 8 guys crammed into a tan POS Ramcharger going out to chase ducks. God only knows what is smelt like at the end of a hunt.....probably similar to that 8 seat bubble after the occupants have all had a long night!

The Bridger Bowl area is just flat cool. Bozeman isn't quite as bad to me as some of you perceive it, heck it is only 45k people. But I have not experienced many of the smaller places the guys have talked about. Sounds like fun!

CAH · Dec 20, 2018

WHITEFISH!!! That is an awesome place to go. Highly recommend!

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