Every week, skiers and snowboarders en route to one of the many Summit County resorts pass Loveland Ski Area. From I-70, Loveland appears small relative to other nearby mountains. What the majority of these people do not realize is that Loveland has twice the acreage as Arapahoe Basin, a variety of terrain from high alpine bowls and steeps to glades, and now offers free cat skiing.  Friday, I was invited to ski the Loveland experience and take a ride on the new Ridge Cat.

After the past storm that deposited close to three feet of snow, conditions were reminiscent of winter. The cat climbs to a neighboring 13,000-foot peak revealing 360-degree views of the Gore Range, the I-70 Corridor, as well as the many inbound, skiable bowls and steeps that typically remain untouched for days at a time. Due to avalanche danger only a couple of runs were open; however, cruising boot-deep, creamy powder in the sun for 1,000-vertical feet was more than satisfactory. If at Loveland on a day where all of the Cat-accessed terrain is open, farther down the ridge are steeper bowls and the Rock Chutes, which are similar to Breckenridge’s Lake Chutes.

Loveland season pass holders enjoying the view and freshies on an empty Friday.

Marketing and communications director for Loveland Ski Area, John Sellers, said they decided to do it for free as an added bonus in order to allow customers to experience new terrain they would not normally take the time to hike to.

“It’s such a unique experience because not a lot of people ever get the chance to ride in a snowcat,” Sellers said. “But then, I think it opens a lot of people’s eyes to what terrain we have, because they can see it from other chairs but never think that they can get out there. Now it gives out customers more of an opportunity to explore the mountain.”

We found some good turns like this one the whole day.

Best of all, we were almost the only people taking advantage of the untracked snow. Colorado native and Loveland frequenter, Richie Londer, said this is characteristic of the ski resort. With few lift lines, even when the parking lot is full, Loveland Ski Area remains a hidden gem.

“I have ridden all the inbounds cats and Loveland’s and Copper's are the best,” Londer said. “But, for me, Loveland’s is the most special because there’s no one here, even on busy days, so a lot of the time I am skiing freshies alone on the cat-accessed terrain.”

Smiles all around. Photo courtesy Dustin Schaefer.