Montana, Skiing, Ski, Mountains, Downhill, Alpine, Groomed Resorts

Compare Trail Maps and Prices for the Most Popular Mountains

I first compiled a list of the area mountains and how far away from Belgrade/Bozeman. These figures are from 2022, and likely still relevant for 2023. I was bummed not to have made it to more mountains, but I really enjoyed my time at Bridger Bowl, the local “small” ski mountain – that blows anything in the north east out of the water. I could have spent all my ski days there and never repeated a trail. It was of course the last day possible to ski and I had booked a guide to take me to the summit and do some backcountry touring – and it only makes sense that it ended up being -25 on the mountain and the lifts were closed, and the guide cancelled. Even still, skiing at Bridger Bowl felt immense – something we don’t have on the east coast is an area IN the resort marked as “avalanche danger” and only allows riders to go into that area if they beep in with their avalanche beacon. Holy shit. I mean, I have my beacon, shovel, and probe but since I was mostly skiing alone, I had lots of anxiety around going into that territory on my own. On the last day, I watched some others go, then decided and follow behind – and relished the turns in the sun, the powder, and my independence.

I also made it to Whitefish Mountain, where my very pregnant friend accompanied me. We had a great day tooling around checking out the mountain. It was only after she decided to go into the lodge in the afternoon, while I took the last 2 runs that I experienced something like never before. At the summit a heavy, heavy fog settled down on the top of the mountain and I quickly realized I could literally see nothing in front of me. I could not see the names of the trails, I couldn’t see the chairlift overhead, I couldn’t see my ski tips – it was quickly panic inducing…. I had a basic idea that I needed to go “down” but couldn’t see what trails I was on, felt alone, and almost lost in the woods. I found myself in powdery glades and thank god I could faintly hear voices off to the side (which settled some anxiety knowing I wasn’t totally alone). At the pace of a snail, made my way down the mountain. Thankfully about halfway down, the fog cleared. I still haven’t gotten over that fog and my trauma from feeling lost and disabled on the mountain. Whitefish had a great nearby ski town, exactly what you’d expect – overpriced buffalo mittens, cozy coffee shops, laid back townies, and ample craft brews.

Even without fresh snowfall for the first 3 weeks, the mountains were glorious – and I was more than satisfied at the “smaller” Bridger Bowl for $65/ticket vs Big Sky for $190/ticket. Several locals on the chairlift apologized for the less than ideal conditions – but coming from the East Coast, I was happy as a clam in the sand on a sunny beach day. We eat sticks and bare spots for breakfast – there’s no sticks or bare spots out here. And when the snow actually came down (on the last 2 days), my weak legs couldn’t handle the powder for more than a few seconds at a time anyway.