Snow falling on Stetsons - Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Sunset, Nov, 1997 by Laura Finnegan

Steamboat Springs has a mountain of powder and an Old West attitude

A heavy snow is falling, piling up on the saddle of the model horse parked in front of the F. M. Light & Sons Western shop. Inside, Levi's-clad cowboys gaze longingly at a wall full of new Stetsons and Resistols; in the back room, brims and crowns are steamed to keep their snappy shape. All in all, things here haven't changed much since the shop opened in 1905. And looking down a main street of Victorians and brick-front shops, you could say the same about the town itself.

Sure, serious skiers talk about mountains of powder so light and dry that it bubbles up under your skis like champagne, or maybe about the area's endless cross-country ski terrain and steaming natural hot springs. But what really sets Steamboat Springs, Colorado, apart is the sort of Old West hospitality and cowboy casualness you find here. Whether on the main street or the slopes, you're more likely to run into guys who look like the Marlboro man than the slick, fur-coated celebrities that haunt Aspen and Vail.

Today it's best known as a ski resort, but at heart, Steamboat Springs is still a laid-back ranch town. Visit for a long weekend and you'll find that after a day of skiing, a soothing dip in the springs, and some cowboy fun, you'll start feeling a little laid-back yourself.

DOWNHILL WITH THE WILD BUNCH

Consider the resort's spokesman, former Olympian Billy Kidd. He's such a cowboy he skis wearing his Stetson. And he's remarkably modest, friendly, and accessible - even though he's revered by skiers old enough to remember he won America's first Olympic alpine ski medal, in 1964.

He's on the ski hill this afternoon, with the sky a cobalt blue and fresh snow daubed like icing on the boughs of pines. About 30 skiers have shown up to join Kidd on his free daily Ski with Billy outing on the Heavenly Days run. They trail downslope behind Kidd, getting quips and tips en route. "A foot of powder at Steamboat isn't deep - for us that's just a heavy frost," Kidd says with a laugh.

"From here, you're looking down into the Yampa River Valley," he tells us. "Pretty, isn't it?" With more than 2,939 acres, 135 trails, and 21 lifts, this hill is huge. It looks pretty steep, but 56 percent of the runs are rated intermediate. Looking back toward the summit, we can see a curve on the 3-mile Why Not run and the snowy slashes of steep chutes that expert skiers love.

As the tour ends, a few intermediate skiers peel off to join an intensive clinic given at the Billy Kidd Performance Center. "The program isn't for the rank beginner, but works best for the athletic parallel skier eager to improve," Kidd says. He's right - it's pretty challenging. But even the few low-intermediates in the group see quick improvement, thanks to personal coaching and lunchtime videotape critiques. All the instructors are former Olympic skiers or coaches, and their classes have proved highly popular.

For novices the broad runs, like Headwall near the base area, are the most popular, and that's where we find an odd sort of posse on skis. This wild bunch of rodeo competitors drifts into town each January for the Cowboy Downhill. In events such as the stampede and ski-roping races, these bowlegged and hilariously inept skiers wrangle their way down the trail dressed in chaps, cowboy hats, and parkas. And while some of the spectacular tumbles they take look painful to the crowd of spectators, few get hurt.

'After you've been tossed off a snorting, bucking bronc a time 'er two," one drawls, "this ain't nothin'." At the ski trail's end, the cowboys adjust their chaps and compare this race to the rodeo. "The nice thing here is, you can't die," one concludes.

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIS AND HOT SPRINGS

A dinner plate moon is rising over Heartbreak Hill, the pine-scattered ridge that backs Vista Verde Ranch, just north of town. Head-high drifts of snow pile around the log lodge and settle atop the peaked roofs of the cabins. Inside, owner John Munn welcomes us with glasses of Chardonnay by the stone fireplace. Over an elegant meal (seared yellowfin tuna with pickled ginger soy sauce), he briefs us on the ample cross-country skiing opportunities. The ranch has almost 19 miles of groomed and marked trails as well as ski guides to lead guests to the best trails in the nearby national forest.

The next morning, we ski out across a hay meadow blanketed by soft, fresh drifts. Following set tracks, we glide up knolls and into forest glades, the silence and fat snowflakes our only company. We take the Vista View trail past frozen beaver ponds and loop back to the ranch via Hell's Highway, picking up speed on the downhill run.

After a sumptuous lunch, it's time for a soothing soak. We head for Strawberry Park Hot Springs north of town. It's a fitting place to wind up our ski trip - of the area's 150 springs, this may be the most popular with locals.

It's easy to see why. After a steep and icy drive, we hike down into a forested bowl as beautiful as an Ansel Adams photograph, all silvery whites and granite grays. Clouds of snow cap the tall spruces and massive boulders edging the rocky pools. Plumes of steam rise 40 feet in the cold air.