Keystone Resort - image courtesy Chad Schmidt

Keystone Resort is a ski resort located in Keystone, Colorado, USA. It was founded on November 21, 1970 by Max Dercum. The resort consists of four mountains named Dercum Mountain, North Peak, the Outback, and Independence Bowl, with the first three mountains mentioned are connected by a series of ski lifts and gondolas. Collectively, the mountains form the largest operation in Colorado to offer a night skiing, where several trails are lit by large light fixtures, and lift operation can run until late into the night. Night skiing takes place after sunset until as late as 10 p.m. on as many as 15 of the resort's trails.

Keystone Adventure Tours - Backcountry skiing/riding 101
Most skiers and riders dream of fresh tracks in the backcountry, however they don't have the backcountry skills, knowledge, fitness or time. Keystone’s new guided snowcat tours is just the ticket to give advanced to expert skiers/riders their first taste of untouched terrain without the typical 30-40 minute hike. Instead, a heated snowcat whisks skiers and riders to more than 860 acres of bowl skiing/riding in just 10-15 minutes.

As part of the program, skiers and riders must participate in a an introductory avalanche awareness talk where they learn to judge slope angle, how to pick safe lines, where not to ski, how to ski, who to ski with, what equipment they’ll need and how to use the equipment. Last year’s cost was only $71 for a full-day guided tour (about 4-5 hours), making it one of the most affordable (and safe) ways to experience snowcat skiing/riding in the industry.