Photo of Backcountry Skiing Routes in Powder Mountain

The Best Backcountry Skiing Routes in Powder Mountain

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Featuring over 7000 acres of accessible terrain, Powder Mountain boasts the most skiable acreage of any resort in the United States.

Featuring over 7000 acres of accessible terrain, Powder Mountain boasts the most skiable acreage of any resort in the United States. In addition to "Pow Mow's" 2,800 acres of lift served terrain, they have 1,200 acres serviced by their Powder Country Shuttle, 700 acres accessed via the Lightning Ridge Snowcat Ride, as well as a Backcountry Tour Area that has 3,000 acres serviced by the Snowcat Powder Safari and 1,000 acres accessed by the DMI/Wolf Canyon Tours. The mountain receives over 500 inches of the Greatest Snow on Earth® annually and consists of 144 ski trails, that include two terrain parks.

Top 3 backcountry skiing routes in Powder Mountain

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Raintree Sidecountry Tour

1.61 mi·
829 ft
Raintree is one of the “adventure” areas for cat skiing and touring at Powder Mountain. It’s typically accessed on single-ride snowcat trips that must be booked in advance. However, when the terrain is open you could instead skin out there on your own, and thus time your run down to avoid the snowcat crowds....
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James Peak K2 Ridge Tour

3.84 mi·
1,330 ft
James Peak is the highest point within Powder Mountain resort, but no ski lift goes there. Cat tours often take skiers to the top of Lightning Ridge, but it’s still a hike out to James Peak....
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Lightning Ridge Tour

3.32 mi·
789 ft
Lightning Ridge is the top sidecountry zone at Powder Mountain, known for steep and deep chutes with few tracks. Most people get there via reservation-only snowcat rides, but you can instead go on your own power (though a lift ticket is still required)....

A view of the area

Top regions for backcountry skiing routes on Strava