 Poster: A snowHead
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Skiing at the above looks amazing and gets great reviews - so I'm looking for accommodation info.
Everywhere on the official websites is at the pricey end of things (  like $150 and more a room....) as all the accommodation seems to be in the immediate vicinity of the ski areas.
Does anybody know if there is a town with accommodation within a reasonable driving distance of the skiing??
Also, any comments on the ski area would be appreciated.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You can stay in Bozeman but it is at least 30+ min drive to ski area. Getting the two ski area tickets lets you ski from Big Sky into Moonlight with 2000' of vert. Last April was there for closing and was cheap and only got the ticket for Big Sky then ran into a friend who had moved there and the locals were hitting fresh Pow off the tram and into Moonlight Basin, left me wishing I had dropped the extra 10 on dual tickets.
Best pond skimming I ever saw two pools with a jump in the middle.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Yes I have been to Big Sky in the 80;s Moonlight Basin was just a dream then,
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Went to Big Sky three years ago before the tie-up with Moonlight. It's an awesome place.
Best thing is the lack of crowds. We went at the height of the season approaching Presidents' weekend in mid feb, but we saw little but empty pistes and deserted chairtlifts - despite a fresh 30" dump of powder, we often found no-one else apart from us riding on the fast quads on Andesite mountain. The only queues were for the tram and for the slow triple leading up to it, and then only on powder days when the locals turned up in force. The lack of crows meant that there was fresh powder on the pistes for several days after snowfall, and the snow quality was incredible - perfectly dry, light and fluffy.
The ski area has some great bowls, some pretty decent gladed runs and a lot of rocks. There are also some great, very deserted rollercoaster blues on Andesite Mountain. The downside of the mountain is that it doesn't have a great deal of vertical, so options for long runs are quite limited. Don't be deceived by claims to the second-highest (or some such) vertical in the US - you can't ski it all in one run so it's a worthless statistic.
The other negative is the sheer rockiness of the place. Most of the decent runs need a lot of snow cover unless you're willing to risk gouging your equipment or hitting thinly concealed obstructions, so I wouldn't consider a January visit. Late February or early March would be better.
Finally, schedule in a visit to Yellowstone. Much as I like skiing, seeing Yellowstone in the snow was the real highlight of the trip for me.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Cheers to all the  for the info so far!
Have now found that there is not only really cheap digs in Bozeman (I don't mind commuting to the slopes) but also:
- a respectable looking local mountain which boasts regular powder ("Bridger Bowl").
- other Montana ski areas within striking distance.
Hmmm, I can feel a warren Miller-esque road trip coming on.........
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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You can fly into Bozeman with NWA.
From there your have the Montana resorts of Big Sky, Moonlight Basin, Bridger Bowl, Lost Trail, Discovery & Snowbowl and the Wyoming resorts of White Pine, Grand Targhee & Jackson Hole all within respectable road tripping distance.
2-week trip that you'll never forget.
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Cheer Mike Pow. Although Jackson Hole is on my "to do" list I hadn't considered doing it from Bozeman owing to my rubbish knowledge of US geography!
How far is "respectable driving distance"?
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Mountain Addict
Hotels.co.uk has digs 26 miles from Big Sky for £20 per room.....
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Mike Pow wrote: |
You can fly into Bozeman with NWA.
From there your have the Montana resorts of Big Sky, Moonlight Basin, Bridger Bowl, Lost Trail, Discovery & Snowbowl and the Wyoming resorts of White Pine, Grand Targhee & Jackson Hole all within respectable road tripping distance.
2-week trip that you'll never forget. |
I'd second Bridger Bowl , great little resort, with hike terrain, chutes etc. cheap passes. Least it was about 15yrs ago 
Gets quite a young crowd due to the University nearby.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Bozeman is a fun college town too - some good bars and places to eat. You can also stay relatively cheaply about 6 miles from Big Sky - plenty of accommodation at the turn-off from the highway - think it's called Big Sky Village or something. There's shuttle buses, I believe. Think there's some older apartments a few 100m from the lifts too - sure some digging online would reveal all.
Highly recommend the road trip, and if you stay in towns like Bozeman, Jackson, Driggs (Targhee), then don't worry about booking hotels in advance. A few days before is fine - it ain't busy as long as you're not too selective. And it's cheap. This route also takes you through West Yellowstone so you may as well stop 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Sounds like a great holiday - we've been thinking about a road trip to include Jackson Hole and Big Sky (and possibly Bridger) in one holiday too. I gather the new lift in Jackson Hole should be open this winter, so it could be a good time to visit. Especially if they have anything like the snow they had last winter...
mountainaddict, if you're thinking along these lines (doing both resorts in one trip), I had a look into it a while ago and I think it would be possible to fly into one and out of the other (into Bozeman and out of Jackson, or the other way around). Though obviously this can start to look expensive, plus both ways are long journeys to/from the UK.
Does anyone who's been know if there is any public transport between the two, or is the only realistic option to hire a car/4x4 and do it yourself?
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Hire a car.
So many things to see along the way. Easy driving.
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You know it makes sense.
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Cheers Mike. I gather that the snowmobiling in Yellowstone is well worth a stop on the way, so we'd probably do that.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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mountainaddict, I've been to both. I actually preferred Bridger Bowl but the day I went to Big Sky it was -26 so I didn't actually do as much as I would of liked. Bridger had a very local feel and it was very underskied (if you want to do the hike terrain there used to be a guy checking you had a transceiver - worth knowing).
Big Sky is well, bigger, though it had a far more commercial feel.
Motel in Bozeman were from 40 USD when I was there (2003).
Do at least a day's snowmobiling in Yellowstone (or the snowcoach trips are fine). Incidentally accom. in West Yellowstone is also very cheap.
JH I really would recommend. One of my best trips, big enough but with a local vibe.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Cheers to everyone for the info!
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