Monarch Mountain, CO, Report: New Terrain Under Sunny Skies

Conditions Report from December 16, 2025

Monarch Mountain, Colorado, skied very well this week with 53 trails open under sunny skies. 

Colorado is still struggling with snow, but Monarch has continued to open new terrain with solid coverage. 

The Breezeway lift opened for the season on December 11. The lift is serving a few new runs and the Steel City terrain park.

Upper and Lower Hall’s Alley offered long mogul runs on firm snow. 

The additional terrain and uphill capacity are well-welcomed, but the North and East facing terrain has been skiing the best. 

The terrain off the Panorama lift is fully open and skiing well. 

Conditions are definitely still sharky on some of the black runs under the lift.

The skiing is much more enjoyable, though, than the basic groomers offered at other Colorado resorts at the moment. 

Easier runs off of Panorama ,such as Turbo, have more coverage and great moguls. 

• Related: With New Expansion, Monarch Mountain, CO, Will be the 2nd Resort Where You Can Ski Both Sides of the Continental Divide

Even when skiing lower tide on Sheer-Rocko or Dire Straits, obstacles are obvious, and the all-natural snow is skiing great. 

The Western U.S. has seriously been missing out on advanced early-season skiing this year, but Monarch has stayed ahead of the curve and continues to open new terrain. 

The Mountain’s other advanced terrain under Garfield and Pioneer is open with good coverage. 

Snow conditions this week were mostly chalky off-piste, with nice, firm moguls on many runs. 

Grooming on-piste has been well done and not iced up at all. 

Zorro and Lobo were open with good coverage and shrub hits.  

Fresh lines in preserved powder could be found in the trees. 

High-traffic areas are thinning out, but this weekend’s storm should offer a small refresh.

I spent some time on skins this week, and decided to check out the conditions at Monarch’s “sidecountry”. 

“Sidecountry” is a controversial term, and you must always have the appropriate gear and knowledge for backcountry travel, no matter how close you are to a ski area. 

With that being said, the lines at Old Monarch Pass are generally safe and accessible, and I had a great time exploring.

I can’t wait for more snow and the first drop off the other side of the divide down into the new No Name Basin terrain. 

This weekend is marked by high winds and light snow on Saturday, with long-range forecasts signaling a white Christmas and New Year. 

Check out the conditions and weather forecast below!

WEATHER FORECAST

SNOW CONDITIONS