Waiting on the 9 a.m. rope drop next to the Timberline Lodge parking lot. Image: Brett Ploss.

Report from Sunday, February 25, 2025

The first wow moment was pulling into the parking lot on top of the mountain. Let alone the short 35-minute drive from downtown Ogden, Utah.

I parked at Timberline Lodge, the middle of the three offered at the resort. From there, waiting on the rope to drop at 9 a.m. rather than a lift to open was a great feeling. Skiing down from my car felt luxurious.

I skied down to Paradise Lift, a four-person fixed grip. Looking from the lift, the potential lines below were gnarly. The views of Logan, UT, in the background and James Peak to looker’s right were incredible.

Continuing on, I rode up the only high-speed lift, Hidden Lake Express. From the top, there were great views of the Great Salt Lake, Nordic Valley, and Snowbasin in the distance.

By this point, I wondered how I had spent so much time in Utah without making it up here. While skiing, I didn’t feel like I was in the United States. I had flashbacks from Chile, Austria, and Japan. I think take some of the best from each location, and Powder Mountain was born.

On that second lift, I bumped into a local legend, Richard Schneider. He gave me a tour of the resort, reminiscing the past 30 years he spent helping make “Pow Mow” what it is today.

Richard Schneider (left) skiing down the halfpipe he dug 30 years go. Image: Brett Ploss.

We skied through woods named after him, a natural halfpipe he dug, and a road he helped survey that functions as an important cat track during the winter. (Cat Walk/Cobabe Canyon on the trail map).

He told stories about the creation of the resort, the founders, and the hard work many people put into it. For him, it’s the only place in Utah that “feels the same today as it did 30 years ago.”

This will soon change, with big plans for the resort coming from Reed Hastings. Many people seem excited about the $100M+ investment, including new high-speed lifts, houses, potentially a hotel, and more. Some of the resort will be privatized, but according to Schneider, he doesn’t ski in those areas anyway.

All of the good stuff will remain available to the public. Powder will stay independent, limiting day pass sales to keep lines virtually nonexistent, even on weekends and holidays.

I broke off and headed to one of the two spots Powder Mountain offers Snowcat skiing about every 10-15 minutes.

Powder Mountain snowcat at the top of Lightning Ridge. Image: Brett Ploss.

Lightning Ridge was incredible. I waited about five minutes before getting on a cat for the first time. Each ride costs $39 to get access to untouched powder. When day cat lodges offer packages for around $500+/day, there are not many deals like this anywhere in the world.

The snow had been baked by the sun, but that didn’t stop me from taking some wide, fast, poppy turns. It was even a bit springy, and I bounced like a trampoline while gaining speed.

My snow trampoline lines. Image: Brett Ploss.

It was too good to head out early, so I skied to the Raintree cat skiing pickup on the opposite side of the resort. I didn’t have to wait long to get a ride through the wide aspens and open fields of untouched snow.

Skiing down the snow was softer since it was shielded from the sun by trees.

To compare both cat pickups, Lightning Ridge is more exposed to wide-open faces with gnarly lines possible. Raintree has more mellow trees but still offers some nice steeps. Both are different, which makes at least a run on each necessary.

No crowds, affordable cat rides, friendly locals, easy access, and a large amount of terrain are some of the many great attributes. After skiing 134 resorts worldwide, I can’t give it a number yet, but Powder has to be in the top five.

Thank you, Powder Mountain!