Keystone Night Skiing
Night riding in Keystone is pretty much my favorite thing ever! At Keystone, the ski day doesn’t end just because the sun is setting. Keystone offers the longest ski day in the state of Colorado, with multiple lighted trails to enjoy under the twinkling nighttime sky. Keystone is open until 8pm most nights of the week. On these days, I usually get out there in the afternoon, do a few runs, then watch breathtaking sunsets from the top of Dercum Mountain. The mountain reaches a height of 11,640 feet, making it the perfect scenic viewpoint for Lake Dillon and the sun setting over it. As the sun descends behind the mountains, it produces an incredibly gorgeous and colorful alpenglow on the circumjacent mountains. When the sun finally gives way to the nighttime sky, it gets pretty dark out. It seems like a scary thing to ski when it’s so dark out, but the snow stays lit up very well from the bright lights that are shining down on it. On a clear night, you can see a vast number of twinkling stars above! On Saturday nights, they even have fireworks! It’s always such a magical experience at Keystone, and night riding is something you must experience if you have the opportunity.
Springtime Snowboarding & Skiing
In the spring time the sun doesn’t go down until between 7pm and 8pm so night riding essentially becomes a really long day of “day-riding” but still comes with the magical sunset at the end. There’s nothing like tailgating and riding with friends on a long warm spring day then topping it all off with a gorgeous sunset. Night time is a fun time to play around since there’s hardly anyone around to get in your way or throw off your groove. It’s also a great time for beginners to learn or practice without people whizzing around them. The best part of night riding, other than the gorgeous sunset, is having the place to yourself. There aren’t many people that go night riding so on many occasions, you’ll find yourself on an entire run alone. It’s ahhhhmazing!!
Is night skiing cold and icy?
When the sun goes drops behind the mountains, the temperature drops with it! Be sure to bundle up! It also can get pretty icy sometimes but that’s directly related to the temperatures and how packed out the snow has gotten since the last snowfall. I find that it’s usually not too terribly icy unless it drops below 35 degrees. If it’s snowing WHILE night riding, you’ve hit the jackpot! To the untrained eye, it seems like it’d be cold and miserable. It’s actually not as cold when it’s cloudy and snowing and it’s the furthest from miserable when you’re floating on clouds! If it’s icy it can still be fun, but it probably wouldn’t be the best occasion to try that new trick you’ve been dying to land.
Keystone Night Riding Schedule
Thumbs up for Gorgeous Sunsets and Snowboarding fun!! If you’re in Keystone and want to experience something magical, I’d highly suggest going night riding! Click HERE to see the most recent night skiing schedule!!
