Pine Creek (WY)
The coolest ski area, you’ve probably never heard of!
Private Powder Days at this Hidden Gem Ski Area!
Are you looking for a change of pace from the hustle and bustle of the mega-resort racket? Tired of the huge lift lines, huge parking fees and super expensive day tickets? Well if you’re looking to satiate that wistful longing for the way skiing used to be, and experience a unique and friendly mountain experience that is a throwback to simpler times, look no further than the “One Chair Wonder” Pine Creek Ski Resort!
Never heard of it? Not shocking, I hadn’t either until I stumbled upon it a few seasons ago while on a ski road trip from Jackson Hole to Salt Lake City. With tempered expectations I swung through on a brisk and clear Friday morning expecting to find a quaint little town hill where I could take a few laps and have a quick ski day before continuing on with my road trip. Much to my pleasant surprise, Pine Creek had a lot more to offer than I ever would have thought, and my quick stopover turned into an entire day of powder skiing on some pretty sweet terrain!
Now to backtrack a little bit and add a little depth to this story, Fridays are a bit special at Pine Creek, and the reason is because they are not open for skiing/riding on Mondays through Thursdays (unless booked for a private function). Now imagine a ski area getting snow during any of those 4 closed days, and there’s no one to track it out! “That’s the beauty of Friday’s here at Pine Creek.” A ski patroller would go on to tell me as I rode the chair up with him on a brisk Winter’s day.
Being a community ski area, the demand for midweek skiing is too low to justify running the chair and staffing the lodge on a regular basis, however the resort does not always sit idle on these days, as Pine Creek has developed an awesome and unique way to fill some of those gaps by offering the entire resort out for rent to private groups willing to fork over a little $$$ to have there own personal ski area!
One chair, tons of terrain!
From the Summit on a clear day, stunning views of the snowy Wyoming countryside are splayed out before you, and it feels like you can see for miles and miles. Trail choices almost surround you with a choice of 3 directions to ski ranging from gentle and winding green groomers, to rippable corduroy blues and an ample selection of off-piste black runs both in and out of the trees. Oh and stashes? Did I mention there are powder stashes? A modest traverse across the Floating Feather cat track that rides the boundary line on looker’s right gives access to some delightful little quick shot runs that let out to the gully run that will bring you back to the base.
Snowfall
Pine Creek benefits from an average of 350+ inches of light and dry Wyoming powder, and as I mentioned before if you catch ’em on a loaded Friday morning after a snowy week, you could be in for quite the powder day!
Terrain
Pine Creek has a base elevation of 6,800ft and tops out at 8,225ft for a vertical rise of 1,425 feet! With 32 named runs spread out over 640 acres, there’s plenty of terrain to explore, and the division of difficulty is 30%, 30%, and 40%.
Lodging
To add to the charm of this rad ski area, visitors can’t help but to be struck with the feeling of isolation, as the small town of Cokeville at the mountain road base has only one motel (The Hideout), and literally nothing else for at least 30 miles in any direction!
Tickets & Pass Reciprocation
Adult lift tickets run $55 full day and $45 half day
Children lift tickets are $45 full day and $35 half day
Pine Creek has pass reciprocation with Mont du Loc, Lee Canyon, Mt. Bohemia, Soldier Mt. and Snow King.
Get Discount Ski Tickets!
Check out the best deals on lift tickets, season passes, gear rental and lodging!
Skiing the way it used to be!”
“Ride the Pine” and “Seek the Creek!”
~PIne Creek~
From the heart of a skier:
As I write this article, I think back to many of the memorable places I have skied before and the little things that make them special. While my list is long, and I find unique attributes to every place I ski, there are some that certainly stand out above the rest and have left a positive and lasting impression in my mind. Pine Creek is one of those few, and I would personally recommend it to anyone, of any ski ability, that is looking for a fun, friendly and down home ski experience.
So on your next Western ski roadie, why not “Ride the Pine” and “Seek the Creek” and have yourself a unique and memorable snow day at this Hidden Gem Ski Area that is truly a One Chair Wonder in Western Wyoming’s high country. ~Zack Phelan~
A friendly & welcoming lodge
Once you’ve eased up the gently winding ski road, and crossed the creek, you’ll find a small snow covered parking area that is directly next to the day lodge and loading station for the chairilft.
Gear up and warm up
Head to the lodge to grab your day ticket, and warm up by the fire while you’re gearing up for your ski day. The lodge also has concessions, bathrooms, equipment rental, and a little merch store.
Hop on the lift
Just a short stroll from the lodge is the chairlift station that has one (base to summit) slow speed quad chair, and a little further up the trail is a beginner ski area with a short surface tow. No lines here, just hop on and away you go!
Enjoy the ride
Pine Creek has one low speed quad chair that takes you on a modest ascent through a mix of trees and open rolling slopes where you can enjoy the surrounding views and scout some terrain for your upcoming run.
The perfect snow
Once at the top, there are plenty of groomed trails to pick from, with blue and green options that will wind you back to the base, or head off trail and grab some freshies on one of the way open faced runs at Pine Creek.
Return to the base and do it again!
“How much terrain can there really be from one chair?”…. you might ask. Well, the answer is: A lot! With ample off-piste terrain to explore, you could ski Pine Creek all day and never do the same run twice! Or with the small crowds, just find a run you like with freshies and hit it again and again!
Pine Creek Ski Resort
Pine Creek Ski Resort is a medium sized community ski area near the town of Cokeville, Wyoming.
4061 Country Rd 204, WY, 83114
Mid December – Early April
Open Fridays – Sundays from 9:30am – 4pm
SHOP Rossignol Skis!
Save up to 40% off with these limited deals at Rossignol Skis!
Check out the most unique ski clothes and accessories here!
The Snow Life Shop
Web Market
The snow Life shop
Web Market
The snow Life Shop
Web Market
Après Ski store
Looking to pick up some rad new ski clothes, or want to make your home feel more like a slopeside cabin? Take a minute to check out the Snow Life Store and browse hundreds of original clothing designs, art prints and housewares that would make awesome additions to any skier or snowboarder’s collection.
The Snow Life collection is all original and inspired by (what else) the mountains! So go ahead and peruse this awesome line of quality ski and snowboard themed items with always great prices. Visit the Après Ski Store now!
Snow Life Network
Check out our two other awesome web pages brimming with cool content
Ski Town Low Down
Ski Resort Information Resource
Research your next ski trip with this unparalleled web page that’s full of all the stats you want to know! Vert, snowfall, trails, when to go and how to get there, it’s all here.
Savage Snow Memes
Ski and Snowboard Meme Dump
The biggest Meme Dump on the internet for all things snow related: Ski memes, snowboard memes, snowmobile memes, gifs, demotivationals, it’s all here!