Wyoming
Inside North America’s Only Summer-Only Ski Area: Wyoming’s Beartooth Basin
Beartooth Basin, located at nearly 11,000 feet of elevation in northern Wyoming, is North America’s only ski area open exclusively during the summer months.
Situated just 5 miles from the Montana border in the Beartooth Mountains outside Red Lodge, the basin symbolizes everything that bucks the direction of the nation’s mainstream ski industry.
The low-frills mountain describes itself as “backcountry skiing with a lift.” There is no base lodge, ski school, rental shop, or slopeside lodging.
The ski area runs on a single generator. An old repurposed service truck with “Little League” emblazoned across the front serves as a combination lift-ticket office, snack shack, and lost-and-found department.
The dirt parking lot is small and full of potholes, people lounging in camping chairs, and plenty of smiles in the best spirit of ski-bummery.
“It’s just a really small, unique operation,” co-owner Justin Modroo told Cowboy State Daily. “When we’re rolling, it can really be quite smooth and fun and enjoyable.”
In an increasingly transactional society, where metrics and profit margins often seem to drive every business decision, skiers say Beartooth is heartwarming and surprising as an operation that looks beyond those concerns simply for the love of their sport.
-
A skier drops off the top cornice in 2017. (Courtesy Beartooth Basin) -
A snowboarder rides the upper Poma lift at Beartooth Basin. (Courtesy Beartooth Basin)
How It Works
Operating for only a handful of weeks each summer and catering to a diehard niche of skiers and snowboarders, everything about Beartooth Basin is about skiing at its most basic level.
What little profit the mountain generates, if any, is reinvested into operations, which unsurprisingly are not cheap.
As long as there is enough snow, the basin opens around Memorial Day each year, relying on the high-alpine Beartooth Highway to be cleared before operations can begin.
Once open, the ski area remains operational as long as conditions allow. In 2019, it stayed open until July 4. This year, the goal is June 21, the summer solstice.
Two aging Poma surface lifts serve the ski area, making the ride uphill sometimes as nerve-racking as the trip down. Riding a Poma lift involves placing a small plastic disc beneath your hips and hoping your legs can hold on long enough as you’re towed to the top.
“It’s just simple, basic uphill travel to get people up the hill so they can go back down and have fun,” Modroo said.
The basin’s twin Poma lifts are relics dating back to the 1980s, and breakdowns are not uncommon. Located atop a mountain pass with no maintenance facility on-site, the ski area faces significant challenges when equipment fails.
This year was no exception.
The main drive on the upper lift failed earlier this month, forcing the mountain to close for roughly two weeks.
Modroo described the situation as “pretty rough,” requiring the lift to be transported more than 90 minutes to Billings, Montana, for repairs.
Now fixed and with the Beartooth Highway cleared of a late-season snow, Beartooth opened at 9 a.m. Sunday.
-
An old Little League bus serves as the lift ticket office, concessions stand, and lost-and-found. (Courtesy Beartooth Basin) -
Some of the runs at Beartooth Basin are as steep as 50 degrees. (Courtesy Beartooth Basin) -
A ski patrol dog surveys the steep slopes. (Courtesy Beartooth Basin)
Modest Amenities, Five-Star Skiing
As minimal as the amenities may be, the basin offers some of the most remarkable skiing in North America.
The runs are short but steep, reaching grades of nearly 50 degrees in some sections. According to Modroo, there’s always an opportunity “to get puckered,” ski slang for experiencing fear on the slopes.
Despite competing professionally on the World Freeskiing Tour and skiing some of the most challenging terrain on the planet, Modroo still describes the basin’s terrain as “mind-boggling.”
Professional ski legends such as Tanner Hall, Karl Fostvedt, and Sander Hadley have also skied its slopes.
“People that go up there for the first time are always blown away — just absolutely blown away,” Modroo said. “Even if they’re pro skiers, even if they’re not skiers. It doesn’t get close to boring.”
Many of the runs resemble narrow snow corridors bordered by massive boulder walls. The snow is almost always slushy, creating a forgiving surface to navigate moguls that can grow as large as a small car.
From the top cornice, skiers are treated to sweeping views of the Beartooth Mountains. It is easy to become lost in the beauty of the landscape without ever feeling the need to make a turn.
Whether you’re an expert skier or simply trying to survive your way down the mountain, it is hard not to feel like a rock star as soft, mashed-potato snow sprays from beneath your skis and glitters in the high-elevation sunlight.
And despite it being summer skiing, conditions at 11,000 feet can quickly shift back to winter. Fresh June powder is not uncommon.
The ski area is staffed by professional ski patrollers and lift operators, but this crew is a special breed. They sacrifice a month of their summers to work long, unpredictable hours in an extremely rugged environment.
Aside from operating snowcats, the staff are true jacks-of-all-trades, doing whatever is necessary to keep the mountain running.
Cody native Dean Madley drives snowcats at the basin and has been skiing the mountain since childhood.
“The Beartooth Pass skiing community is filled with some of the most committed skiers and snowboarders anywhere, extending their seasons into the summer months,” Madley said. “The lift-access operation at Beartooth Basin is never easy and always unpredictable, but it is run by some of skiing’s most passionate people.”
The Basin’s History
The Basin began its operations in 1962 when Austrians Pepi Gramshammer, Eric Sailer, and Anderl Molterer founded it as a summer training ground for alpine ski racers.
Over time, it became known as the Red Lodge International Ski and Snowboard Camp. When new owners took over, the ski area opened to the public for the first time in 1986.
Since, the basin has earned a reputation for providing a raw, untamed skiing experience rooted in a passion for high-alpine summer skiing and snowboarding.
One of Modroo’s favorite Beartooth memories came in 2006, when he timed an avalanche-control blast to coincide with a drop from the top cornice to a landing roughly 15 feet below. As chunks of snow cascaded down the mountain behind him, Modroo linked perfect turns through the terrain.
The basin regularly uses avalanche-control explosives to reduce risk, and videos of the resulting slides frequently generate attention on social media because of the massive amounts of snow tumbling down the mountain.
Even those pale in comparison to some of the larger airs riders have been sending at the Basin this summer.
The summer of 2020 was particularly memorable because Beartooth Basin became the first ski area in North America to reopen during the COVID-19 pandemic. Modroo remembers that summer fondly, describing the mountain at the time as “the happiest place on Earth.”
A few years ago, Modroo and the other owners announced they were putting the ski area up for sale. They have yet to receive a serious offer, and Modroo said they are only interested in selling to someone who shares their vision.
He admits he does not really want to part with the mountain he has frequented since his days as a young ski racer, and hopes to retain a minority ownership stake if a buyer eventually emerges.
“For me, it’s just a labor of love, and I enjoy it,” he said.
Although Modroo dreams of someday building a tram from the base of the Beartooth Highway to the ski area, allowing access throughout the winter, such a project is unlikely anytime soon.
And that’s probably OK.
The basin is already a diamond in the rough — rugged, beautiful, and fleeting.
A man’s body was discovered in the Grand River in Wyoming Saturday evening.
A passerby discovered the remains near the 2000 block of Indian Mounds Drive, according to a news release from Wyoming Police.
Police received the call shortly before 7 p.m. Saturday.
The body is that of an adult man, police said.
As authorities continue to investigate, anyone with information is asked to call Wyoming Police at (616) 530-7300, or submit a tip anonymously through Silent Observer at 616-774-2345, 1-866-774-2345, or online.
A casual favor turned into a lifelong fascination for Glenrock’s Mike Cushman, owner of the much-in-demand Powder River Percherons, who have become a regular sight at many of the state’s largest and most popular parades.
“I used to lease a ranch back in the late ’80s, and the guy who owned it had a hitch of Belgians,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “And one day he just asked me if, in my free time, I could help him with that.”
Once he’d learned how to handle Belgians, he started his own team, but the popularity of the large draft horse was driving up prices. That led him to give two dapple-gray Percherons a try.
It was like love at first sight.
“We were trying to create something that had a little flair,” he said. “So those two just escalated from a team of four to six, and before we knew it we had 11 or 12 dapple-gray horses, and we were doing work all over Wyoming, anywhere from Jackson to Cody to Sheridan and Cheyenne and most all the towns in between.”
-
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons)
The War Horse Of France
Percherons are conversation starters everywhere they go.
The war horse of France, these animals are massive and athletic, while also being uncommonly beautiful and stylish.
They are actually bigger than the more well-known Clydesdales, standing at 6 feet from the withers and weighing up to 2,600 pounds. Their hooves are the size of dinner plates, which help support all that weight.
Their actual origins have been lost to time, but the oldest known record goes back before the Crusades, when mares of the Le Perche region of France were mated with Arabian stallions.
The result was a breed more athletic than most horses. In Cushman’s opinion, they’re among the most fearless breeds of horse anywhere.
“I suppose if I needed to, I could probably drive them through a fire,” he said. “They would trust and believe in me.”
To be clear, Cushman has never tried to drive any of his Percheron teams through a fire.
He has, on occasion, put them through a bit of a commotion while testing them for parade readiness.
“I know if there was a protest line with a bunch of PETA people standing there waving flags and everything, I could put these horses right over the top of them,” Cushman said. “They would do that for me.”
-
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons)
Big Brains, Bigger Personalities
Percherons are also super intelligent creatures, and full of personality. That’s led to some funny escapades over the last 24 years.
Like the horse that managed to get itself captured in a bog.
The poor fella had to wait until morning for rescue, but all was well in the end.
One year at Don King Days in Sheridan, after the team finished its exhibition round on the polo field, Cushman remembers tying the team to the trailer while he and the crew went to lunch.
When they returned, a big gray gelding named Sarge was somehow standing out in the middle of the vast green field, enjoying a tasty snack of fresh polo field grass.
“I hollered at him and he jerked his head up and ran back to the trailer and put himself right back into the slot where he came from,” Cushman recalled, laughing. “Like a milk cow going into a stanchion.”
What had happened was a loose buckle.
“The neighbor horse and Sarge would fiddle around with each other all the time,” Cushman said. “So the neighbor horse had grabbed the tongue of Sarge’s halter and pulled on it. He pulled that strap through and unbuckled it.”
Sarge knew just what to do then. With no humans around, it was time for play.
Turning Up The Volume
Budweiser is famous for its advertisements featuring long, shimmering lines of large draft horses in their glittering harnesses, clopping down the street.
It’s a classic six-up hitch — three teams of two, one pair in front of the next.
Percherons can do the same thing, but Cushman has his own idea of how to turn the volume up for parades.
Instead of the six-up, what he likes to do for a “wow” factor is a four abreast setup.
Picture four massive Percherons side by side across the front of the wagon, rolling shoulder to shoulder down a parade route. It’s a wall of horse flesh coming at you, with a team that stretches nearly 14 feet wide.
“We get a lot of compliments on it,” Cushman said. “There’s a ‘wow’ factor in it.”
Cushman did that last Saturday in Thermopolis because it fit the theme of the event. For the Fourth of July in Cheyenne, meanwhile, he plans to go with the classic six-up.
-
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons)
Small Town To Big Time
Cushman’s Powder River Percherons have performed for small Wyoming towns like Kaycee and Thermopolis to much larger venues like the Denver National Western Stock Show Parade, where the crowds range up to 100,000 people.
They’ve been as far away as Tucson, Arizona, on up into Montana, and over to Deadwood, South Dakota.
Most of the venues, though, are Wyoming.
“Wyoming is home,” Cushman said. “We just try to take care of our own.”
The horses have carried three Wyoming governors, including Gov. Mark Gordon, as well as former U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi.
They’ve also carried several celebrities, like actor Cole Hauser, known to millions as Rip from the popular television series “Yellowstone;” and Robert Taylor, who played Sheriff Walt Longmire, the hero of Craig Johnson’s Longmire universe, in the television hit series of the same name.
The Percherons have also carried a number of Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association world champions, including legends like Donnie Gay and Larry Mahan.
They’re popular in parades and weddings, but have also been tapped for funerals to carry someone’s loved one to a final resting place.
-
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons) -
Anyone who’s been to a parade in Wyoming in the past 25 years knows the Powder River Percherons, teams of dapple-gray draft horses that tower over crowds. They bring “a ‘wow’ factor” at up to 2,600 pounds each and 6 feet tall at the withers. (Courtesy Powder River Percherons)
Training Each Other
The horses might seem to naturally take everything in stride from parade to funeral, but there’s quite a bit of training that goes into that even temperament.
That training effectively starts before Cushman ever buys a horse with the Amish families who raise them.
“We buy them usually when they’re 3 years old,” he said. “And we prefer the Amish horses, because they have good manners and they just haven’t seen the big city life or anything.”
Amish horses also seem to work harder, Cushman said, making them a better value than other options.
“I mean, the Amish make their living with horses,” Cushman said. “Even the carpenters and the craftsmen will have a saddlebred horse, or will be riding a horse around back and forth to work or to the store or whatever.”
Cushman puts his new horses in a pasture near the interstate, which he believes helps desensitize them to big vehicles and unexpected noises — things that are common in parades.
He will also blend his new horses in with older, more experienced animals as he’s training them for parades.
“They learn from each other,” he said. “They go, ‘Oh well, this is not bothering these guys, why would it bother me?’”
Not A Good Wall Street Bet
For all their popularity, celebrity passengers and big-stage appearances, the Powder River Percherons would not be a good Wall Street bet.
By the time Cushman figures in hay, feed, farrier work, veterinary care, equipment, fuel, hotels, and wages for a crew of five to six people, the retired rancher knows he’s not necessarily breaking even with these horses.
“We aim to at least cover expenses for our travel and whatnot,” he said. “If we took in all the feed and care and the shoeing for these horses and charged that back to the customer, we’d be out of business pretty quickly.”
He likes to think of his horses as a kind of rolling ambassador for the draft horse tradition. The team is a labor of love, everywhere he goes, one where the real payoff is the gee-whiz-cool expressions he sees on the faces of young and old alike.
His Percherons have rolled under flags and fireworks, past squealing children with grocery bags full of candy.
When the show is over, they go home and wait for the next call, ever-ready to channel that eternal sense of Americana that every parade needs.
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
-
Maryland1 minute agoMaryland Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 results for June 14, 2026
-
Michigan4 minutes agoNWS confirms two EF0 tornadoes touched down in West Michigan Thursday night
-
Massachusetts9 minutes agoPursuit in Middleborough ends with people in custody, police say
-
Minnesota16 minutes agoIdaho, Minnesota universities stonewall public records requests for controversial course syllabi | The College Fix
-
Mississippi19 minutes agoMississippi Lottery Cash 3, Cash 4 results for June 14, 2026
-
Missouri24 minutes ago
Missouri Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 winning numbers for June 14, 2026
-
Montana31 minutes ago
Montana Lottery Big Sky Bonus, Millionaire for Life results for June 14, 2026
-
Nevada34 minutes agoNevada Gaming Control Board asks state court to hold Kalshi in contempt – CDC Gaming
