Colorado
These 5 Colorado dude ranches are spectacular in winter
Dude ranches often are associated with summer vacations. We picture city slickers slipping away to enjoy the great outdoors and fresh mountain air, learning the rhythms of a horse’s gait and some new tunes around a campfire. But visiting a ranch in winter? Oh, what fun!
Come the colder months, Colorado’s dude ranches offer all kinds of activities, including gliding across the snow on cross-country skis and galloping through the powder on horseback. There’s also dog sledding, sleigh rides, tubing and more, says Courtney Frazier, executive director of the Colorado Dude & Guest Ranch Association.
“You’ll love the evening campfires and cozy cabins,” Frazier says. “Some of our ranches also have full spas to relax in after a busy day of exploring the Rocky Mountains.”
Saddle up: Here are five dude ranches that are perfect for winter escapes with amenities that include a private ski mountain, a top-notch culinary program and a murder mystery weekend.
C Lazy U Ranch
The C Lazy U near Granby couldn’t have a more idyllic setting. Days on the 8,500-acre ranch start with “Cowboy Coffee” traditions around an outdoor firepit with the nip of the alpine air and end with toasting s’mores. In between, there are horse and sleigh rides through the winter wonderland. Plus, a Zamboni is used to groom a pond on the property so you can skate in the open air or join a pickup hockey game.
Guests can also go fly-fishing in Willow Creek, a tributary of the Colorado River. Some sections build up ice shelves, but the creek is still flowing and the fish are still biting.
Three daily gourmet meals are a part of the all-inclusive rate (expect to pay $587 per person/night or more) and the winter dining menu includes carmel apple venison, pheasant cordon bleu, duck confit perogies and rose glazed pink prawns.
Devil’s Thumb Ranch Resort & Spa
Go dashing through the snow — on a sleigh, cross-country skis, or with a pair of snowshoes strapped to your feet. Devil’s Thumb Ranch near Granby is a rustic-luxe winter playground with some unique offerings, including cozy rides in a heated snow cat that traverses the snow-covered Ranch Creek Valley.
The resort also has fat tire bikes that can plow through powder, and Winter Park Ski Resort is just 10 miles from the ranch if doing laps on the slopes is on your mind. After playing in the snow, book a spa treatment and slink into a copper soaking tub or enjoy a heated river stone massage. Rates vary widely, depending on lodging, meal and activities booked. Expect to pay at least $460 a night for lodging for two people.
Vista Verde Guest Ranch
Old West meets luxury at Vista Verde, an all-inclusive dude ranch near Steamboat Springs. The culinary program is worth writing home about, with winter dishes that include carrot cake waffles with walnut syrup, Cuban sandwiches and gnocchi with short rib ragu.
At dinner, add a wine pairing. The guest ranch’s cellar, with more than 90 selections, has received accolades from Wine Spectator.
There are plenty of ways to work up an appetite. The ranch has a fleet of fat tire bikes, plus snowmobiling excursions, tubing, and backcountry ski touring. There also are plenty of groomed trails for beginners. Three-night stays in late winter start at $2,295 per person.
Three Forks Ranch
Near the Colorado-Wyoming border, Three Forks Ranch bills itself as being the “West Kept Secret.” The 200,000-acre ranch has an exclusive partnership with the Mayo Clinic, a healthcare nonprofit that staffs the wellness facility with certified coaches who can provide nutrition advice and personal training.
A stay at the all-inclusive resort includes spa treatments (guests staying three nights can pre-book two services). The ranch also offers private skiing on a mountain that gets blanketed in snow and has 20 runs. Heated snowcats deliver guests to the summit. Nightly rates start at $1,995 per person.
Sundance Trail Guest Ranch
Sundance Trail’s guests have a few options for winter visits at the ranch near Red Feather Lakes. The Country Inn stay includes lodging, meals and morning horseback rides. Or, select the bed-and-breakfast route.
Guests enjoy horseback rides through the Roosevelt National Forest, cozying up by the fireplace and stargazing in the jacuzzi. Gather a group of 8-12 people and the ranch will provide a Murder Mystery getaway. Between meals and horseback rides your group can try to figure out “whodunnit.”
Bed and breakfast nightly rates start at $230 per two-person suite or $170 for single occupancy.
Winter weather: What warnings, watches and advisories mean
The National Weather Service issues warnings, watches and advisories depending on conditions to alert the public.
A significant snowstorm will reach Colorado just in time to impact Thanksgiving travel.
If you can get to Colorado’s ski slopes before the storm arrives, you will enjoy some fantastic skiing.
Generally, travel conditions will be worse in the mountains and tapering to the Eastern Plains.
Here are details regarding the impending storm, according to the National Weather Service as of Monday morning:
Here is where and when winter storm warning is in place
- Winter storm warning: 3 a.m. Tuesday to 11 p.m. Wednesday with total snow accumulations between 10 and 20 inches for most areas, including the Front Range mountains; Park and Gore Ranges, including Rabbit Ears Pass, Rocky Mountain National Park, Medicine Bow Range, mountains of Summit County, Mosquito Range and Indian Peaks Wilderness. Road closures and very difficult travel conditions expected. Call 511 or visit cotrip.org for travel conditions.
Timing of the snowstorm and how it will impact travel
- Tuesday morning: Light to moderate snow begins for areas above 9,000 feet. Rain showers for lower elevations along the I-25 corridor.
- Tuesday afternoon/night: Heaviest snowfall expected to happen during this time in the mountains, especially above 10,000 feet, with mountain travel difficult over mountain passes. Light snow begins for areas above 7,000 feet with rain/snow mix possible for I-76 and I-25 corridor.
- Wednesday morning: Colder air arrives with lighter snow. Accumulation on roads could impact travel on the Eastern Plains and Palmer Divide.
- Thursday (Thanksgiving): Slick roads likely as roads freeze overnight, otherwise chilly and mostly dry.
Here are forecast snowfall totals for Fort Collins area and statewide
Wide snowfall total ranges are due in part because of when rain may turn to snow.
Larimer/Weld counties
- Fort Collins: 0-3 inches
- Loveland: 0-4 inches
- Wellington: 0-2 inches
- Windsor: 0-2 inches
- Greeley: 0-2 inches
- Berthoud: 0-4 inches
- Estes Park: 1-11 inches
- Red Feather Lakes: 2-9 inches
- Virginia Dale: 0-6 inches
- Cameron Pass: 12-26 inches
- Bear Lake (RMNP): 8-20 inches
- Milner Pass (RMNP): 11-25 inches
- Buckhorn Mountain: 1-9 inches
Other Colorado cities
- Denver: 1-2 inches
- DIA: 0-3 inches
- Boulder: 1-2 inches
- Castle Rock: 4-6 inches
- Colorado Springs: 2-3 inches
Colorado mountains/ski areas
- Steamboat Springs: 12-18 inches
- Winter Park: 18-24 inches
- Vail: 12-18 inches
- Aspen: 8-12 inches
- Breckenridge: 6-13 inches
- Breckenridge ski area: 15-34 inches
- Copper Mountain: 13-28 inches
- Keystone ski area: 13-26 inches
- Eisenhower Tunnel: 15-30 inches
- Berthoud Pass: 14-31 inches
- Loveland Pass: 14-27 inches
- Vail Pass: 13-25 inches
- Grand Lake: 7-15 inches
- Rabbit Ears Pass: 15-26 inches
Here is a look at the Fort Collins forecast for Thanksgiving week
- Monday: Sunny, with a high near 46 degrees, south-southeast wind 3 to 7 mph and low around 23.
- Tuesday: 30% chance of rain/snow mix until noon, then chance of afternoon rain, with little to no snow accumulation. Partly sunny, with a high near 49, southeast wind around 5 mph.
- Tuesday night: 70% chance of precipitation. Rain likely before 11 p.m., then rain and snow likely. New snow accumulation of less than a half-inch possible. Cloudy, with a low around 29 and northwest wind 3 to 6 mph.
- Wednesday: 50% chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 39, north wind 7 to 14 mph, gusting to 21. 30% chance of snow before 11 p.m. Low around 16.
- Thursday (Thanksgiving Day): Sunny, with a high near 39 and low around 15.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 42 and low around 18.
- Saturday (CSU home football game): Sunny, with a high near 40 and low around 15.
- Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 39.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – This weekend was Thankfest, an event started by Vaughn Littrell, to give back to families in need. This year 250 families got all the ingredients they needed for Thanksgiving and more.
The families were chosen ahead of time through the CPCD Head Start Program. They help serve our community’s most vulnerable children and families.
The giveaway was a chance for families to come down and do some shopping for free. It was more than just getting food, families also received all the kitchen tools they would need to cook too.
It wasn’t just food either. Clothes and shoes were also available for those who needed them.
“Some of our families are in really, really bad situations. They need they need help. You know, and it’s this is a this is a tangible way that we can do something. We can’t do everything, but you can do something. We’re excited to be able to bless these families,” Vaughn Littrell told KRDO13.
Vaughn says he started the giveaway with just a few families. He says he knows what it is like to struggle, and wants the giveaway to keep growing so he can help more people.
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Interstate 70 closed near Vail and Silverthorne on Sunday for “safety concerns” as snow battered the Colorado mountains, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The eastbound interstate was closed between Exit 180 for East Vail and Exit 190 for Vail Pass Summit, about 1 mile west of Copper Mountain, as of 6 p.m. Sunday, CDOT officials said.
CDOT cameras in the area of the closure showed snow-covered roads and white-out conditions.
Westbound I-70 was also closed at 6 p.m. Sunday between Exit 216 for U.S. 6 near Loveland Pass and Exit 205 for Colorado 9 near Silverthorne, according to CDOT.
Multiple Waze users reported “weather hazards” in both closed sections of I-70.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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