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.
Former Colorado Buffaloes stars Sebastian Rancik and Bangot Dak announced their transfer portal decisions on Sunday with Rancik committing to Florida State and Dak committing to Vanderbilt, per On3’s Joe Tipton. They join former Buffs guard Isaiah Johnson (now at Texas) as the third former Colorado player to leave the Big 12 conference as Rancik opts for the ACC and Dak heads to the SEC.
The trio of Johnson, Rancik, and Dak make up three of Colorado’s four most productive players with rising senior guard Barrington Hargress, and the Buffs are now tasked with replacing such production with Hargress as the only returner.
Rancik’s season ended prematurely with an injury, but he averaged 12.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game for the Buffs. Dak was Colorado’s leading rebounder with 6.5 boards per game, scoring 11.5 points per contest as well.
While each player has his respective reasons for transferring, the most expected ones are for seeking better NIL deals or more development on a better team in a better league. The Buffs finished 12th in the Big 12, and the allure of the SEC was too strong for the program to hold onto key talent like Johnson and Dak.
Still, Colorado coach Tad Boyle proved his ability to recruit and build up a solid core, one that saw its headliners of Johnson, Dak, and Rancik all depart in the portal. Can he do it again?
Colorado Buffaloes Roster Outlook
Boyle and the Buffaloes did retain Hargress as well as three freshmen guards: Jalin Holland, Ian Inman, and Josiah Sanders.
As a freshman, Holland averaged 4.9 points and 2.7 rebounds per game as one of Colorado’s key pieces coming off of the bench. Meanwhile, Sanders appeared in 33 games as a constant presence in the Buffs backcourt, averaging 4.4 points and 1.7 assists per game.
Inman played the fewest minutes of the returning trio, but he flashed with a couple of double-digit scoring performances as a true freshman.
“When I think of those three together, I think of toughness. I think of the improvement they made over the course of the season and the togetherness they have. They’re great friends and have formed a bond during their freshman year. Their toughness, energy and work ethic, when you have those attributes to go along with talent, which they all have, you get a chance to have three really good sophomores next year that will take the next step,” Boyle said in a release announcing the return of the three freshmen.
With eight outgoing transfers to replace, the Buffaloes will certainly have a new look to them for the 2026-27 season.
Colorado has landed one transfer portal prospect so far in former North Dakota State foward Noah Feddersen. On the recruiting trail, Boyle and company are bringing in four-star forward Rider Portela as well as two prospects from the NBL in Australia: forward Goc Malual and guard Alex Dickeson.
The transfer portal for men’s college basketball closes on Tuesday, April 21, meaning players have to enter their names by then. Transfer athletes do not have to commit before the portal closes, though, so Colorado is expected to continue hosting prospects on visits while building out the roster.
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Colorado
Colorado faces LA in first round as Kings captain Anze Kopitar embarks on final Stanley Cup chase
DENVER — Anze Kopitar wrapped up the last regular season of his storied career. The Los Angeles Kings captain wants to prolong his final playoff run for as long as possible.
Kopitar, who announced in September his plans to retire, instantly becomes a postseason rallying point for the Kings. They have a tall task ahead of them against the Colorado Avalanche, the top team in the league, with the top goal scorer in Nathan MacKinnon and one of the best defensemen in the game in Cale Makar. Game 1 is Sunday at Ball Arena, where the Avalanche are 26-9-6.
“Playoffs,” said the 38-year-old Kopitar, a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Kings. “I’m not going to say anything can happen, but we’ll go in and we’ll play hard and we’ll see where that takes us.”
This will be the third postseason series between the two teams and the first in 24 years. Colorado won in seven games during both the 2002 conference quarterfinals and the 2001 conference semifinals.
It’s been a record season for the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Avalanche as they amassed the most points (121) in franchise history. That broke the mark set by the 2022 team, which went on to win the Stanley Cup title. MacKinnon had a career-best 53 goals.
Goaltenders Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood shared the net this season and surrendered a league low in goals. They earned the William M. Jennings Trophy, which is presented to the goalies who have played a minimum of 25 games — Wedgewood suited up in 45 and Blackwood 39 — for the team with the fewest goals allowed. The other goaltender to win that honor for Colorado was Hall of Famer Patrick Roy (2001-02).
“We’re in a good spot,” Colorado forward Brock Nelson said. “The mentality of this group throughout the year, right from the start of training camp, (was) set on a mission to be the best team.”
Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon (29) celebrates the goal against Edmonton Oilers goalie Connor Ingram (39) during shoot-out NHL action, in Edmonton on Monday, April 13, 2026. Credit: AP/JASON FRANSON
Record against each other
The Kings went 0-3 against Colorado this season and were outscored by a 13-5 margin.
“You hear the hype. They have good players,” Kings defenseman Brandt Clarke said. “We’re a scrappy team. We keep it close with everybody. That can really frustrate them.”
Leading after two
The Avalanche were 41-0-0 when leading after two periods. They’re the first squad to have a lead after two periods on 40 or more instances and capture each one, according to team research.
“Even though we’ve been smart, we’ve been committed, we’ve been relentless at times, it’s going to have to go to a whole new level now,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “I have faith in our guys.”
Los Angeles Kings’ Anze Kopitar, who is retiring after this season, acknowledges the crowd after being recognized after losing to the Vancouver Canucks during overtime NHL hockey action in Vancouver, on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. Credit: AP/DARRYL DYCK
Remember the season opener?
Six grueling months ago, the Avalanche and Kings opened the season against each other. The Avalanche won 4-1 in Los Angeles behind a pair of goals from Martin Necas, who would go on to register his first 100-point season (38 goals, 62 assists).
The two teams join an exclusive club by becoming the fifth pair since 2015-16 to open the regular season and the playoffs against each other, according to NHL Stats. The other pairs to do so were Montreal and Toronto (2020-21); Colorado and St. Louis (2020-21); St. Louis and Winnipeg (2018-19); and Los Angeles and San Jose (2015-16).
Of those teams that won the season opener only San Jose went on to win the series. It’s a trend Kopitar and the Kings wouldn’t mind joining.
Kopitar and the playoffs
Kopitar helped the Kings to the Stanley Cup title in 2011-12 and 2013-14 along with goaltender Jonathan Quick, who now is with the New York Rangers and recently said he’s retiring. Kopitar has played in 103 postseason games with 27 goals and 62 assists.
“The intensity ramps up, everything ramps up,” Kopitar said of the postseason. “Every mistake, every little play, magnifies now.”
Familiar faces
Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper was in net for the Avalanche when they won the Stanley Cup in 2022. In addition, Kuemper and Drew Doughty were teammates with MacKinnon, Makar and Devon Toews when Canada won silver at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
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