Lost Trail Powder Mountain is a small ski area  located on the border of Montana and Idaho.  It is one of those areas that you feel are still are targeted towards skiers rather than the real estate market, no glitz, mostly just bunch of locals having fun. There is no ‘resort town’ to speak of, just a base lodge at the bottom of the mountain. Most of the visitors are from the nearby cities from both Montana and Idaho and the lifts only spin from Thursday till Sunday each week (except holidays). We spent some days at the area this early season and here’s the short review of it.

Early season pow near left of the Saddle Mountain lift

Lost Trail – no frills, just skiing

There’s basically three main, longer lifts at Lost Trail, Chair 1, Chair 2 and Saddle Mountain Chair, the latter of which despite it’s name does not go up to Saddle Mountain, but rather the one next to it. Chair 1 and Chair 2 access another small peak. Besides of those there are two other chairlifts (serving some easier terrain) and a rope tow that connect the Chair 1 and Saddle Mountain Chair. All of chairlifts are older, fixed grip 2 seat chairlifts. Not that fast, but who cares when there’s not enough crowds to form anything that resembles a lift line anyway.

Lost Trail is not a big mountain, the main lifts serve between 1200 to 1800 feet vertical. But this isn’t supposed to be another Jackson Hole or Chamonix anyway. The small ski area feeling that I like is present, and especially families will feel themselves at home here with the lower ticket prices and plenty of long, blue runs.

The advanced terrain and backcountry at Lost Trail Powder Mountain

For that you probably want to look at Chair 1 and 2. Lookers right side of Chair 1 sports some nice cliffs and short chutes through the woods. Unfortunately for the expert skier, the Saddle Mountain lift accesses mostly flat terrain, with only the very top of the runs being steep, and the lift ride being long. So for quick laps on a powder day we suggest sticking to Chair 1 and 2.

Laura riding powder under empty chairs (Chair 1)

However, if you’re interested in the out-of-bounds options and are properly equipped with avalanche gear and knowledge of the snowpack then the backside of the peak that Saddle Mountain lift goes up to, along with the ridge that connects Chair 1 and Saddle Mountain Chair is worth taking a look at. There are a multitude of options around here if the snow allows it. The only way out though is to skinback to the ski area. There’s a $5 one-way lift ticket offered for those who want to go touring. Fire up that Google Earth and have a look!

Looking down at the out-of-bounds backside of the Saddle Mountain Chair in early season (mid-December),
view is towards Saddle Mountain proper

Terrain Park

I’m not much of a park rider myself at all but I applaud how Lost Trail apparently is making the effort to construct to a good terrain park. During our visit in early season the “Frontcountry” park already had several rails and small features set up even though snow was not that plentiful. Along with that there’s a “Powder Park”, its specialty being natural features, aimed at more beginners . I never got to see either of the parks fully finished during our visit since it was early season but the good condition and the number of rails that had already been put up leads me to think that the park is probably in pretty good shape the whole winter. There’s a seperate park crew that takes care of the park.

In my experience it’s not really often that the small areas really invest into terrain parks, and I think it is a good move for Lost Trail to do so. It attracts some of the younger riders  and shows that the management is not stuck in the 70s. For a glimpse into Lost Trails park scene you can check their seperate site at ltpark.com.

Location

The Lost Trail ski area is located right next to highway 93 at the Montana-Idaho border. The area is approximately 95 miles from Missoula, MT, and 100 miles from Butte, MT. In Idaho the closest bigger town is Salmon, 45 miles from Lost Trail.

Conclusion

Lost Trail might not be a prime ski vacation destination resort, but it is something to keep in mind when you’re in the area or driving by. And if you live within a daytrip range, its definitely worth a visit on a good day. Competition on powder days is not fierce. Park rats will undoubtedly enjoy the options at Lost Trail. For those who only want an easy access to backcountry then the $5 one-ride lift ticket is a nice way to get to the back bowls, skinning up the closed runs when the resort is not open is also a possibility.

Links:

www.losttrail.com
www.ltpark.com

via homeboyski.com