Top 5 Winter Activities in Colorado That Don’t Involve Skiing

1.Snowmobiling

Snowmobiling is a great outdoor adventure you can experience, especially in a Colorado winter. A snowmobile is sometimes called a motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, Ski-Doo, or snowmachine. It is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow and does not require a road or trail. Most snowmobiles you can drive on open terrain or trails. If you are looking to book a tour in Colorado, some of the best places to go snowmobiling are:

• Steamboat Springs for its expansive, rideable terrain.  
• Breckenridge, for its unparalleled views and well-groomed trails.
• Vail Pass recreation area, where skiers and snowmobilers can share the backcountry.
• Gunnison and Crested Butte are known for their excellent snow accumulation and soft powder.
• Wolf Creek and Pagosa Springs. More powder falls in this area than anywhere else in Colorado.
• Grand Lake. Beautiful views and snowy streets make for easy access into town.

2.Tubing

Tubing down a mountain is a great way to spend a day or two this winter in Colorado. Zooming lighting fast down a hill on an inner tube is a thrill you will need to experience at least once in your lifetime. Here are some great places to snow tube:

• Copper Mountain has a well-equipped fun zone with four designated tubing lanes, a “magic carpet ride,” and a tiny tot playland and mini tubing area called Critterland.
• The Meadows at Elk Camp, Snowmass, has recently carved multiple lift-served lanes that illuminate at night. 
• Snow Mountain Ranch Sledding and Tubing Hill, Winter Park, is a great value compared to other ski resorts in the area. Run by YMCA of the Rockies, this tubing hill has excellent views of the surrounding mountains. 
• Firecracker Sledding Hill, Telluride, is a favorite, yet unofficial sledding hill in Telluride, Colorado. The nearby Telluride Nordic Center rents sleds while the Galloping Goose bus follows a continuous loop through town, making it easy to get around. 
• Frisco Tubing Hill, located in the Frisco Adventure Park, has 1200 foot tubing lanes with a lift, and well-lit runs you can tube on at night.
• A few more snow tubing hills worth mentioning are High Country Tubing Park in Pagosa Springs, Vail’s Adventure Ridge, Ellefson Park in Vail, Keystone’s Adventure Point in Keystone, Haymaker Tubing Hill in Beaver Creek, and Coca-Cola Tube Park in Winter Park. 

3. Snowshoeing

Where there is snow, there is snowshoeing. Whether you prefer freestyle trails or groomed, here’s a list to get you snowshoeing in Colorado’s great outdoors this winter.

• Rocky Mountain National Park is home to 355 miles of fantastic hiking trails.
• The Colorado Trail claims 483 miles of amazing snowshoeing trail stretching from Denver to Durango through six wilderness areas and eight mountain ranges.
• Grand Mesa, near Grand Junction, has spectacular snowshoeing atop Grand Mesa.
• Nederland has amazing snowshoeing trails. The trail to Lost Lake has a stunning mountain lake at the pinnacle of the route.
• Glenwood Springs is home to Hanging Lake Trail, which climbs 1,000 feet, and has breathtaking views. 
• Steamboat Springs has plenty of un-groomed yet well-traveled options in the area for all exertion and skill levels.

4. Ice Skating

Ice skating is one of winter’s classic past times. Here are some of Colorado’s outdoor ice rinks for you to enjoy this winter:

• Colorado Springs’ Acacia Park has an outdoor skating rink that has themed nights, live music, and food vendors.
• Denver outdoor ice skating happens in the middle of downtown at Southwest Rink at Skyline Park along 16th Street Mall. You can also catch free ice skating at Denver International Airport, which has a rink!
• A few Colorado State Parks have natural ponds that offer ice skating amid some of the state’s most scenic views.
• Ouray has the Rotary Park rink, which is surrounded by beautiful mountains. Warm-up in the small warming hut or soak in the nearby 96- to 108-degree Ouray Hot Springs and Orvis Hot Springs.
• Crested Butte has the Crested Butte Nordic Center rink situated on the edge of town. 
• Evergreen is a skating haven on 40-acre Evergreen Lake. There are 11 pond hockey rinks, and the warming hut has snacks, warm beverages, and a fireplace.
• Keystone, Colorado, claims one of the largest Zamboni-maintained outdoor rinks in North America. Keystone Resort’s Dercum Square Ice Rink, a frozen alpine lake, iis kept in tip-top skating condition for day and night skaters.

5. Dog Sled

Experience the joy of gliding over smooth trails through peaceful meadows of aspens and pines on a wooden dog sled. Driven by a team of powerful huskies, you’ll discover an unusual and exciting way of experiencing Colorado’s backcountry.

• Mountain Musher in Wolcott is a family-run operation whose passion for their techniques and love for their dogs is immediately noticeable. 
• Durango Dog Ranch provides lots of love and attention to their canine cohorts and offers several different tour options that include personalized, hands-on instruction.
• Good Times Adventures in Breckenridge takes you on a 6-mile trek through the Swan River Valley with their Siberian huskies. 
• Grizzle-T in Steamboat Springs considers Alaskan huskies the real athletes during their backcountry tours, which offer either hands-on guiding for adventurous guests or a more backseat experience where trained guides accelerate the canine team with expert precision.