When it comes to choosing the ultimate destination for adventure enthusiasts, two names often come to mind - Colorado and British Columbia. Both regions boast breathtaking landscapes, adrenaline-pumping snow sports, and an abundance of natural beauty. However, if you're in search of the perfect of a short snowmobile/snowboard combination trip and want to have better chance to score good weather and good snow, I think Colorado wins. It has more sunny days than BC and the snow quality holds on much longer. I have lived in BC for 10 years and 3 in Colorado, and I can tell you that it is much easier to find good snow every day in Colorado.
Sunshine Galore.
Colorado is known for its abundant sunshine, with 250 sunny days a year on average. The state experiences a semi-arid climate, ensuring that you can ride under clear blue skies, and have a clear view at the beautiful surroundings and terrain you want to conquer on your snowmobile.
How many times have you cancelled a day snowmobiling or heliboarding because of the clouds or bad weather? This rarely happens in Colorado. Patterns of 2-3 days of clouds are pretty rare and the snow storms usually come in with a cold front. This avoid the snowpack to get ruined by some rain like British Columbia. You can also drive up to different elevation with your car and snowmobiles to find better conditions.
With consistent cold weather below 32 degrees, you won't see much ice if you stay in high elevation.
Easier to drive and access in the backcountry.
because you can mostly drive to high alpine zone with your truck, there is usually not a huge distance separating the trail heads to the end of the meadows or alpine zones in Colorado. Getting to the spot can take between 15-35 minutes. Most of the snowmobile access in BC take longer than one hour to reach, and therefore you already arrived tired to the best areas you want to snowboard and rip the sleds. To me it's a huge difference between Colorado and BC. More time in the pow and less energy wasted in the trails and bumpy groomers.
This is what a classic flat light BC photo from Dustin Lalik at Baldface Lodge.
Easier to drive in. BC pow is wet and gets really deep. So it makes it pretty hard to drive around fresh areas. It leaves deeper trenches and sometimes bottomless pow is too much if you want to reach higher peaks for snowboarding. Colorado average dumps are smaller but they keep piling up in the backcountry so you get the same bottomless feel but in a more light compact snow. I think it's much easier to drive in that kind of snow.
Majestic Mountains and World-Class Slopes.
The Rocky Mountains serve as the crown jewel of Colorado, offering some of the most magnificent peaks and slopes in North America. From the world-renowned resorts of Vail and Aspen to the hidden gems of Breckenridge and Steamboat, there is so much unexplored backcountry terrain to explore. Statebridge is right in the middle of it.
View of Beaver Creek from Statebridge Lodge backcountry.
In conclusion, I think it's much less risky to commit to a snowboard trip in Colorado than BC if you want to hit the backcountry. I have experienced both places enough so that you should trust me on this one. You should definitly come find out for yourself.
G.