Travel: Big Sky, Why You Should Explore Out West…

Mountainwatch | By Rhylla Morgan Photos Tony Harrington

As we neared the turn off to Big Sky there were signs we had arrived amongst our people.  A couple of staunch Wim Hof-ers were cold-plunging in the river and the local school’s performing art centre was named in honour of Warren Miller.  We later learned his ashes are scattered in a remote valley out the back of Big Sky.

First impressions as we rolled in – it felt like a ski resort but also like a real place.  It’s tidy, well organised and feels like everything works smoothly but not so perfectly you question if you’ve landed in the Truman Show.

Much of this is testament to the hefty investment and work Boyne resorts have put in here recently and continue to do ahead of the 24-25 season when yet another new lift is set to roll.  Big Sky has just celebrated 50 years and is looking as perky as Gwyneth Paltrow.  They’ve definitely had work done, but who cares, those high-speed lifts and sleek day lodges shave years off their true age.  We loved the low-key approach to the big 5 – 0 milestone which the resort wryly acknowledges in their marketing by saying, ‘we call that a pretty good start’.

Big Sky’s birthday gift to themselves and their guests was unwrapped in December 2023 ­– a glorious, sleek and shiny new tram that flies you up to the top of Lone Peak in under five minutes and still has that new car smell.

A couple of things about the tram – they don’t sandwich you in.  You also don’t have to be a skier to ride it – you can head up top for a look and ride back down, but the loading station is up in the ski area, so you can’t do it in your Ugg boots (yet).  The future plan is to build additional gondola links connecting the base to the summit, add dining and an observation experience as a year-round attraction.

The tram is a highlight but if you were anywhere else the rest of the lifting network would be a headline in its own right. Take your pick of high-speed six and eight seaters, savour the heated seats and bubbles that make the uphill experience almost as appealing as the downhill bit we are all here for.  And they’re not done, there are more lifting upgrades in the plan so what is already a great experience – no lines, smooth rides – is only getting better.

But we’re completely burying the lead here, it’s the mountain that you’re here for and the clue is on the label, as promised it is… big.  But unlike many resorts, that are also big and promise tonnes of tasty terrain, this one is uncrowded so the bigger feels even better.

The pitch from Big Sky is that they offer around an acre per skier and as you get out on the runs you realise the experience is exactly what’s on the label.  There were moments it felt like we’d accidentally entered a closed run because there was no one in sight. Some resorts might quibble about the stats as to which North American resort can claim to be the ‘biggest’ but if Big Sky isn’t on top, it’s damn close, and unlike other contenders such as Whistler and Park City there are zero crowds out here.  We know which mountain we’d choose.

This visit was a fly-by as we were short on time but as we took our last run we agreed, we really need to come back here and explore the place properly.  We barely scratched the surface and skied past so many glades and looked up at so many chutes that are on the ‘next time’ list.

Big Sky is getting on more skiers’ radars and for good reason.  Ikon Pass holders get between 4-7 days here (you need to add the tram) and for Australians making the pilgrimage to Big Sky or Jackson Hole you’d be mad not to do both.  Just leave some space in your luggage in case you want to bring home a belt buckle or two.

Hitting the singles line and getting adopted

My first day at Big Sky Harro was on a tear with some local freeride rockstars in the chutes getting photos so I had the luxury of taking a more mellow roll.  I enjoy the ‘no-plan’ approach, figuring I’d load the first lift and follow my nose.  I’d scanned the trail map the night before and with the looming Lone Peak towering above I had an unmissable landmark. Rolling in the singles line to the Swift Current chair I’m efficiently orchestrated into a group of six and no sooner is the bar down than my neighbour compliments me on my ski sticker and we get to talking.  My Australian accent is immediately picked up by the rest of the chair, some teenagers from out East, and before we hit the half-way point we’re all chatting like old friends.

As I stop to check the board and get my bearings up top my chair-mate rejoins me and asks if I’d like to join her and her husband. Fast forward through the morning I am adopted by Cyndee and Stan (a couple of ripping skiers who are now retired and live here) and get an awesome local’s tour as they collect various friends along the way.  We spot wild goats, we lap Powder Seeker in the sunshine and then once it’s agreed there’s been enough warming on the south face they generously offer to host me for my inaugural tram ride up Lone Peak and down Liberty Bowl.

As the wise and wonderful Maya Angelou said, “people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

The overwhelming feeling that kept coming up in Big Sky was a generosity and willingness to share. So many people I met radiated a genuine passion for the place and rather than being guarded or insular about their good fortune they wanted me to love it too.

There aren’t many ski resorts where the little grocer in the village gives away free food at the close of the day rather than see it go to waste. It’s Montana so no surprises that there are some big things out here, mountains, wide open skies, trucks and cowboy hats to name a few.  But, and forgive me if I get a little bit cheesy here, there’s a big-heartedness to Big Sky too.

The feeling I keep coming back to as I reflect on an all-too-short (first) visit to Big Sky is the freedom of letting my skis run and making sweeping turns on wide open runs knowing I had it all to myself. I wasn’t going to be taken out or collide with anyone and I was free to simply – ski. That’s the sort of experience people pay top dollar for in a heli operation or hike for hours into the backcountry to find. In Big Sky you get it on any given day and the only thing waiting at the bottom of the run is a friendly lift operator (not a long line) ready to bump your ride back up so you can do it all again.=

Thanks Big Sky, Cyndee and Stan.  You made me feel right at home and I look forward to next time.

Find out more: bigskyresort.com