Buffalo Pass Archives

As Colorado backcountry use soars, Vail Pass’ fee model could be a way to manage the crush

by Jennifer Brown 3:30 AM MST on Jan 29, 20212:21 PM MDT on Mar 29, 2023

VAIL PASS — Four women on backcountry skis, packs strapped to their backs, glided single file down a powdery path out of the woods after a night at Walter’s Cabin, a hut on Shrine Mountain. Their peaceful trek into the backcountry of Vail Pass this week included pausing to scope out tracks left by a […]

Business, News, Outdoors

Peace in powder as snowcat operator drops lawsuit targeting former guide’s book about Buffalo Pass

by Jason Blevins 4:20 AM MST on Dec 3, 2020

The bickering between Steamboat Powdercats and a publisher of an upcoming guidebook has ended in powder-loving peace. Author Stephen Bass and his publisher, Andy Sovick, have agreed that their upcoming guidebook for Buffalo Pass will not include the names of runs and locations used by Steamboat Powdercats, which has shepherded skiing clients around Buffalo Pass […]

Business, News, Outdoors, Outsider

Are Colorado’s backcountry skiing stashes “trade secrets”? A snowcat outfitter suing a former guide claims they are.

by Jason Blevins 4:20 AM MST on Nov 9, 2020

Stephen Bass approached Andy Sovick last year with a plan for writing a guide to snowmobile-access skiing around one of the most popular backcountry destinations in Colorado: Buffalo Pass near Steamboat Springs. Bass, a ski patroller at Utah’s Powder Mountain ski area and a guide for two seasons with Steamboat Powdercats, said the book would […]