While chowing down on Thanksgiving dinner, a couple of friends and I made plans to hit the slopes the following day.  I woke up bright and early on Friday morning (5:45am) and met up with two friends at a park and ride along the highway.  We left the parking lot just after 6:30 in the morning and I drove us up to Keystone.  We wanted to be sure to avoid any traffic, which was completely successful, though we may have been even a bit too early.  We arrived at Keystone before eight and the lifts don’t open until nine.

With all the recent snow that has fallen in the mountains many of the resorts are opening lifts and terrain much quicker than ever.  One of these record-breaking openings was the earliest ever opening of The Outback at Keystone.  Traditionally this is my favorite area of Keystone, so once we were finally on the slopes, we immediately headed that way.  Usually you would take either Mozart, Mine Shaft, or Diamond Back from the top of Dercum Mountain (the first peak at Keystone) to gain access to both North Peak and The Outback.  On Friday, these trails were all closed due to lack of snow coverage, so the only way to access the other two peaks was to take a ride on the Outpost Gondola.

Enjoying the snow in The Outback at Keystone.

I don’t think I have ever ridden the Outpost Gondola, but I was more than happy to take a ride this day.  Once we made it to North Peak and then The Outback we were treated to absolutely no lines.  In addition the snow was actually really good, especially for November.  We enjoyed many hours of fun out in The Outback.  The highlight of the day was easily the snow we found after a quick hike to the North Bowl.  My friend Rob and I often hike out to the North and South Bowls to find the best powder.  Friday was no exception, where after a half mile hike we found over half a foot of untouched powder.  It took us both by surprise, but we enjoyed every minute of it.

After noon we decided to work our way back towards the front of the resort.  We took one run down Bachelor, and soon realized that the snow wasn’t very good on the front side of the mountain.  I’ve often found this to be true.  Rob blames it on the night skiing that Keystone has.  Most resorts in Colorado don’t offer it.  We also found large lines all along the front side of the mountain.  Those two things put together convinced us to call it a day.  I was so happy that most people either couldn’t figure out how to get back to the other two mountains or just weren’t interested.  It left all the good snow for us while they dealt with all the icy conditions on the front.  It was a great first day of the season!

Keystone on Dwellable