Steamboat Springs

Steamboat sits in a high mountain valley, a very long way from any coast, so this is not a beach destination. In July and August a few people swim in the mountain reservoirs north and south of town, Steamboat Lake and Stagecoach among them, but the water stays cold and the season is short. The usual way to get into the water in summer is tubing the Yampa River through town, and that is more of a float than a swim.

Eating out here means resort-town dining. Lincoln Avenue downtown and the base area at the ski mountain have a decent set of steakhouses, places using Colorado lamb and beef, casual Mexican spots, pizza and a couple of more ambitious kitchens, plus a few local breweries. Ranching still matters in the Yampa Valley, so the cooking leans hearty and western. It is pleasant enough after a day outdoors, but the range is narrow, there is no street food or market culture to explore, and nobody comes here for the food.

Steamboat's history is ranching and skiing, and you can still read it on the streets. Lincoln Avenue keeps some of its old western storefronts, and the Tread of Pioneers Museum, set in a Victorian house, tells the story of the homesteaders and of the Norwegian ski jumper who brought the sport here. Howelsen Hill, right in town, is one of the oldest ski areas in North America and has trained a long line of Olympians. That covers it. An hour's stroll and a museum visit are enough, and the reason to come is outdoors.

Evenings in winter start early. Après-ski runs from the bars at the base of the gondola as the lifts close, then moves downtown to a handful of saloons, brewpubs and bars on Lincoln Avenue, some of which stay busy into the late evening during the ski season. There is no club scene, and outside the peak winter and summer weeks the town is quiet well before midnight.

This is the heart of a Steamboat stay. In winter the ski mountain rises just east of town and is famous for the light, dry snow the locals call Champagne Powder, with tree skiing through aspen glades. Rabbit Ears Pass adds backcountry and snowmobile terrain. Howelsen Hill, right in town, has night skiing and Nordic trails, and there is cross-country skiing and snowshoeing throughout the valley.

In summer the same hills become a big network of mountain-bike and hiking trails, Emerald Mountain among them. Fish Creek Falls is a short drive from downtown, and the Mount Zirkel Wilderness to the north has alpine lakes and long backpacking routes. The Yampa River is good for fly fishing and paddling, autumn turns the aspens gold, and elk and moose are common sights. The valley sits at about 2,050m, so nights are cool even in midsummer.

Steamboat is remote, and that shows here. The towns within easy reach, such as Hayden, Oak Creek and Yampa, are small ranching communities worth no more than a stop for coffee. Vail and Grand Lake are roughly two hours of mountain driving away, and Denver is about three. Excursions from Steamboat almost always mean going into the hills rather than visiting another town.

Steamboat has long marketed itself to families, and it works well with children who enjoy being outdoors. The ski mountain has a strong ski school and gentle beginner terrain, and Howelsen Hill in town is a quieter place for first turns. In town, the Old Town Hot Springs complex has warm pools, slides and a climbing wall. In summer there is tubing on the Yampa, the gondola, short hikes to waterfalls and the rodeo.

The town is small, safe and relaxed, and restaurants are used to children. What it lacks is any zoo, aquarium, theme park or science museum, so the trip only works if the family is happy to spend its time skiing, swimming and walking. The altitude can tire young children for the first day or two.

Steamboat has two centres, the old downtown along Lincoln Avenue and the ski base area a few kilometres east, and the town bus runs between them through the day. Downtown is flat and easy to walk, and many slopeside lodgings let skiers walk to the gondola. Beyond that, a car is close to essential. Strawberry Park Hot Springs, Fish Creek Falls, the lakes and the passes all lie up roads that buses do not serve, and winter driving on them calls for proper tyres and some confidence. Most visitors fly into the small regional airport at Hayden or drive in over the mountains from Denver.

Shopping here means a stroll along Lincoln Avenue, where western-wear stores sell boots, hats and saddle-blanket goods. The best known is F.M. Light & Sons, a family outfitter in business since the early twentieth century and as much a landmark as a shop. Add a few art galleries, outdoor-gear and ski shops, and souvenir stores at the mountain base. It is a pleasant hour, not a reason to come.

Steamboat is an expensive place to stay, above all in ski season, when slopeside condos, lift access, equipment hire and eating out all cost resort prices. The weeks around Christmas, New Year and the spring school breaks are the costliest of all. Summer is noticeably gentler, and spring and late autumn are cheaper still, though some places close then. Self-catering condos, the town buses and plenty of free trails and parks help keep costs down, but this is not a budget destination in any season.

Summer is when Steamboat has music. The Strings Music Festival, held for decades in a pavilion on the edge of town, puts on chamber music, jazz, bluegrass and touring acts through the warm months, and there are free outdoor concerts downtown and at the mountain base. Perry-Mansfield, a performing-arts school and camp in Strawberry Park founded in 1913, stages student theatre and dance. For the rest of the year the offer comes down to a small community orchestra, the odd touring show and live bands in the bars.

Hot water is part of Steamboat's identity. The town takes its name from a spring that trappers said chugged like a steamboat, and dozens of mineral springs rise around it. In town, the Old Town Hot Springs has spring-fed pools that locals use all year. The real reward lies about 11km up a mountain road at Strawberry Park Hot Springs, where rock-lined pools sit in a wooded creek valley. Soaking there on a snowy evening is one of the great pleasures of the Colorado mountains.

Add a few resort spas and massage studios and a slow small-town rhythm, and Steamboat is an easy place to unwind, especially in summer and between ski seasons.