Courtesy Dustin Schaefer, Loveland Ski Area
Loveland Ski Area announced on its social media channels Thursday morning that the ski area’s Ridge Cat snowcat service will open Friday, conditions permitting.
Loveland’s Ridge Cat is a snowcat service atop the Continental Divide that is free to skiers and snowboarders who access the mountain via lift tickets or season passes. To ride the 18-passenger cat, skiers and snowboarders need to sign a waiver and pick up a free Ridge Cat Pass at the ski area’s Basin Ticket Office.
Ridge Cat access is on a first-come, first-served basis. To access the Ridge Cat, skiers and snowboarders can ride up Loveland’s Lift 9 and exit right, to the north, before traversing just beyond Gate 1N to the cat’s pickup point. Conditions permitting, Loveland’s Ridge Cat operates from 10 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. on Wednesdays through Sundays.
In a social media posts, Loveland representatives said the Ridge Cat will provide access to the following terrain: Field of Dreams, Velvet Hammer, Tickler and Super Nova.
In general, the Ridge Cat provides access to difficult and extreme terrain, the only more moderate option being the route taken by the cat, which the public is permitted to ski or ride back down. That said, Loveland asks skiers and snowboarders to inform the Ridge Cat operator if that is their intention.
For more information and to access the Ridge Cat waiver online, visit: skiloveland.com/the-mountain/the-ridge-cat.