Wyoming, Usa · Indy
Snow King Mountain
Wyoming's first ski area, 1936. 34 runs, 400 acres, night skiing in downtown Jackson. Indy Pass access.
Season 2025 - 2026
Opens
6 Dec 2025
Closes
5 Apr 2026
Days open
120
Annual snow
11ft
The Overview
Michael Fulton
Melbourne-based skier and snowboarder with 50+ resorts across 5 continents. Specialises in Australian resorts and international resort comparisons.
Snow King Mountain's summit reaches 7,808 feet, dropping 1,571 vertical feet to a base at 6,237 feet across 34 runs spread over 400 acres on the southeast edge of Jackson, Wyoming. Terrain splits 40 per cent advanced, 24 per cent intermediate, 18 per cent expert and 18 per cent beginner, a steep mix for a town-adjacent hill. Average annual snowfall reaches roughly 132 inches, well below the totals at nearby Jackson Hole and Grand Targhee. The resort operates on the Indy Pass.
Snow King earned its nickname 'the Town Hill' from its location directly at the edge of downtown Jackson, close enough that locals can walk from town to the base. The 40 per cent advanced and 18 per cent expert terrain share makes it steeper than its small size suggests, a legacy of its original informal ski routes from the 1920s. Night skiing extends access into evening hours, a feature not offered at Jackson Hole. The mountain also hosts an alpine slide and, since 2024, an observatory and planetarium at the summit.
Wyoming's first ski area, Snow King traces its skiing history to informal use in the 1920s, when locals hiked up for runs down what was then called Kelly's Hill. The Civilian Conservation Corps built a switchback trail to the summit in 1936, and the area was officially renamed Snow King in 1938. A 4,000-foot rope tow installed in 1939 became Wyoming's first lift-served skiing. The mountain underwent a significant renovation completed in the 2020s, adding a gondola and new summit facilities.
Indy Pass holders receive access to Snow King alongside dozens of other independent resorts across North America. Adult day tickets run from 75 to 95 US dollars depending on date, with a season pass priced at 599 dollars. The resort suits locals and value-focused visitors seeking a steep, town-adjacent alternative to Jackson Hole's larger and pricier terrain. Its position inside Jackson itself, rather than a separate base village, makes it the most accessible ski area in the valley without a car.
1,572ft
Vertical
34
Runs
400 acres
Skiable
11ft
Annual snow
Indy
Pass
The Terrain
34 runs across 400 acres skiable
Snow King Mountain spreads 34 runs across 400 acres skiable of terrain. It leans advanced at 40%, with 6 beginner runs to find your feet and 20 advanced or expert runs when you want to push.
Terrain split
34
runs
34 runs across 4 grades
Beginner6 runs · 18%
Intermediate8 runs · 24%
Advanced14 runs · 40%
Expert6 runs · 18%
Time it right
When to visit Snow King Mountain
The 2025-26 season at Snow King ran from 6 December 2025 to 5 April 2026, a roughly seventeen-week window shorter than nearby Jackson Hole's season despite similar opening timing. The mountain's lower base elevation of 6,237 feet, relative to Jackson Hole's 6,310 feet, and lower snowfall contribute to a slightly earlier close. Night skiing extends the useful hours of the season without extending its calendar length. Season dates shift year to year based on snowpack and grooming capacity.
Average annual snowfall of roughly 132 inches is markedly lower than Jackson Hole or Grand Targhee, both of which sit higher and catch more direct storm exposure. This lower natural snowfall makes snowmaking and grooming comparatively more important to Snow King's season-long conditions, though specific snowmaking coverage is not confirmed in available resort information. Base depth typically builds more slowly than at the valley's higher-elevation resorts. The mountain's south and east-facing exposure toward town can affect snow retention compared with more sheltered aspects.
Midwinter, from January through February, offers the most reliable conditions once early-season snowpack and any snowmaking coverage have built up. Night skiing sessions run through the core of the season, giving Jackson locals an after-work skiing option not available at Jackson Hole. Late-season visits in March and early April can be more variable given the mountain's lower base elevation and snowfall. Weekday and evening visits typically carry lighter crowds than weekend daytime sessions.
Night skiing is Snow King's signature seasonal feature, distinguishing it from Jackson Hole and Grand Targhee, neither of which lights runs for evening skiing. The Snow King Observatory and Planetarium, opened at the summit in 2024, adds a non-skiing draw through the winter season. The mountain also operates an alpine slide and other activities outside the core ski season. As Jackson's historic town hill, the calendar leans toward local, after-hours use alongside standard daytime skiing.
Season 2025 - 2026
6 Dec 2025
Opens
5 Apr 2026
Closes
120
Days open
11 ft
Annual snow
Getting there
Getting to Snow King Mountain, and where to stay
Snow King Mountain sits on the southeast edge of Jackson, Wyoming, close enough to downtown that it is known locally as 'the Town Hill.' Base elevation is 6,237 feet, with the summit reaching 7,808 feet across a 1,571-foot vertical drop. Unlike Jackson Hole's purpose-built Teton Village, Snow King's base sits within walking distance of Jackson's town square. The mountain looks directly down over the streets of Jackson below.
Jackson itself is the nearest town, effectively adjoining the ski area rather than requiring a separate drive. The town retains its Western character, with a historic square and elk antler arches, alongside its ski-tourism economy. Teton Village and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort sit roughly 12 miles northwest, a separate destination from Snow King within the same valley. Grand Teton National Park lies further north again, beyond both ski areas.
Local Jackson streets and Highway 89 provide direct access to Snow King's base, with no separate mountain access road required given its in-town location. This makes Snow King the most walkable ski area in the Jackson Hole valley, reachable on foot from many in-town lodging options. Winter driving within Jackson is generally well-managed given the volume of ski season traffic. No separate shuttle service is needed to reach Snow King from central Jackson, unlike the START bus required for Teton Village.
Jackson Hole Airport (JAC) is the nearest airport, roughly 10 miles from Snow King and inside Grand Teton National Park, closer to Snow King than to Teton Village given Snow King's in-town position. The airport offers seasonal service to roughly 20 cities during ski season. Idaho Falls Regional Airport offers an alternative around two hours away by road. No rail service reaches Jackson, and most visitors combine a Snow King visit with a stay in town rather than a separate airport transfer.
Where to stay
Search all stays →Hotels and lodges near Snow King Mountain, powered by Stay22.
Latest News
From the SnowStash desk
Thredbo to Replace Ageing Gunbarrel Quad With New Six-Seat Chairlift for 2028
Thredbo Alpine Resort has confirmed plans to replace its 37-year-old Gunbarrel quad chairlift with a new six-seat Doppelmayr D-Line, targeting winter 2028. The AUD 35 million project will keep travel time roughly the same but lift capacity from 2,800 to 3,000 skiers per hour. It's part of a broader investment push that also includes doubled snowmaking capacity at Friday Flat for 2027, with the ageing Kosciuszko Express now flagged as the resort's next major lift replacement after Gunbarrel.
31 Aug 2026
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28 Aug 2026
Why Glaciers Are Collapsing - And What Happens When They Do
A deadly flood on the Nepal-China border, a decade-old tragedy on Italy's Marmolada, and an unstable glacier right now above a village near Zermatt - three very different mountain ranges, the same underlying story. Warming ice is destabilising terrain that was considered settled for generations, and the results range from catastrophic floods to slow-motion monitoring situations that could go either way.
27 Aug 2026
Pitztal Glacier Set to Reopen for the 2026/27 Ski Season on 26 September
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26 Aug 2026
Unstable Glacier Above Randa Puts Zermatt-Area Village on Alert
A hanging glacier above the Swiss village of Randa, just south of Zermatt, has been shedding large chunks of ice for weeks, with authorities warning more break-offs are likely. A danger zone has been closed off since June, though officials say the village's 479 residents aren't at risk. It's a familiar pattern for this glacier - it's done this before, in 1819, 1972 and 1973 - but a reminder of how closely Alpine authorities now watch terrain once considered stable.
26 Aug 2026
Thredbo Is 'On the Table' as EVT Reviews Its Whole Business
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25 Aug 2026
Ski-E-O! Is the Ski Resort Tycoon Game We Didn't Know We Needed
I'm not a gamer. I'm a skier and snowboarder who happens to have a laptop. So when a ski resort management game called Ski-E-O! landed on Steam, I wasn't expecting to lose an afternoon to it - but here we are. Real mountain terrain, a full weather system, storms that roll in and wreck your snow base, avalanche danger, and enough depth to make RollerCoaster Tycoon feel simple by comparison. Early access lands in November. Here's what a few hours in the free demo actually looks like.
23 Aug 2026
Sugar Bowl, California, Rebuilds Its Historic Village Gondola
The rumours are true: Sugar Bowl is tearing out its Emerald gondola, in place since 1983, and replacing it with a new 8-person Doppelmayr system - nearly doubling uphill capacity to 1,800 people an hour. It's the fourth generation of a gondola line that dates back to 1953, when Sugar Bowl became the first resort on the West Coast to run one at all, and it's just one piece of a $100 million overhaul touching lodges, parking and snowmaking. Here's what's changing, and what's staying the same.
23 Aug 2026
Snow King Mountain Trail Map
Terrain split
34
runs
Beginner18%
Intermediate24%
Advanced40%
Expert18%
400 acres skiable162 hectares
Resort Stats
Elevation
Base6,237ft
Summit7,808ft
Annual snowfall
11ft
Season
2025 - 2026
6 Dec 2025 - 5 Apr 2026
Trail coverage
34 runs
400 acres (162 ha)
About Snow King Mountain's trail map
Explore Snow King Mountain's full trail map with 34 runs across the mountain, colour-coded by difficulty and shown alongside the terrain split. Use it to plan a day that matches your ability, find lift-served pockets of your favourite grade, and see how the resort links together. Download the piste map (PDF) ↗
More Snow King Mountain intelligence: snow report, lift system, webcams, resort overview.