Many ski areas across Colorado have been eyeing this winter as a redemption from the one that just passed. It was a warm and dry season across many parts of North America, and several resorts saw shortened seasons for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports operations as a result. The hope is that El Niño will deliver above-average snowfall for 2026-2027 to make up for it all, but one very small ski area won’t have that chance after announcing they’ll shift to operating as a full-time music venue.
“Hoedown Hill will not offer skiing, snowboarding, or tubing this winter as the team
focuses on its entertainment calendar. Any future winter programming will be
announced as plans develop,” a press release reads from the Front Range venue.
Since 2024, ski area has hosted summer music festivals and free concert series with acts that included Third Eye Blind, Cold War Kids, Plain White T’s, Randy Houser, The Band Perry, Chris Lane, Asia featuring John Payne, Steve Augeri, Anna Avery, Dasha, and more.
“Music has always been the heartbeat of Hoedown Hill,” said Tyler Lind, CEO of
TWVC Hospitality. “Every festival, we’ve watched thousands of people come
together on this hill and have the time of their lives. That’s what Hoedown Hill
does best, so we’re going all in on it. We can’t wait to show Northern Colorado
what’s next.”
Hoedown Hill is no mega resort. According to the Denver Gazette, it maintains just 12 skiable acres that utilize carpet lifts. The hill has a vertical gain of about 120 feet with a tubing course that stretches about 1,100 feet in length. But public response to a post on social media announcing the change proved that Denver locals are going to miss skiing and snowboarding there.
“The snowboarding gave me hope for what this community could provide that was so unique and needed for us who live in the area and don’t have the money for the mountain resorts,” one person pointed out, referencing the affordable day passes at Hoedown Hill, which were priced at around $30 in 2026.
The announcement didn’t reference last season’s notably low snow totals for the decision, but a 2026 report with local CBS News acknowledged that the weather had negatively impacted winter sports operations.
“In all honesty, we probably shouldn’t have opened,” Tyler Lind, CEO of TWVC Hospitality, said at the time. “But more important than making money was to get it to the public.”
Lind told the outlet that operating snow guns in the unseasonably warm temperatures that last winter brought was counterproductive. Snow would either melt during the daytime and/or turn to ice at night, creating hazardous terrain.
