Silverton in Winter: Skiing, Ice & the Quiet Season

Ride the train up in July and Silverton looks like everyone's postcard of a Colorado mining town. Show up in January and you get the town without the filter. Snow sits past your knees on the side streets. Half the storefronts go dark. The population drops back to a few hundred people who actually live here year-round.

That version of Silverton is not a lesser one. It has a family ski hill at Kendall Mountain and one of the most serious expert mountains in North America a few miles up the road. It has a horse-and-ski race down the middle of Blair Street every February. And it has a stretch of US-550 that decides for itself, most winters, whether you are getting through at all. Here is what actually happens in Silverton, Colorado once the snow settles in — the skiing, the ice, the honest state of the highway, and where to sleep once you commit to staying over.

What's actually open in Silverton in winter?

Less than in July, and that is worth saying plainly. The Old Hundred mine tour and the Mayflower Mill both close for the season. The Alpine Loop sits under ten feet of snow. Several shops on Greene Street go dark for weeks.

But "closed for winter" is not the same as "closed." Silverton's real off-season is narrower than people assume. It falls in November and April — the gap between the fall shoulder and the snow settling in, then again between the thaw and summer staffing up. Through the core of winter, December into March, the town keeps functioning. Restaurants and bars stay open on and off Greene Street. The grocery store runs its normal hours. A ski hill operates inside the town limits. It is a smaller Silverton, not a shuttered one. Check specific hours before you drive up — small operations here run tight schedules, and a phone call beats a guess.

Getting to Silverton in winter

One thing changes before any of the skiing does. The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad does not run its full route to town in winter. It swaps to a shorter Cascade Canyon round trip out of Durango instead, so riding the train to Silverton is a summer-and-fall plan, not a winter one. That leaves US-550 as the only way in, which makes the highway section below required reading. Weighing Silverton against other cold-weather options nearby? Our day trips from Durango guide covers the wider loop.

Kendall Mountain: the family hill nobody skis past

Kendall Mountain Ski Area sits at the edge of town. It exists for a different reason than most Colorado ski areas: keeping local kids on skis without a two-hour drive or a mortgage payment for a lift ticket. The whole operation covers 16 acres — half of it rated for beginners, another 40 percent intermediate — with a base around 9,300 feet and a summit just under 9,600. That is a vertical drop measured in a few hundred feet, not a few thousand.

That is the entire point. Day tickets here have historically run well under what a single lift ride costs at the state's big resorts. A tubing area runs alongside the ski slopes for kids who are done with edges and turns for the day. Opening is tied to natural snowfall — Kendall typically aims for mid-December but pushes the date back if the snow has not shown up — so confirm current status before you build a day around it.

Silverton Mountain: the other end of the spectrum

A few miles up the highway, Silverton Mountain is Kendall's opposite in every way that matters. One chairlift. No groomed runs. Avalanche gear required at the door. Terrain that ranges from serious to genuinely dangerous. This is not a place to learn to ski — it is a place experienced skiers and riders go specifically because almost nowhere else in North America offers lift-served terrain this raw.

The season runs in two pieces. Guided operations carry the bulk of winter, required through most of the season, with a heli-ski add-on for skiers who want to go past even Silverton Mountain's own boundary. A short unguided window opens in the final weeks of spring — typically a few weeks in March and April — when season-pass holders and unguided-ticket buyers get the mountain without a guide. Confirm the current season structure and dates directly with Silverton Mountain before you plan around either format.

Silverton Skijoring: the town's biggest winter weekend

If one event defines winter in Silverton, it is skijoring — a sport that sounds invented until you watch it happen. A horse and rider gallop down closed-off Blair Street towing a skier on a rope, through gates and over jumps, at speeds well past highway pace. A lineup of Silverton institutions presents it each year, among them the narrow gauge railroad, Golden Block Brewery, and the Grand Imperial Hotel. Thousands of spectators show up in a town whose year-round population is a few hundred people.

The event lands on Blair Street annually, typically in mid-February, with a full weekend of racing plus food, shopping, and general commotion around it. If your trip can flex to hit it, build the whole visit around that weekend. Book lodging early — this is the one weekend a year Silverton genuinely fills up in winter.

Ice climbing and snowmobiling beyond the lifts

Skiing is not the only reason serious winter athletes drive to Silverton. A few miles up the valley near Eureka, the backcountry ice draws climbers from well outside Colorado — frozen waterfalls and alpine ice routes that guided outfitters based in Ouray and Silverton run trips into all winter. This is technical terrain, not a walk-up activity. Go with a guide unless you already climb ice regularly.

Snowmobiling is the more accessible option. San Juan County carries roughly 150 miles of trail, groomed and backcountry both, maintained by the Silverton Snowmobile Club and starting around 10,000 feet before climbing well past 13,000. Guided outfitters run everything from two-hour intro rides to full-day trips into terrain most visiting riders would never find alone. Rental operators in town can set up gear for anyone arriving without a sled.

Winter activities at a glance

| Activity | Who it's for | Rough cost | |---|---|---| | Kendall Mountain skiing/tubing | Beginners, families, kids | Day tickets well under $30 | | Silverton Mountain (guided) | Advanced/expert skiers and riders | Guided day rates; heli add-ons extra | | Silverton Mountain (unguided, spring) | Expert pass holders | Season pass or unguided ticket | | Ice climbing near Eureka | Experienced climbers, guided beginners | Guided day-trip pricing | | Snowmobiling (guided tour) | Most fitness levels, no experience needed | Two-hour to full-day guided rates | | Skijoring weekend (spectating) | Everyone | Free to watch on Blair Street |

Confirm current pricing directly with each operator. None of it holds steady year to year.

Is the Million Dollar Highway open in winter?

Usually, but not always. The honest answer depends on which stretch you mean. US-550 south of Silverton, over Coal Bank Pass (10,640 feet) and Molas Pass (10,910 feet), stays open more reliably through winter — CDOT plows it as a priority route, and closures there tend to be short.

North of town is a different story. Red Mountain Pass (11,018 feet) toward Ouray is the stretch people actually mean when they say "Million Dollar Highway." It is also the one CDOT closes outright during high avalanche danger. Closures sometimes run the better part of a day while crews work the slide paths above the road.

Colorado runs two tiers of winter driving rules that both apply here. The Traction Law kicks in during ordinary adverse conditions and requires four-wheel or all-wheel drive with adequate tread, or chains. The Passenger Vehicle Chain Law is the harder version — chains or an alternate traction device on two or more drive tires — and it is the state's last step before closing the road outright. If you see it posted on 550, conditions are genuinely bad.

Practical version: check current conditions with the Colorado Department of Transportation before you leave Durango or Ouray. Carry chains even with four-wheel drive. Do not push through Red Mountain Pass after dark or mid-storm. Coal Bank and Molas are the dependable way in from the south; Red Mountain to the north is the one that closes.

Where to stay overnight

Silverton's motels do not scale up for a big weekend the way a chain hotel district would, so book earlier than feels necessary — especially around Skijoring. Three properties anchor the walkable core:

• Kendall Mountain Lodge, 1025 Blair Street — named for the peak, and about as close as lodging gets to the ski hill itself. If a day at Kendall is the plan, this is the practical pick: renovated rooms on Silverton's historic, quieter street, an easy walk back after a cold afternoon on the tubing hill.
• Triangle Motel, 848 Greene Street — pet-friendly with an ADA-accessible room, and set up for anyone arriving with gear. A sled on a trailer. Skis strapped to a roof rack. A dog that has been in the car since Durango. It sits next to a fuel-and-supply stop, which matters more in winter than summer.
• Prospector Motel, 1015 Greene Street — twelve renovated ground-level rooms and a straightforward walk to Greene Street's restaurants and bars. The most budget-friendly of the three, and the uncomplicated choice when the trip is about the mountain, not the room.

For the full rundown of Silverton lodging — how the two streets differ, when to book, which property fits which trip — see our where to stay in Silverton guide.

Practical notes for a winter trip

• Altitude plus cold is a real combination. Silverton sits above 9,300 feet, and winter cold makes dehydration easier to miss. Drink more water than feels necessary and ease into the first day.
• Cell service is unreliable on both approaches. Download directions, reservations, and road-condition pages before you leave Durango or Ouray.
• Layer for a town with almost no indoor buffer. Many buildings here are a century old, so dress for the outdoor temperature even when headed inside.
• Call ahead for anything you're counting on. Small-town winter hours shift with staffing and weather more than a posted schedule suggests.

Common questions

Is Silverton, Colorado open in winter? Mostly, yes — smaller than you'd find it in July, but nowhere near shut down. The real dead zone is November and April, not the deep winter; from December through March you'll still find a working grocery store, a handful of restaurants, and a ski hill running inside the town limits.

Is the Million Dollar Highway open in winter? Usually, at least the Coal Bank and Molas Pass stretch south of town, which CDOT plows as a priority route. The piece that actually shuts down from time to time is Red Mountain Pass, north toward Ouray, where avalanche control can close the road for hours. Check current conditions before you commit to that direction.

Can beginners ski in Silverton? Yes. Kendall Mountain is the small hill at the edge of town, built for families and beginners. Silverton Mountain is the opposite — expert-only, avalanche gear required.

When is Silverton Skijoring? Annually on Blair Street, typically in mid-February. It is the single biggest winter weekend the town sees, and lodging books up accordingly.

Does the train run to Silverton in winter? Not the full route — the Durango & Silverton switches to a shorter Cascade Canyon round trip that turns back well before town. Coming to Silverton itself between November and April means driving US-550, not riding the rails.

Do I need four-wheel drive to visit Silverton in winter? Strongly recommended, along with chains, on US-550 regardless of which direction you come from. Check conditions and the day's traction-law status before you leave.

Is Silverton worth visiting in winter, or should I stick to summer? It is a different trip, not a lesser one — thinner crowds, real skiing at both ends of the skill spectrum, and a town that feels like an actual mountain community. For more of what the season offers down valley, pair it with a night or two based around Durango in winter.

Silverton's summer self gets the postcard. Its winter self gets the skiing, the ice, and the version of the town that only a few hundred people see for months at a time. Our things to do in Silverton guide covers the rest of what the town offers once the snow melts. Book the room, check the pass conditions the morning you leave, and go find out which season you like more.