Stories from the hill
Real days on the mountain, new riding friends and ideas for your next trip. Explore firsthand stories and photos from the SkiBuds community.
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A dozen apps say they'll find you people to ski or snowboard with. What each one's store listing says it does and costs, why buddy apps so often feel empty, and the channels that work without an app.
Read story: Ski buddy apps: what you can download today, and what to check first
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Season: 2020/21
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Two weeks back in Colorado in January 2021: Vail laps with friends, Beaver Creek sunsets, a first slackcountry lap, trail-map gaiters and a Denver hotel clerk who already knew the app.
Read story: Back in Last Year's Stomping Grounds: Vail, Beaver Creek and Keystone in 2021
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Season: 2019/20
Spring slush on Gaper Day, 8 to 12 inches of June powder, a SkiBuds flag in the Columbia River Gorge and lift-status code written from a car: late-season riding on Mt. Hood in 2020.
Read story: Gaper Day and June Powder: Skiing Timberline on Mt. Hood in May and June 2020
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Season: 2019/20
Opening weekends, a free-beer hunt with clues in the app, all-day Peace Park laps with a rider met on SkiBuds, Dew Tour flags and a deep Copper day when the app hit 5,000 users: a Summit County winter at Copper and Breck.
Read story: Peace Park Laps and a Free-Beer Hunt: Copper Mountain and Breckenridge in 2019/20
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Season: 2018/19
Coding on the chairlift, Sapphire chutes before Blackcomb closed, a park channel, a pond skim, a bear under the lift and Spanky's Ladder on a powder day: Whistler Blackcomb through the SkiBuds archive.
Read story: Whistler Blackcomb Like a Local: Spanky's Ladder, Pond Skims and the Winter SkiBuds Was Built
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Season: 2019/20
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Flag rallies at Keystone, a barbecue at Vail, a four-hour I-70 crawl and dozens of first laps with strangers: what the 2019/20 SkiBuds season in Colorado taught us about meeting people to ride with.
Read story: Finding Ski Buddies in Colorado: A SkiBuds Season at Vail, Keystone and Copper
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Season: 2019/20
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Hobacks laps with a rider from the app, a birthday crew at Teton Village, beers and boots with two more strangers, and a flight out in a storm: a week of SkiBuds meetups at Jackson Hole.
Read story: Riding Jackson Hole With People You Just Met: SkiBuds Meetups in 2020
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Season: 2020/21
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A chance meeting in a long Heavenly lift line, storm laps at Kirkwood, a new hoodie at Homewood and a laptop in Reno: a winter of SkiBuds meetups around Lake Tahoe.
Read story: “No Way, I Used That App”: Finding Ski Buddies Around Lake Tahoe in 2021
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Seasons: 2019/20 and 2020/21
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Deep mornings, a flag at Chair 9, sunny December laps, whiteout storm days and a day when the highway closed: notes from SkiBuds seasons at Mt. Baker.
Read story: Mt. Baker Powder Days: Storms, Sunshine and Highway 542
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Season: 2020/21
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Shae and Larry on a December groomer day, Kevin from the app's Park City channel on a powder Tuesday, a tree-well warning and a backcountry day when the resort was full: SkiBuds at Park City in 2020/21.
Read story: Park City Powder Days With New Ski Buddies
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A cornhole game at Alyeska, a SkiBuds flag on a fishing boat in the Bering Sea, touring above Dutch Harbor and a return to Girdwood eight years later: the Alaska roots of SkiBuds.
Read story: Where SkiBuds Began: Alyeska, the Bering Sea and Alaska's Backcountry
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Seasons: 2019/20 and 2020/21
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Lockdown near Alta, a favorite backcountry day across the road, Snowbird laps with new friends and a spring of avalanche checks: what the SkiBuds archive shows about finding backcountry partners in Utah.
Read story: Checking the Avy Report: SkiBuds in Little Cottonwood and the Utah Backcountry
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Season: 2019/20
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A Whistler reunion with friends from Colorado, a glacier ice cave, a rider met through the app, and a run of last days at Kicking Horse and Lake Louise as the 2020 season shut down.
Read story: Chasing the End of the 2020 Season: Whistler, Kicking Horse and Lake Louise
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The last run is only the beginning. Share the stoke over hot chocolate, swap mountain stories, and make plans with new ski and snowboard friends.
Read story: What Is Après-Ski? A Relaxed Guide to Hanging Out After the Lifts
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Yes, a few small ski dating apps exist. Why none of them is big, why the practical route is a big app with the mountain in your profile, and what SkiBuds is for.
Read story: Is there a dating app for skiers? A few, but SkiBuds isn't one
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I moved to Colorado with one friend and met more than 60 people through SkiBuds. Meeting people is the easy part. What to count instead, how many ski days a friendship takes, and the text to send after a good day.
Read story: How to make friends in a ski town, and how many ski days it takes
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The saying is right about the bottom of the lift and wrong about the trees. A five-minute rule for the base, a one-second test for tree runs, and a message to send your crew tonight.
Read story: No friends on a powder day? It depends where they're waiting
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A chair is a seat nobody can leave until the top. That one fact explains the etiquette, from backpacks to the safety bar, and why the lift is the easiest place on the mountain to talk to a stranger.
Read story: Chairlift etiquette: how to share a seat nobody can leave
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I rode 153 days in 2018/19 from a four-bed dorm in Whistler. Settle the room, the work and the date your money runs out before the pass, with a worked example and an exit plan.
Read story: How to do a ski season: the date that matters more than the pass deadlinePublished
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Skiing alone isn't weird. The lift seats you beside strangers on the way up, and nobody is beside you on the way down. The SkiBuds founder on planning a solo day for both halves.
Read story: Skiing alone: company on the way up, nobody on the way downPublished
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The SkiBuds app is still coming soon. This fall the website gained a guide for each of the 116 supported mountains, a free meetup planner and carpool cost calculator, region guides and a ski and snowboard glossary.
Read story: SkiBuds Launch Update: Fall 2026Published
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The rebuilt SkiBuds app is coming soon. Until then, the website has mountain forecasts, a first-meetup checklist and ski club resources.
Read story: SkiBuds Launch Updates: Q3 2026
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From a four-bed dorm in Whistler to meeting more than 100 riders: my March 2021 account of building the original SkiBuds app and asking the community for help.
Read story: History, Vision, Future of SkiBuds (and why I need your help)
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Erin Hogan on building Alaska's Hatcher Pass road gap: weeks of trucking in snow and covering car-sized boulders, a first hit sent too hard, then an Indy over a passing Ford Explorer.
Read story: Hatcher Pass Canyon Gap
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Matt Liapis explains the mapping work behind Ski Maps, from lift alignments and contour lines to boundaries, terrain features and offline use.
Read story: Not your typical trail map
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Francesca Jacquez describes her first backcountry season from Bend: learning to skin uphill, finding patient partners and working through tight trees.
Read story: First Year Splitboarding In Bend Oregon
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Bernardette Hernández's four-posture sequence for comfortable hip mobility, with practical modifications for an at-home practice.
Read story: Yoga for Snowboarding/ Skiing
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Michael Golston on why there is little real teaching at 20 months: the work is in the preparation, and the day ends when his daughter has had enough.
Read story: Teaching a 20 Month Old How to Snowboard