Our experience at Lee Canyon
Las Vegas has a ski mountain that is only 45 mins away!! We love the fact that you can get to high altitude for skiing or for summer sports (that are out of the heat) in only 45 mins.
Lee Canyon is a small-ish ski resort North of the Las Vegas Strip. The last few miles of the drive can be tricky, and it may require chains or 4WD if there has been a recent storm. We usually take SR 156 into Lee Canyon, which I like, because it’s a slower gain on altitude without too many winding turns. There can be traffic on the way up the mountain, especially if it’s a sold-out day. It’s best to get there early to avoid crowds, but it can also be hit or miss.
We’ve rented kids skis in Las Vegas for the season before and have also done the rent-as-you-go method at Lee Canyon. If you rent skis at Lee Canyon I would book the appointment as early as you can to avoid crowds.
Lift tickets are super reasonable in advance as well as kids ski lessons. There have been several trips where we’ve put either one child or both children in lessons. It’s a great experience for them and for me personally it helps break up the day.
Early in the season they may not have much snow, but they blow it, so at a minimum usually some green runs are open and a blue. As more snow accumulates into winter, they open up more of the mountain. When fully open the mountain has 5 lifts and 29 trails. This is a great mountain to learn on and is family friendly for those winter weekends! Plus, there was a cute après vibe where you can have lunch, coffee, or happy hour. Sometimes there is a DJ with music. Very fun. Usually, we are wiped out when we leave so everyone sleeps well! I definitely recommend checking out Lee Canyon for skiing.
In the warmer months we have ventured up for the cooler temps and to do some hiking. In Lee Canyon we’ve explored the Lower Bristlecone Trail, which is close to the entrance of the ski resort. I believe there are some other nearby hiking trails as well. This is a good day trip activity. You could hike and have lunch on the mountain. I think they offer ski lift rides, but we didn’t do that on our visit. Also, there are mountain bike trails, which seems to be the main summer event, but we haven’t checked that out yet either. Either way, lots to do. Kyle Canyon offers lots of hiking too and is a short drive over from Lee Canyon.
Happy Trails exploring!