Sipapu Ski & Summer Resort

Sipapu sits in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains beside the Rio Pueblo, on Carson National Forest land operated under a special-use permit. The official mountain figures put the base at 8,200 feet, the peak at 9,255 feet, and the vertical drop at 1,055 feet. Six lifts serve 215 skiable acres and 43 named trails. The lift mix is one quad, two triples, one platter, and two magic carpets.

The trail map divides the mountain into 20% beginner, 40% intermediate, 25% advanced, and 15% expert terrain. That is a broad middle rather than a beginner-only profile: intermediate runs form the largest single category, while advanced and expert terrain together account for two-fifths of the mountain. Sipapu specifically points to steeps and powder stashes above Lift 1 and promotes its tree skiing. Those areas still depend on natural coverage and current operations.

Official statistics list four terrain parks, while another resort overview describes three distinct parks. The safest planning description is three to four parks rebuilt seasonally, with the current park report deciding what is actually available. A separate proposal would replace Lift 3 and add a skier-services deck. It had been filed with the Forest Service by the July 21, 2026 source check, but remained a proposal rather than a completed or confirmed construction project.

Snowmaking uses a 20-gun fleet: 18 portable fan guns and two Lances. The resort says the system draws from the Rio Pueblo and returns 72% of that flow. Its usual production period runs from mid-October to mid-December, with January touch-ups. No official coverage percentage is published, so the system should not be translated into a promise about how much terrain will open early.

Sipapu promotes itself as New Mexico’s regular first opener and claims the state’s longest season, from November into April. The 2025–26 season shows why those claims need a weather caveat. Sipapu opened Friday, November 21, 2025 and described itself as the first New Mexico resort to begin that season. It then closed early in late March 2026. A planned March 29 Pond Skim was canceled for lack of snow, and the resort did not publish an exact closing date.

Taos News described that winter as the warmest in at least 131 years. The result does not erase Sipapu’s early-opening pattern, but it does show that neither an April target nor snowmaking guarantees a full late-season calendar. No 2026–27 operating dates had been announced as of July 21, 2026. Use the current conditions report and calendar rather than a standing slogan when choosing travel dates.

The resort publishes its rates, and they vary by date, age, and product through the season, so this guide does not reproduce a figure that would go stale. Check Sipapu’s official site for the rate that applies to the day you plan to ski.