Yampatika Winter programs are here, trekking in guided snowshoe and ski tours.

Over the past week with the arrival of snow in the Yampa Valley, Yampatika has begun all of its winter programming. Yampatika is a nonprofit that promotes outdoor and environmental education through camps and year-round programming.

The winter programs are in full swing and filling up quickly. Two classic mainstays of the schedule are the Uranium Mine and Howelsen Hill tours.

The Uranium Mine tours start at the Fish Creek Falls trailhead. They run every Friday from now until March 11, beginning at 10 a.m. Registration is required and costs $20, which includes a snowshoe rental.

At a cost of $25, the Howelsen snowshoe tour is also extremely popular, and interested parties should register early. The tour begins at 10 a.m. every Saturday through March 12 and takes participants above the oldest continuously operating ski area in North America. Weather permitting, the hike features a ride on the chairlift.

Also back is Ski with a Naturalist, a free, walk-in program at Steamboat Resort. The tour takes place every Tuesday and Thursday through March 10, beginning at 1:30 p.m. at the top of the gondola.

It’s generally a quieter program, which is why Lexi Stine, director of Adult Programs at Yampatika, enjoys it so much. The tour travels down “Why Not,” a green trail that winds down the mountain past old bear dens and claw marks.

“I love Ski with a Naturalist,” Stine said. “It’s a great time of day to take a break. It’s 1:30 p.m. in the day; you’ve been skiing all morning. … It’s just a really fun program. It’s usually a little more quiet, which is kind of nice because you get this one-on-one experience with a naturalist.”

New to the program in the 2021-22 season is the Mountain Side Snowshoe Tour at the Steamboat Ski Touring Center.

The two-hour tour utilizes the trails at the touring center not far from downtown. This would be a great option for beginners or those coming from lower elevations.

The Steamboat Ski Touring Center offers snowshoe rentals, which can be used on-site or anywhere in the valley.

Another kid-friendly and beginner-friendly option is the Winter Wander, Discover Snowshoeing tour based at the Yampatika Legacy Ranch. There’s no elevation gain, but there are sweeping views of the valleys. It’s open every Saturday until March 12.

Programs fill up, but Stine always suggests people add themselves to the waitlist since cancellations are common. For private tours or information on any winter program, Yampatika.org/winter-programs.

Additionally, there are less-frequent special programs, including moonlight snowshoe tours, snowshoe through history and winter landscape photography tours.

Love Climbing Adventures also offers snowshoeing and skiing tours, as well as ice climbing tours, guiding newbies and seasoned climbers up Fish Creek Falls. Availability and booking can be found at SteamboatClimbing.com.

Shelby Reardon is the assistant editor at the Steamboat Pilot & Today. To reach her, call 970-871-4253, email sreardon@SteamboatPilot.com or follow her on Twitter @ByShelbyReardon.