While I love Wyoming's mountains, wide open spaces, wild animals and infinite skies, most of all I love the state's pretty much guaranteed white Christmases. Growing up in snow-starved Maryland, I remember only one white Christmas from my childhood. And that snow still managed to melt by mid-afternoon. The snowman my younger brother and I made lasted until the following day.
I've spent the near-decade I've been in the Cowboy State making up for lost Christmases: snowball fights, snow-fort building, romantic walks through peacefully falling snow, sledding, sleigh rides, skiing and any combination thereof. You would think I had exhausted all of the possible white-Christmas-related activities by now, but that's far from the case. So far in fact, I'm finally forcing my Maryland-based family to join me this year.
Since my small Jackson condo will be comfortably snug with my own nearest and dearest, here are some alternative places for you to stay across the state whether you come for Christmas itself or want to pretend any other time during the winter.
Brooks Lake Lodge, Dubois, Wyo.
Northwest Wyoming Brooks Lake Lodge photo courtesy of Brooks Lake Lodge
Not even the most perfect Christmas movie can live up to one spent at Brooks Lake Lodge. At 9,200 feet, with The Pinnacles, 2,000-foot cliffs of granite and gneiss, towering nearly half a vertical mile above, Brooks Lake Lodge has entertained dudes and adventurers since 1922. Peeking out of your lodge room, straining your neck to see the surrounding summits and fleshy clouds drifting above, you feel you're on the roof of the world. And then you can grab one of the lodge's snowmobiles, cross-country skis or snowshoes and traipse all around. For the truly brave, there's even ice fishing on frozen Brooks Lake and dog sledding in the surrounding national forest and wilderness.
To lure you back inside, there are four mammoth river-rock fireplaces, leather chairs and sofas that swallow you up, elk antler chandeliers, a wine list that would impress any sommelier, rooms and cabins named for the animals that frequent the area – moose, grizzly, elk, bison, and sheep – and health-conscious dishes made from wild game, fish, and vegetables Fed Ex'd in almost daily. And of course there is a live Christmas tree, usually no shorter than 20-feet, cut right from the surrounding forest. In past years, the lodge has even had some Wyoming-themed gifts to pass out to the kids.
Rusty Parrot, Jackson Hole
First floor king bedded room at the Rusty Parrot Lodge and Spa photo courtesy of Rusty Parrot
There's a reason Travel & Leisure readers ranked this small (31-room) lodge the number one hotel in North America. Actually, there are several reasons: swallowingly soft down comforters; an intimate spa; Italian-made Anchini linens;chichi country décor; made-to-order, extra-thick mattresses that kids, were they allowed (guests under the age of 12 are discouraged), would literally flip over; oversize jet tubs; wood-burning fireplaces; and a daily afternoon tea featuring the likes of almond shortbread and fruit crumbles.
Jackson's antler-arched Town Square – which Santa visits starting December 15 – is only a few blocks away and the lodge's concierge is happy to make reservations for a horse-drawn sleigh ride onto the nearby National Elk Refuge or offer advice on the best runs at the 20-minutes-away Jackson Hole Mountain Resort
Box Y, Alpine
Southwest Wyoming Box Y Lodge and Guest Ranch photo courtesy of Box Y
The Box Y, run by Cindy and Tim Haberberger with 10-year-old daughter Meagan weighing in on important matters like what constitutes the perfect Christmas tree, bills itself as "the world's most remote winter lodge and summer guest ranch." And it's no wonder. Come winter, the closest you can get to the place with a car is 30 miles. The final leg must be done via snowmobile (there is a groomed trail that goes right from a trailhead to the lodge). If you don't have your own – most Box Y winter guests do – Cindy arranges for you to rent one in Alpine, a tiny town at the bottom of the Snake River Canyon.
Once at the ranch, which is nestled in a grove of pine trees in between the Wyoming and Salt River Mountain Ranges (prime territory for snowmobiling, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing), the Haberbergers cater to Christmas guests who are mostly looking for a casual way to spend the holiday. There is a decorated tree, traditional Christmas meal (which can be taken at a group or more private table), the woodburning stoves are going and Meagan can show other kids the best places to sled, but no big fuss.
Grand Targhee, Alta
Northwest Wyoming Grand Targhee Resort photo courtesy of Grand Targhee Resort
There's no better place for the perfect Christmas ski trip. At Grand Targhee there is guaranteed to be snow, but not crowds. Only twice in the last 30 years has this resort not had 110 inches of snow by December 25. Its spare base area – there are only 72 rooms and condos – makes a crowd impossible.
Need more convincing? Santa visits any room he's requested to (parents, don't forget to request him!) either Christmas Eve or Christmas morning before hitting the slopes on Christmas Day. Carols at the base of the mountain follow a Christmas Eve torchlight parade, which guests of all ages can participate in, and holiday movies are shown nearly nonstop in the lodge throughout the season. Enjoy a gourmet dinner in a traditional Mongolian yurt accessible only by horse-drawn sleigh. Want a break from skiing Targhee's family-friendly terrain? Every day at 10 and 2, the resort's naturalist leads wildlife discovery snowshoe tours.
Vee Bar Guest Ranch and B&B, Centennial
Southeast Wyoming Vee Bar Guest Ranch and B&B photo courtesy of Vee Bar Guest Ranch
Technically, it's not possible to spend Christmas at the Vee Bar as it is closed from December 20 – 27. (The Coles, who have run the ranch and B&B for years, like their employees to spend the time with their families.) But hit the 100-some-year-old ranch, which happens to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places, just before or after and you can celebrate Christmas twice.
Celebrating Christmas at the Vee Bar means cabins on the banks of Little Laramie River; curling up in front of a giant (we're talking wide enough to consume a small car here) fireplace in the main lodge with a good book; homemade breads and a Western style dinner buffet; helping decorate the tree if you so desire; and close proximity to both a national forest (Medicine Bow National Forest) and an up-and-coming art town (Centennial). Go sledding in the morning – whether gravity or diesel-powered – and head to Centennial's art galleries for last-minute gifts in the afternoon.
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