Does anyone have any ideas on places where one can go in February in the western US where one can do outdoor winter activities besides ski? Skiing would also be nice, but I would prefer to go to a place that allows more activities than just skiing.

When you say 'Winter Activities' do you specifically mean cold-weather activities?

If not, then there is a lot you can do in Texas, Arizona, Southern California, etc. in mild weather in the sun.

I'm sure others will elaborate more.

Gordon,

The place to go is Lake Tahoe there are a multitude of acitivites besides skiing. We were there for a week on honymoon and had a blast. Only ski'd one day. Went snowmobiling and that was more fun that we ever had skiing. Also casino's, lake cruises, gondola to top of mountain at Squaw for ice skating tc.vacation

Jackson Hole, Wyoming is one of my favorite places anywhere. The scenery is breathtaking. The restaurants are good. The traffic is not unbearable. Yellowstone is an hour and a half away. Parts of Yellowstone are closed in the Winter. Check with the Park. Downtown Jackson Hole has many wonderful shops. There are many towns close to Jackson Hole. Idaho has many ski resorts. There are several web sites. www.jacksonhole.com is one. If you search Jackson Hole on any search engine, you will find a lot of information. Have fun on your trip.

Jackson Hole, Wyoming is one of my favorite places anywhere. The scenery is breathtaking. The restaurants are good. The traffic is not unbearable. Yellowstone is an hour and a half away. Parts of Yellowstone are closed in the Winter. Check with the Park. Downtown Jackson Hole has many wonderful shops. There are many towns close to Jackson Hole. Idaho has many ski resorts. There are several web sites. www.jacksonhole.com is one. If you search Jackson Hole on any search engine, you will find a lot of information. Have fun on your trip.

Consider Salt Lake City , www.visitsaltlake.com

Agree on Salt Lake area. Can sightsee by day, theater at night, and go back up the mountains whenever.

Would definitely second Tahoe: skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, hiking, iceskating, hottubbing, tubing, that great gondola ride Greg mentioned, bungee jumping right on the edge of a cliff, plus Reno's not too far away if you want to do some gambling. Squaw and Northstar seemed to have the greatest variety of sports but are also the most crowded (I haven't been to the South so don't know about Heavenly, etc.). You could also look into Santa Fe/Taos, which offers almost all of the above plus some world-class art museums and galleries and fabulous native american sights. And I'm not sure but I think Sundance might take place in February, so you could try Park City, Utah and add celebrity spotting and film viewing to your list of activities.

Anyone been to The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs? They are (or were) especially big on ice skating...

For the best winter wonderland vacation, head to West Yellowstone, MT. Go snowmobiling in Yellowstone NP or in the National Forest. The park opens about a week before Christmas for snowmobiling and cross-country skiers. You can also take a old fashioned "motor coach" tour. You'll see lots of wildlife in the park and scenery. Snowmobile in the National Forest and experience true snowmobiling. One hour north is Big Sky, MT - great sking there. Hurry and hit Yellowstone now before they close the park to snowmobiliers. We rented from Rendezvous Rental. They have nice new machines each winter season. W. Yellowstone has plenty of Hotels and Cabins, and B&B's. It's a great trip that you'll always remember.