2019 Feb-23 to Mar-5 Colorado Raod Trip
2019.02.24 - Copper
2019.02.25 - El Dora
2019.02.26 - rest&relo
2019.02.27 - ASPEN-Snowmass
2019.02.28 - ASPEN-Highlands
2019.02.29 - rest&recover
2019.03.01 - ASPEN-Ajax and ASPEN-Buttermilk powder day
2019.03.02 - ASPEN-Snowmass powder day
this fateful whirlwind roadtrip started with a flight in to Denver, and a drive first to Summit County for one day each at Copper and El Dora, then on to ASPEN..
2019.02.24 Copper Mtn
First day of the Colorado tour was at Copper Mountain.
Copper has everything..
big villages and beginner areas for the the family. Their terrain is naturally divided such that most of the green runs are on the west face and most of the black runs on the east. This helps avoid congestion, because the learners are on another part of the mountain.
high-speed lifts and old-fashioned fixed grips, a surface tow, free cat rides
high-alpine terrain above the tree-line, including blue and even green ways around. If you want to try high-alpine bowl skiing, and don’t yet have advanced skills, Copper is my best recommendation. (Breck does have blue terrain on peak 6).
wide open free parking lots with standing bus shuttle service to three villages (we get off at the east village)
2410 ft continuous vertical with diamonds top to bottom
back bowls and back bowls for days
tree skiing
terrain park with huge features
easy access on I-70
The only flaw the locals tend to over-run the place and track and pack all the snow quickly. As eastern skiers we can handle this, but I do prefer more fresh powder than what I’ve come to expect at Copper. The average here is about 300 in/yr, not bad, but noticeably less than the 500 annual inches in the Utah cottonwoods. But you can count on Copper to have good coverage from late November thru later March, at least, with plenty of good spring blizzards after that.
check out this animated assembly of images and video clips from the day…
Amelia skis the high-alpine back bowls above the tree line. Near base of the Mountain Chief lift, descending to cat loading area
We had skied Copper before, but in late December and early January, by which time the snowpack had not grown sufficiently to open the outermost bowls.
Before Aspen, we had two ski days to spend in Summit County. This year we hit Eldora because we hadn’t been there before (not likely to go back soon)
and also to Copper to get up into that late-February snowpack.
I wanted to get to all the outermost bowls, especially the Tucker bowl (or, as I like to call it, the Corin Tucker bowl)
The last leg of the journey was hiking to the peak at over 12,000 ft
Copper offers free cat rides. Amelia used her charms to get us up higher… we even passed the last crew of hikers on the way up. bazinga.
video >>
Tucker Peak at Copper Mountain CO
StormKing Surface Lift Video
grab hold and don't let go, as you take a ride up the surface lift into the clouds -- of course, let a hand loose to handle the camera
2019.02.25 Eldora
It was a long winding drive from Silver Plume to Eldora
2019.02.26 rest and relocate
The trip to Aspen included a lot of scenery new to us. One of the most memorable features was the Glenwood Canyon along I-70
Lunch in Frisco (big bowl from Whole Foods salad bar)
scroll thru the gallery below to check it out
2019.02.27 Snowmass
Amelia skis Snowmass terrain park
like a boss
click play to watch video below
Play park.
play video below to follow Amelia thru the winter-fantasy park at Snowmass
uphill hike to get into this area. untracked as a result.
2019.02.27 after a long day at Snowmass, we had a delicious dinner at the Pyramid Nutritarian Bistro in Aspen Village
2019.03.02 Aspen Ajax and Buttermilk
in aspen village
The original Aspen mountain was what we now call “Ajax”. It’s the one right in your face when downtown.
The neighboring three resorts (Snowmass, Highlands, Buttermilk) joined the current collective branded as ASPEN SNOWMASS
Buttermilk is a training mountain. Almost all young learners.
Ajax (Aspen mtn) is mostly intermediate to expert (blue to single black)
HIghlands is advanced and expert terrain with a blue (intermediate) main drag top to bottom over 3500 vertical ft
Snowmass is big. over 4000 vertical ft (life served) and an on-site mall. It has plenty of terrain for all skill levels, although nothing extreme in bound. The perfect family destination mountain.
powder day at ajax, looking down at aspen village
Insider tip: the lifts here are kind of hard to get to. The downtown bus stop is probably best, leaving a short walk to the slopes. Parking is Aspen is a hassle, but you can park for free in the Buttermilk lot, and take a shuttle to any of the other destinations. Snowmass has its own lots, but for HIghlands and downtown, park at Buttermilk and continue by shuttle
Play the video below to see Joel’s trip to Ajax
mid-day I ate lunch in the car (leftovers from the Pyramid nutritarian bistro)
then shuttled over to Buttermilk for some after-noon mild runs
play the video below to see Joel’s visit to Buttermilk…
Joel joins ski school!
well, follows the class for a moment
Joel's visit to Buttermilk, part 2, on the slopes
play the video below to join the procession…
Aspen village
looking down-valley towards Aspen down-town
pretty sure this one’s at snowmass. had a big powder day after the incident.
looking down from Buttermilk at Aspen valley
view of the valley from the top of Buttermilk east summit at 9270 ft.
slopes of HIghlands in background
bus stop at Aspen village. If you ski Aspen but dont stay downtown, any of the local buses can get you here,. short walk (~1000 ft horizontal over flat ground) to the lifts. Park at buttermilk, take free bus here, walk to lifts. likely best way to ski ajak on a budget.
Aspen Village
Aspen village
the walk from various parking lots the lifts at Aspen downtown. Since the bus stops at mid-town station, be ready for a short walk from whatever starting point (unless you have expensive ski-in/ski-out access in one of the slope-side hotels.
Aspen village
aspen village ski storage
view from atop Buttermilk
on summit express chair. passing into ‘Lover’s Lane” area
Buttermilk