Ski Season 2020/2021

[MoJames 8,244]

17 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Wolf Creek slams and goes hard with snow... just seems like they close somewhat early due to low skier numbers.  We'll see.  Got to get the guys to stop "thinking about it".  Just saw Copper Mountain is looking at around April 24th.

 

Also, buddy who knows more outside of Colorado - Suggested Mt. Hood or maybe Mammoth.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

4 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Breck is the highest resort in the lower 48 so that might be an option.  Doesn't guarantee snow, but you have a better shot at colder temps keeping snow on the hill a little longer.  We'll be skiing from Maine down thru Vt. first 10 days of April.

A-Basin's base is at almost 11k feet.  Breck is 9600.  That's why A-Basin is always the last resort in CO to close for the year.

[JCHIL 414]

The 10 highest Ski Resorts in North America

	Name	Elevation
1.	Silverton Mountain	13487.01 ft
2.	Telluride	13150 ft
3.	Arapahoe Basin	13050 ft
4.	Loveland	13010.01 ft
5.	Breckenridge	12998 ft
6.	Aspen Snowmass	12509.84 ft
7.	Taos Ski Valley	12481 ft
8.	Copper Mountain	12440.95 ft
9.	Keystone	12408.01 ft
10.	Crested Butte	12162.01 ft

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

2 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

A-Basin's base is at almost 11k feet.  Breck is 9600.  That's why A-Basin is always the last resort in CO to close for the year.

Thanks, yeah for some reason when you google highest resort A basin doesn't come up, but I guess cause it's technically not a resort ?

I'm ashamed to say I haven't hit A basin yet.  Probably should do it in March when we're back at Breck.  They've been open into July if memory serves.

[MoJames 8,244]

4 minutes ago, JCHIL said:

The 10 highest Ski Resorts in North America

	Name	Elevation
1.	Silverton Mountain	13487.01 ft
2.	Telluride	13150 ft
3.	Arapahoe Basin	13050 ft
4.	Loveland	13010.01 ft
5.	Breckenridge	12998 ft
6.	Aspen Snowmass	12509.84 ft
7.	Taos Ski Valley	12481 ft
8.	Copper Mountain	12440.95 ft
9.	Keystone	12408.01 ft
10.	Crested Butte	12162.01 ft

You plan on skinning up or just going to hike?

[texasdago 7,573]

I think that list shows the peak of each resort.  A-Basin is at 10,780 so, yeah, it generally gets good snow and holds it.  I've skied it at the end of May with a glorious base.  Monarch is just as high and Wolf Creek is in the 10K+ range.  Ski Santa Fe has a really high base but their snow sucks.

[Johnny Chimpo 478]

On 2/9/2022 at 10:21 AM, Upgrayedd said:

Mammoth 

This is the correct answer for April skiing. I’ve had such good corn snow spring skiing in May at Mammoth that I was doing laps dropping the double black lines off the top while rocking athletic shorts and sunglasses. 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Johnny Chimpo

[JCHIL 414]

How about Heli-skiing in Alaska😀? Their heli season is just now starting and April is prime.  The corn snow skiing lasts until late June and early July

Me ripping some corn 

[Brew 3,049]

On 2/9/2022 at 12:01 PM, JCHIL said:

The 10 highest Ski Resorts in North America

	Name	Elevation
1.	Silverton Mountain	13487.01 ft
2.	Telluride	13150 ft
3.	Arapahoe Basin	13050 ft
4.	Loveland	13010.01 ft
5.	Breckenridge	12998 ft
6.	Aspen Snowmass	12509.84 ft
7.	Taos Ski Valley	12481 ft
8.	Copper Mountain	12440.95 ft
9.	Keystone	12408.01 ft
10.	Crested Butte	12162.01 ft

Things you learn on here, I always thought Loveland was the highest in that area. We had a great time skiing it two years ago for a day, although you better be prepared to walk/climb to ski the upper areas of it unless you can grab a ride on the Ridge Cat which was different. There was virtually no one there and the drive up has some great scenery.

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

22 hours ago, texasdago said:

I think that list shows the peak of each resort.  A-Basin is at 10,780 so, yeah, it generally gets good snow and holds it.  I've skied it at the end of May with a glorious base.  Monarch is just as high and Wolf Creek is in the 10K+ range.  Ski Santa Fe has a really high base but their snow sucks.

Yeah the highest peak at Breck is above that (with a boot pack above that if you want), and is often wind swept, and closed because of that a lot.

[texasdago 7,573]

1 hour ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Yeah the highest peak at Breck is above that (with a boot pack above that if you want), and is often wind swept, and closed because of that a lot.

I was referring to the base.  A-Basin is 1,000 feet higher but damn Breck is for sure high for such a big mountain.  What's funny is one of my favorite resorts in Europe is a place called Obergurgl... base elevation is 1,930 Meters or about 6,300 feet.  In the Alps that's considered high because the weather is just a different story there... it has a nice vertical of 4,200 feet with most of it above treeline.  You can go to places like Les Grands Montets where the base is relatively low at 1,252 meters (about 4,100 feet) but that mountain from the top of the second cable car (one they finish rebuilding it) is F'ing 6,600 vertical feet.  It will make you cry its so beautiful... and the crazy part is all of that amazing mountain and its glaciers is essentially lower than A-Basin's base.  

[texasdago 7,573]

1 minute ago, texasdago said:

I was referring to the base.  A-Basin is 1,000 feet higher but damn Breck is for sure high for such a big mountain.  What's funny is one of my favorite resorts in Europe is a place called Obergurgl... base elevation is 1,930 Meters or about 6,300 feet.  In the Alps that's considered high because the weather is just a different story there... it has a nice vertical of 4,200 feet with most of it above treeline.  You can go to places like Les Grands Montets where the base is relatively low at 1,252 meters (about 4,100 feet) but that mountain from the top of the second cable car (one they finish rebuilding it) is F'ing 6,600 vertical feet.  It will make you cry its so beautiful... and the crazy part is all of that amazing mountain and its glaciers is essentially lower than A-Basin's base.  

Top to bottom is boner inducing... just stay on the tracked runs or go with a guide... https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/two-british-skiers-killed-in-cliff-fall-after-going-off-piste-hv886z5mr

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

12 minutes ago, texasdago said:

I was referring to the base.  A-Basin is 1,000 feet higher but damn Breck is for sure high for such a big mountain.  What's funny is one of my favorite resorts in Europe is a place called Obergurgl... base elevation is 1,930 Meters or about 6,300 feet.  In the Alps that's considered high because the weather is just a different story there... it has a nice vertical of 4,200 feet with most of it above treeline.  You can go to places like Les Grands Montets where the base is relatively low at 1,252 meters (about 4,100 feet) but that mountain from the top of the second cable car (one they finish rebuilding it) is F'ing 6,600 vertical feet.  It will make you cry its so beautiful... and the crazy part is all of that amazing mountain and its glaciers is essentially lower than A-Basin's base.  

Oh yeah, I got that. I'm embarrassed I haven't hit A Basin yet, going back in March so I want to hit it for a day then

[texasdago 7,573]

1 minute ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Oh yeah, I got that. I'm embarrassed I haven't hit A Basin yet, going back in March so I want to hit it for a day then

Its awesome - you'll enjoy it.

[Brew 3,049]

19 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

Oh yeah, I got that. I'm embarrassed I haven't hit A Basin yet, going back in March so I want to hit it for a day then

Last time we went to A-Basin it was completely iced over and it was not enjoyable on their terrain. Need to give it another shot as that year was garbage everywhere. We generally stay around Silverthorne and then hop mountains a couple of days at a time. The convenience of ski in/out is nice, but we’ve been in the area so many times we’ve found it to be a better guys trip to mountain hop and mix in a snowmobile ride in the middle somewhere. 

Booked a Copper trip for Spring Break to get my youngest out on a board at least one more time this year. It’s still my favorite mountain in the area. Low crowds, variable terrain for everyone, east to navigate, easy access, etc.

[texasdago 7,573]

Copper is a great mountain

[Chewbacca 7,780]

Copper is a great mountain

Copper and WP are my 2 favorite mountains near Denver. Love them both.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

Copper was the first place I went out west.  It's an incredibly well laid out mountain that's easy to navigate has a natural order to the difficulty of the terrain, and has proper lift capacity.  Always thought it was a little underrated.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

27 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

Copper was the first place I went out west.  It's an incredibly well laid out mountain that's easy to navigate has a natural order to the difficulty of the terrain, and has proper lift capacity.  Always thought it was a little underrated.

I think Copper has always flown a bit under the radar because it's not as resort-y as Breck or Vail.  It's got some resort stuff, but not on their level.  Not nearly as many good dining options, either, although Frisco is only 10 min away.

[Brew 3,049]

Copper always felt more like a locals mountain to me. In the bars after hours, it always seems to be people that live around there and drive in to ski for the day. People flying in either stop at Breck or continue on to Vail because of the amenities. When we stayed in Copper, we always just drove over to Frisco a couple of times to eat, because it is pretty limited on the mountain. When they converted the main lot at the base area to a $50 a day reserved lot, it made it much easier to drive in and out and not have to park out at the far off lots and bus in. You can also just take the local bus out of Frisco, but I’ll pay the $50 and park close.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

7 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

I think Copper has always flown a bit under the radar because it's not as resort-y as Breck or Vail.  It's got some resort stuff, but not on their level.  Not nearly as many good dining options, either, although Frisco is only 10 min away.

That's kind of what I always figured.  There isn't a town there, so you just have the resort's own amenities.

Lots of good memories of riding the old A lift area with my dad and brother on powder days.  Normally we stayed away from the slow 2 man chairs, but you needed that recovery ride to keep going.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

I honestly kind of hate the lay out of Breck.  We'll go there for a day on our March trip because my wife and MIL want to hang out in the town, and it's part of our pass, but I'm much more looking forward to the Vail and Keystone days.

[texasdago 7,573]

5 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

That's kind of what I always figured.  There isn't a town there, so you just have the resort's own amenities.

Lots of good memories of riding the old A lift area with my dad and brother on powder days.  Normally we stayed away from the slow 2 man chairs, but you needed that recovery ride to keep going.

What's ironic is that Keystone doesn't have much a town either and yet it is overrun with people. Its the oddest dynamic.  

[LonghornJones 837]

Beaver Creek with my kiddos was badass. The 6 yr old skipped the beginner class in ski school she picked it up so quickly, the 4 yo, not so much. Going back in December and hoping it sticks. I really look fwd to the day I can go up on the mountain with them. The Park Hyatt was the most kid-friendly ski-in/ski-out I have ever stayed in. Kids everywhere.

[JCHIL 414]

Beaver Creek....Lots of creek, not enough Beaver....

 

[JCHIL 414]

Taos Report- 100% open. Kachina peak lift pictured is spinning !  The 6-8” of fresh that fell 5 days ago is pretty skied out but the snow is still butter in most places.  Moguls starting to look like Volkswagens but fun was had on this terrain today 

Edited February 21, 2022 by JCHIL

[LonghornJones 837]

2'+ in the forecast for Taos.

[MoJames 8,244]

Snow is coming just in time for all the Texans to leave from their Presidents day weekends.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

A week from tomorrow I'll be heading west.  Hope this snow keeps coming.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

3 hours ago, MoJames said:

Snow is coming just in time for all the Texans to leave from their Presidents day weekends.

They can't be in Durango because they're all at Winter Park right now.

[gyroprotagonist 2,592]

just got back from Angel Fire.  Had never been there before.  We loved the place we stayed; just a cabin maybe a mile off the main road from the mountain (5 min drive).  It was a ghost town on Thursday and then errrbody showed up for the weekend.  Locals said it was the most crowded they had ever seen for this weekend.  

Thursday was nice because we basically had the mountain to ourselves and some fresh snow, but lots of runs were closed.  By Saturday, just about everything was open but just jammed packed.  We stayed on the backside almost exclusively because that lift was so much faster than the main one, even splitting up and all going through the singles line.

view from the back porch

 

Overall, a good trip.  We drove up there so we could take the doggo.  She thinks she is a Husky at heart and loves the snow/cold.

We normally only go spring break each year to CO mountains, so this was a little different crowd.  Was strange to see so many people not wearing helmets there.  I would say 90% wear them at the CO resorts (at least at SB time) but it was probably 50% of adults had them at AF.  

Anyway, was excited to get out there on the slopes.

 

 

[Chewbacca 7,780]

Don't feed the fucking wildlilfe!

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

Those deer haven't been shot at enough.

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12,301]

On 2/21/2022 at 11:26 AM, MoJames said:

Snow is coming just in time for all the Texans to leave from their Presidents day weekends.

If I had this move in the bag I would just spend all day right above mid mountain dining doing it and then slay all of the pussy.

[texasdago 7,573]

Looks like its puking snow at Crested Butte... 14" in two days so far... keeeeeep going.  

 

[MoJames 8,244]

33" at Purg in the past 48 hours

25" at Wolfcreek so far, but should get blasted today/tonight.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

It looks to be highs in the 40's in Summit County starting Sunday.  Our first ski day is Thursday.  Will that wreck things pretty bad or will the cold overnights keep things in check?

[texasdago 7,573]

2 hours ago, MoJames said:

33" at Purg in the past 48 hours

25" at Wolfcreek so far, but should get blasted today/tonight.

Pictures out of Purgatory look awesome.

[texasdago 7,573]

Right now in CB.  Those two dudes at the table hanging out playin Uno...

 

[blacklab 11,930]

Three beautiful days in a row here at heavenly. Trying to snow now but don’t think we’re going to get much. Was 50 yesterday and it got a little sloppy in the afternoon 

 

[texasdago 7,573]

Mountains should be nice after this weekend... CO going to get more rounds of snow until spring break kicks in.  CB now at something like 217" for the season which is good given their past lean years.

 

[blacklab 11,930]

On Thursday one of my kids managed to drop his glove while on a lift. Of course he didn’t do it while it was over a run but managed to do it in a place you couldn’t possibly ski to.  I spent about 30 minutes crawling and climbing to get to the damn thing.  Nothing beats the thrill of taking a step and having your foot drop three feet.

 

Friday the same kid and I managed to make a wrong turn and we had the choice of going down some super steep moguls or through the trees back to a blue slope. I choose the trees and we spent about an hour going a couple of hundred yards. Lots of falling down, skis off boots and tears from the kiddo.

 

It snowed Friday and Saturday and the slopes were glorious. Went to the rock hard burlesque at the hard rock on Friday night and had a good time with the wife.

 

Saturday night some lady was running around the condo hallways screaming and the police came and asked us questions.

 

Sunday we drove around to the north side of the lake and to Reno via Mt Rose. Wife go car sick and puked twice. I’m a sympathy puker and somehow didn’t join in the festivities.

 

Overall a great trip and I can’t wait to move up there in a few years.

[texasdago 7,573]

Man, that's skiing... especially with kids.  Something always happens.  I know I've had a few instances where the kids had to pop off their skis and slide down on their tails while I skied down a steeper section with their gear.  I can't wait for them to keep up with me one day.  The glove story reminds me of dropping my ski glove on the lift up at Keystone... during night skiing.  Took the lift all the way up and had to ski down with a frozen hand in my pocket to get a new pair.

And yeah, mountain pass puking normally happens once a trip.  My son has puked in four different countries.

Wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

[conVINCEd 21,469]

39 minutes ago, blacklab said:

On Thursday one of my kids managed to drop his glove while on a lift. Of course he didn’t do it while it was over a run but managed to do it in a place you couldn’t possibly ski to.  I spent about 30 minutes crawling and climbing to get to the damn thing.  Nothing beats the thrill of taking a step and having your foot drop three feet.

 

Friday the same kid and I managed to make a wrong turn and we had the choice of going down some super steep moguls or through the trees back to a blue slope. I choose the trees and we spent about an hour going a couple of hundred yards. Lots of falling down, skis off boots and tears from the kiddo.

 

It snowed Friday and Saturday and the slopes were glorious. Went to the rock hard burlesque at the hard rock on Friday night and had a good time with the wife.

 

Saturday night some lady was running around the condo hallways screaming and the police came and asked us questions.

 

Sunday we drove around to the north side of the lake and to Reno via Mt Rose. Wife go car sick and puked twice. I’m a sympathy puker and somehow didn’t join in the festivities.

 

Overall a great trip and I can’t wait to move up there in a few years.

Could’ve been worse.  I dropped myself off of the lift when I was 5.

[Al_4_ISU 12,463]

Good trip last week. Snow was awfully thin in spots and down right icy in the morning at Vail (Thursday) and Keystone (Friday) but the sun was out at Vail and the bowls got soft after lunch and it started snowing around 11AM at Keystone, which made for a fun day. Had legit powder on Saturday at Breck and made it out before we got stuck on 70.


Vail - Sun Up Bowl. Hard and chunky


Keystone - Santiago lift on North Peak. Snow was pretty soft here compared to the ice in the Outback




Powder on Peak 6 at Breck and near white out conditions at the summit. First time I’d been to Breck since they opened Peak 6 and I loved it. Changed my whole tune about the place.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

1 hour ago, blacklab said:

On Thursday one of my kids managed to drop his glove while on a lift. Of course he didn’t do it while it was over a run but managed to do it in a place you couldn’t possibly ski to.  I spent about 30 minutes crawling and climbing to get to the damn thing.  Nothing beats the thrill of taking a step and having your foot drop three feet.

 

Friday the same kid and I managed to make a wrong turn and we had the choice of going down some super steep moguls or through the trees back to a blue slope. I choose the trees and we spent about an hour going a couple of hundred yards. Lots of falling down, skis off boots and tears from the kiddo.

 

It snowed Friday and Saturday and the slopes were glorious. Went to the rock hard burlesque at the hard rock on Friday night and had a good time with the wife.

 

Saturday night some lady was running around the condo hallways screaming and the police came and asked us questions.

 

Sunday we drove around to the north side of the lake and to Reno via Mt Rose. Wife go car sick and puked twice. I’m a sympathy puker and somehow didn’t join in the festivities.

 

Overall a great trip and I can’t wait to move up there in a few years.

Never buy your kids gloves (again) without straps.  

[Tex48 840]

Hitting Aspen tomorrow afternoon.  Really excited for it. Anyone been there in the last few weeks?

[AUinHsv 579]

3 hours ago, conVINCEd said:

Could’ve been worse.  I dropped myself off of the lift when I was 5.

Could we get a few more details on this?

[MoJames 8,244]

Purg the past two weeks has been phenomenal. Took this of the kids and their buddy last weekend. Finally got a powder day this weekend as pretty much all storms have rolled through on Wednesday since NY day.

[conVINCEd 21,469]

1 minute ago, AUinHsv said:

Could we get a few more details on this?

It was probably the second time I actually rode the lift.  Lift stopped halfway up, chair swung back and then forward.  Little conVINCEd wasn’t holding onto to anything at the time, so out he went.  Probably 20 feet off of the ground.  The concussion and broken ribs ended that trip a little early for me.