Colorado spring skiing

[wmw999 2,121]

Time for a last-minute solo trip; I'm thinking in about a week (Mon-Fri of the 11th, or so). I'm interested in plenty of snow, long runs, as little crowding as possible, and plenty of good intermediate and/or easy expert.

I'm thinking Loveland; I know their lifts are slower (based on internet commentary), but it's close to Denver, and I'm not paying for party & shopping I don't plan on using.

thoughts? Suggestions?

thanks
Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[ryoder 1,384]

Loveland is where I get my season pass.

Due to the high altitudes, Loveland & A-Basin are generally the first to open, and the last to close. Also, those are the last 2 major ski areas where you can still park next the the mountain w/o going thru the bullshit of parking so far away that you need a shuttle to get the the ski area.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[jackwallace 3]

Flat landers should not ski at Loveland or A-Basin, they can't breath up there.
Copper mountain is the best place in CO to ski IMO. If you stay in Frisco, you can get to Breckenridge, Copper, Keystone, Vail, Beaver Creek, Ski Cooper pretty easy. They use to have free buses.
Glenwood Spgs, Co is a great place to stay. Worlds largest hot pool. Sunlight ski area is there, a mom and pop place. You are an hour drive from Vail or Aspen. My son thinks Snowmass is the best place to ski.
And no, you are not allowed to wear your dam cowboy boots when you ski.

U only make 2 jumps: the first one for some weird reason and the last one that you lived through. The rest are just filler.
scr 316

[BillyVance 34]

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Flat landers should not ski at Loveland or A-Basin, they can't breath up there.

How high is it up there? I skied at Kirkwood in CA for a whole weekend, including an overnight stay, where the top was at 10K and the base at 7.5K, and didn't have a problem. My brother on the other hand, had altitude sickness.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[BillyVance 34]

Is Loveland right by Loveland Pass? I remember seeing a ski area right by the pass when my wife and I drove over it in October 2010? I thought I remembered a different name for it though.

ETA - Nope... it was Keystone...

Also noticed Arapahoe on the same road.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[wmw999 2,121]

That's an excellent point, thanks. Probably not enough to make me change my mind about location, but definitely enough to get me to book the earliest flight, stay in Denver a few hours before driving over, before skiing the next day.

I've done that kind of altitude without problems before; this should do it.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[ryoder 1,384]

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Is Loveland right by Loveland Pass? I remember seeing a ski area right by the pass when my wife and I drove over it in October 2010? I thought I remembered a different name for it though.

ETA - Nope... it was Keystone...

Also noticed Arapahoe on the same road.

Loveland is to the left of Eisenhower Tunnel, *and* to the right of it, *and* on *top* of it. But it is very difficult to see the ski area as you drive I-70. When driving Westbound, the last exit before the tunnel takes you to the parking area. (At this point you are on Hwy 6 which also takes you over Loveland Pass). As you approach the tunnel, you are driving *over* a skier/pedestrian tunnel that enables skiers on the North side to take a shortcut back the the lodge/parking area on the South side.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[ryoder 1,384]

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That's an excellent point, thanks. Probably not enough to make me change my mind about location, but definitely enough to get me to book the earliest flight, stay in Denver a few hours before driving over, before skiing the next day.

I've done that kind of altitude without problems before; this should do it.

Wendy P.

On a reconnaissance trip out here a year before I moved here, I got altitude sickness by driving up to Silverthorne on the first day, so I got a motel room in the Western edge of the Denver area, then drove up to ski in the mornings, returning back down to the motel in the late afternoons.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[ryoder 1,384]

The ski area can be seen by looking at the strips of trees removed for the ski runs: http://maps.google.com/?ll=39.676839,-105.897646&spn=0.032336,0.048709&t=h&z=15

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

You gonna come visit us at Mile Hi?

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[wmw999 2,121]

How much skydiving goes on at Mile Hi on weekdays in the winter

Evenings are definitely open, but days will most likely be spent skiing.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[jtval 0]

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How much skydiving goes on at Mile Hi on weekdays in the winter

Evenings are definitely open, but days will most likely be spent skiing.

Wendy P.

They jump year around if the weather is good.
I usually get upcoming weekend weather updates from Jim McCormick. they jump often.

My photos

My Videos

[CanuckInUSA 0]

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They jump year around if the weather is good.

But on a weekday? Maybe Fridays but when I jumped there I don't recall them jumping in March during weekdays.

As far as skiing is concerned there are many options. Too bad Steamboat Springs is not considered one of the Front Range's day tripping resorts because it is an awesome mountain. Wolf Creek (also not considered a day trip destination) supposedly has some of the best snow in CO. From there it all depends on what you are looking for in a ski resort and course what sort of skier/boarder that you are. A-Basin's East Wall is a true to life Double Black Diamond run. Well worth the hike if the snow is good and you are an expert skier. A-Basin also has some nice mogul runs when the snow coverage is good. But if you want moguls, it's hard to beat the Mary Jane slopes at Winterpark. They have some of the best well formed moguls you will ever find anywhere in North America. I always liked the back bowl at Copper Mountain. At least when I lived in CO it was only serviced by an old clunker and slow double chair and because it was not all that popular they did not spend time and money to groom it. But herein lies the true gem of the back bowl. There are no crowds and and the snow is great if you can handle ungroomed runs. Lots of other good options as well. Keystone has three different mountains to the resort and offers anything from wide open groomers, to moguls and some tree skiing (though their trees are nowhere as fun as Steamboat's). Breckenridge, Vail and Aspen are fine but I tended to stay away from them on normal weekend days because they were always crowded and I was never really a big fan of the large mega resorts. But skiing there on a weekday would be different. I never skied at Loveland or Eldorado, so I really should not comment about places I never tried. But with the East Wall at A-Basin, the moguls of Mary Jane and the back bowl of Copper, why would I go anywhere else? unless of course I was planning on spending more than one night in which case one of my favorites remains Steamboat Springs.

PS: drink plenty of water throughout the day when skiing in Colorado (especially at the higher altitude resorts). Staying hydrated is very important when you are playing at altitude.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[NoCoSkyDiver 0]

My wife and I were talking about this a couple weeks ago. We used to ski Winter Park (Mary Jane), Copper, and Steamboat Springs since they are included in one pass. We now have access to a condo in Breckenridge and have been skiing Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek, and Keystone the last couple of years. I would say that you will find that all the resorts in CO good. The runs on average are significantly longer than east coast resorts.

We decided that we like skiing Mary Jane at Winter Park the best. You can park at the base of the lifts and ski to your car for lunch using Sleeper run. Good vibe with tailgating. My wife likes blue runs the best and Parsons Bowl IMO is the best bowl for blue runs around. You can get some easier glade skiing in. If you want something more challenging ski the trade winds lift. A gem of black runs. If you want double black you do do Vasquez ridge but requires a mile hike. Can not beat the moguls as mentioned earlier if that is your thing. Winter Park town not as flashy as the other resort towns

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

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How much skydiving goes on at Mile Hi on weekdays in the winter

Evenings are definitely open, but days will most likely be spent skiing.

Wendy P.

This early in the season, you might be able to get a Cessna trip on Friday. Or maybe on the King Air, if it's really nice. It's been in the 60s the last couple days. A bit windy today. I only did one jump today (5 yesterday :-) but the landing area is all mud from last week's snow melting. The weather is intermittently perfect all winter -- we had some really nice jumps in January, but they mostly just run Friday, Saturday and Sunday right now.

The sun's staying up past 6, though, and we're starting to get into the nice weather. So if you're tired of skiing by Friday and the forecast looks nice, come on down! If it's nice, I'll be out there. I don't mind the Cessna but I'd really like to get back in the King Air again. She's a fine plane, and I haven't seen her in a few months. I'm starting to miss her!

If it's 45 and windy, just keep skiing heh heh heh.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[ryoder 1,384]

Just got back from skiing fresh powder at Loveland until my legs gave out.Wonder what the poor people were doing today...

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[oldwomanc6 38]

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Wonder what the poor people were doing today...

Fucking.

lisa
WSCR 594
FB 1023
CBDB 9

[BillyVance 34]

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Wonder what the poor people were doing today...

Fucking.

^^^^^
This. Winner.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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Time for a last-minute solo trip; I'm thinking in about a week (Mon-Fri of the 11th, or so). I'm interested in plenty of snow, long runs, as little crowding as possible, and plenty of good intermediate and/or easy expert.

I'm thinking Loveland; I know their lifts are slower (based on internet commentary), but it's close to Denver, and I'm not paying for party & shopping I don't plan on using.

Loveland.

The snow is relatively good and no slope side accommodations or surrounding city means it's almost entirely day skiers from the urban Front Range so it won't be crowded. There are a few affordable hotels in Georgetown if you don't want to drive up every day.

That'd be my first choice after living in Colorado for 15 years; a few with Ski the Summit (Arapahoe Basin, Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, and Keystone) season passes; a few years with Copper passes; a few years with Loveland passes; and enough time every place else in the Front Range (apart from Silver Creek which I never got around to visiting).

The other ski areas aren't that much lower.

[lawrocket 3]

Have good insurance.

From my experience with the place, there ain't nuthin like a Spring Snowstorm in Colorado. And it'll cause hardcore pileups.

I'm looking now for gits and shiggles. About 30 miles of eastbound is closed or chains required because they're getting hammered.
http://www.cotrip.org/m/alerts.xhtml?rd=32&scroll-pos=100

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[wmw999 2,121]

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Just got back from skiing fresh powder at Loveland until my legs gave out

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

I think we have another winter storm coming if I'm not mistaken. It snowed like... something that snows a LOT... for a couple hours this afternoon, then the sun came out again. That's down here on the plains, and the mountains usually get a lot more. So it should be pretty nice by the time you get here!

Have you ever considered speedriding? If I'd known that was an option 10 years ago or so, I'd have been a lot more interested in skiing. I always said I didn't want to ski because I'm the sort of person who'd go over a cliff for the adrenaline rush. Seems like that's exactly what you want to do when speedriding.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[ryoder 1,384]

Quote

Have good insurance.

From my experience with the place, there ain't nuthin like a Spring Snowstorm in Colorado. And it'll cause hardcore pileups.

I'm looking now for gits and shiggles. About 30 miles of eastbound is closed or chains required because they're getting hammered.
http://www.cotrip.org/m/alerts.xhtml?rd=32&scroll-pos=100

Looks like it was good I left at noon.

http://www.9news.com/news/article/321137/339/More-than-50-vehicles-in-I-70-pile-ups

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[ryoder 1,384]

15" new snow in the last 24 hrs.
34.5" in the last 3 days.
The view from the top of Lift #9 at Loveland.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[wmw999 2,121]

Holy cow!!! That looks awesome

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)