Colorado ski tips, was: Best way to get between Denver -> Colorado Springs

[Carson Dyle]

when i was in colorado couple years back for boarding~ the altitude kicked my ass

Yeah, there's that. Drinking a LOT of water to avoid dehydration is a universal rule here. If you're here for a week, try to get acclimated for a couple of days before going skiing, although I'm not sure it will really help. If you get out and do something, maybe some hiking, at least you'll get an idea of how badly you're going to get your ass kicked when you go skiing.

 

[Hoober]

Yeah, there's that. Drinking a LOT of water to avoid dehydration is a universal rule here. If you're here for a week, try to get acclimated for a couple of days before going skiing, although I'm not sure it will really help. If you get out and do something, maybe some hiking, at least you'll get an idea of how badly you're going to get your ass kicked when you go skiing.

Agreed. Tons of water.

 

[Hoober]

For 2 days and a budget, I'd recommend Copper or A-Basin. Less hassle and bullshit to deal with.

I'll second Copper. Great mountain with a ton of varied terrain.

 

[Triumph]

looks like we will be going to either Keystone or A-Basin.

 

[OutHouse]

Traffic was never too bad to the slopes because it was a pretty straight interstate shot

traffic on I-70 during ski season on Fridays and Sundays is brutal. expect 4 hours to get from the Eisenhower tunnel to C-470. this drive during non peak hours is 45 min.

 

[OutHouse]

For 2 days and a budget, I'd recommend Copper or A-Basin. Less hassle and bullshit to deal with.

A Basin is very bare bones and old school skiing. it offers great skiing for the price but does not have all the stuff that the resorts have. yes they do have a small restaurant but i would recommend you bring a cooler full of food, beer,WATER, lawn chairs.

when i was a kid my dad put the propane grill in the bed of the truck and for lunch we would have a cook out. many people do this and A Basin allows it, they even have a section called the Beach where tailgaging spots are first come first server and its just like being on the beach but full of snow. if you arent there by 6am you wont get a spot. the bigger ski resorts do not allow tailgating or backing your car up to the slope. it is a pretty cool place.

 

[OutHouse]

I suppose, but the I'd say more locals have a greater fondness for Loveland. Just my observation.

Loveland and Eldora are the local favorites. my kids learned to ski at Eldora. its cheap and i dont have to deal with the I-70 bullshit.

 

[OutHouse]

Don't rent from the resort. Rent from somewhere in CO Springs. Christy's, CO Ski&Golf, Breeze, etc... any of those should be fine. Search online for deals/coupons.

i rent at the ski area so i don't have to deal with jamming skis or boards into the car, then having to deal with turning the equipment on time so i dont get charged an extra day of rental. prices are a little higher but not outrageous.

 

[OutHouse]

when i was in colorado couple years back for boarding~ the altitude kicked my ass

i grew up here in the denver area, it never bothered me going from denver up to the high mountains but as i get older im noticing getting winded a lot easier.

 

[zinfamous]

A Basin is very bare bones and old school skiing. it offers great skiing for the price but does not have all the stuff that the resorts have. yes they do have a small restaurant but i would recommend you bring a cooler full of food, beer,WATER, lawn chairs.

when i was a kid my dad put the propane grill in the bed of the truck and for lunch we would have a cook out. many people do this and A Basin allows it, they even have a section called the Beach where tailgaging spots are first come first server and its just like being on the beach but full of snow. if you arent there by 6am you wont get a spot. the bigger ski resorts do not allow tailgating or backing your car up to the slope. it is a pretty cool place.

Yeah, that's what I love about it. We would show up at ~8-9am, and park 2 rows back. One weekend, you'd see this early 50s type snow dudes with their lawnchairs already out, skis planted in the snow, drinking beers and jamming to Rush by 9:30. I never noticed those guys having moved from their chairs to the lift, on several trips up and down, but they seemed to be having a blast.

I like the skiing at the other places, too, but I hate the resort vibe in most any situation (feels very cruise-shippy to me). parking way out and waiting for a tram to bring you from the parking lot and up to the main entrance of the resort. While all of them have great runs on good days, my experience over a few years of making that annual trip (I was in Chicago at the time; buddy was doing his PhD at Denver, so several of us would make an annual get-together out of it), I found that day to day, A-Basin always provided the best experience.

The local Summit county passes in those days would give us 4 days for $80, IIRC, and sometimes we would get A-Basin only passes that would be $15/day

 

[Ken g6]

The weather looks like it's going to be beautiful!

(Don't know if that image will keep working or not.)

 

[Triumph]

sooo...how does skiing in 50 degree weather work? :\

 

[Gooberlx2]

sooo...how does skiing in 50 degree weather work? :\

Slushy, because any ice softens. It's nice because you don't need as many layers. Can get wet though. Tends to be crunchy the next morning after everything refreezes overnight. Of course without new snow replenishing that which melts and/or evaporates, the base eventually gets sketchy.

Edit: the above image is for CO Springs and Pueblo anyway. Drop another 10-20F for the mountains. Highs should be in the mid 40s next week.

 

[OutHouse]

sooo...how does skiing in 50 degree weather work? :\

Hot Women skiing in bikiki's

 

[zinfamous]

Hot Women skiing in bikiki's

^

You'll be fine. Just head out, see what happens, and make it work.



life.

 

[Triumph]

Went to Keystone last Thursday and Saturday. It was awesome! Even with the warm-ish weather and spring break, we didn't have any problems having fun, or getting to and from the mountains. I rented skis in town, and that was definitely the way to go.

 

[OutHouse]

Awesome

 

[Triumph]

Fall 2015 bump! I noticed that flights to Denver in December are only about $250. I assume that's because it is not peak ski season, obviously. But how good/bad is it? I guess there could be some great early snow falls that are impossible to predict, or maybe it's mostly bare and not even worth making the trip? Or maybe impossible to predict because global warming?

 

[nsafreak]

Right now there's pretty much close to zero snowpack on the mountains. We've had a fairly warm summer this year so it's going to take a bit for there to be a snowpack. I suppose we could have a freak winter storm but even those typically don't provide enough snow on their own for an immediate ski season.

 

[Triumph]

Right now there's pretty much close to zero snowpack on the mountains. We've had a fairly warm summer this year so it's going to take a bit for there to be a snowpack. I suppose we could have a freak winter storm but even those typically don't provide enough snow on their own for an immediate ski season.

Sorry to be dense, but what exactly does that mean for December? I mean, I have no idea when it usually starts snowing.

 

[nsafreak]

Sorry to be dense, but what exactly does that mean for December? I mean, I have no idea when it usually starts snowing.

Wasn't quite sure as to when you were thinking of coming as some folks hope for a November snowpack to come ski. Typically there should be a decent snowpack by that time, and if not the resorts will make their own snow if they have to. How much there will be is up in the air, some folks are speculating that we should get a good amount of snow this winter due to the rainfall we had earlier this summer.

 

[vailr]

There's usually some direct non-stop flights from Chicago to Crested Butte & Steamboat Springs during the ski season. Dallas, Texas may also have similar flights going to those Colorado skiing destinations. Other ski destinations such as Aspen, Telluride, Breckenridge, etc. may require a change of planes in Denver.

 

[OutHouse]

Still too early to tell. Snow should start falling next month and it should be cold enough for the resorts to start the snow making ops. Dec the skiing can be icy or great. Fyi skiing on man mass snow sucks balls.

It was 42 at my house this morning but bt 5pm it was 92. It's the hottest Sept on record.