A Closer Look at Colorado’s Ski Areas

Colorado is the place to go for a large selection of slopes.

Save

A Closer Look at Colorado’s Ski Areas — Skier Kim Bailey, right, tries to connect with friends on the phone while she rides the lift with her friend Roxanne Garlington in Vail on Feb. 6, 2023. Bailey was in Vail for the 50th anniversary gathering of the National Brotherhood of Skiers, a consortium of Black ski clubs which meets annually. The group includes recreational enthusiast and also supports young athletes ó their hope is to one day produce the first Black Olympic medalist in skiing or snowboarding. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)

11/26/2023Updated: 11/26/2023

0:00

By Seth Boster From The Gazette

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—As Colorado’s resorts begin welcoming skiers and snowboarders, we offer this list with information about them.

Arapahoe Basin (est. 1946)

A-Basin is the oldest of Summit County’s four ski areas, beginning with former ski racers and World War II veterans. The decades ushered in a new cast of characters: a scrappy bunch who called themselves Atomic Janitors, cleaning by night, sleeping in an A-Frame attic and skiing by daybreak.

Skiable terrain: 1,428 acres

Trails: 147 / Lifts: 9

Aspen Highlands (est. 1958)

Longtime ski instructor John Moore published a book on the mountain’s colorful history in 2018. “Aspen Highlands: Where Have All the Characters Gone?” went the book’s title. According to Moore, the early characters included a shepherd, who set aflame a coyote stalking his sheep.

Skiable terrain: 1,040 acres

Trails: 144 / Lifts: 5

Aspen Mountain (est. 1946)

It’s also called Ajax, probably for a historic mine nearby. It is otherwise known as “the mother ship”—the one that altered the course of the town from silver to skiing. Established by Walter Paepcke, Aspen Mountain was the first development of the four ski areas now run by Aspen Skiing Co.

Skiable terrain: 675 acres

Trails: 76 / Lifts: 8

Beaver Creek (est. 1980)

As ski resorts continued to sprout along Interstate 70 in the 1970s, Beaver Creek in Eagle County was envisioned to be a home worthy of the 1976 Winter Olympics. That dream was never meant to be. Another vision prevailed, however: Vail Resorts’ next proud destination.

Skiable terrain: 2,082 acres

Trails: 167 / Lifts: 24

Breckenridge (est. 1961)

Peak 8 was the first to open for business. That was thanks to Olympic ski teammates from Norway, Sigurd Rockne and Trygve Berge, who drove a mining road to where they’d put today’s SuperChair. “We didn’t know how big it was going to get,” Berge is quoted as saying.

Skiable terrain: 2,908 acres

Trails: 187 / Lifts: 35

Buttermilk (est. 1958)

Buttermilk was designed to be the mountain for beginners in Aspen, a counter to the steep slopes visitors found at Ajax. It’s a curious history, considering Buttermilk’s adrenaline-fueled present. It’s the longtime home of the Winter X Games.

Skiable terrain: 470 acres

Trails: 44 / Lifts: 8

Cooper (est. 1942)

However modest in size, Cooper might be the boldest representation of Colorado’s skiing spirit. It can be called the birthplace of the industry as we know it. During World War II, this is where 10th Mountain Division soldiers trained on skis in preparation for travel in the Alps.

Skiable terrain: 480 acres

Trails: 64 / Lifts: 5

Copper Mountain (est. 1972)

Four years after opening, Copper played host to World Cup ski races. That legacy continues today: During the early weeks of winter, the resort typically welcomes members of the U.S. national team as well as their competitors from around the world for training.

Skiable terrain: 2,538 acres

Trails: 157 / Lifts: 24

Crested Butte (est. 1963)

Crested Butte is credited with Colorado’s second top-to-bottom gondola, following Vail. Yes, however far from Front Range populations, CB has a history of keeping up with the latest and greatest. And keeping it real with a colorful, hippie style closing every year.

Skiable terrain: 1,547 acres

Trails: 121 / Lifts: 14

Echo Mountain (est. 1960)

After closing for three decades in 1975, Echo reopened with a focus solely on terrain parks. Years later, it became a private training ground that turned public for a brief time. Now it’s come back to its roots as a ski area to attract Denverites in close proximity.

Skiable terrain: 60 acres

Trails: 7 / Lifts: 3

Eldora (est. 1963)

When Eldora opened, the celebration was surely overshadowed by other grand debuts at the time—the likes of Vail and Steamboat. And yet Boulder County’s local ski area has stood the same test of time with an emphasis on just that: local.

Skiable terrain: 680 acres

Trails: 53 / Lifts: 12

Hesperus (est. 1962)

Durango’s local hill turned 60 last season—perhaps proving that there’s always a demand for quick pre- and post-work turns. The name derives from Greek mythology for “evening star,” fitting for when the lights shine bright at night.

Skiable terrain: 60 acres

Trails: 26 / Lifts: 1

Howelsen Hill (est. 1914)

It’s North America’s longest-operating ski area and the firm foundation for Steamboat Springs’ history of producing Olympic skiers. This is surely just as Norwegian immigrant Carl Howelsen envisioned it.

Skiable terrain: 50 acres

Trails: 17 / Lifts: 4

Keystone (est. 1970)

Keystone’s most celebrated features are Dercum Mountain and Bergman Bowl. Those are named for Max and Edna Dercum and Bill and Jane Bergman. The couples poured their hearts, souls and savings into what is now Summit County’s biggest ski resort.

Skiable terrain: 3,149 acres

Trails: 130 / Lifts: 20

Loveland (est. 1936)

J.C. Blickensderfer installed a motorized rope tow that was among Colorado’s earliest to shuttle skiers uphill. Snowmaking was added in 1967. Loveland is believed to be the state’s first major ski area to introduce the technology.

Skiable terrain: 1,800 acres

Trails: 94 / Lifts: 11

Monarch (est. 1939)

When the road high above Salida was being finished, signs were being posted for Vail Pass, the story goes. The name was for the state’s top highway engineer at the time, Charley Vail. Local skiers resisted, however, knowing this to be Monarch, for the resident butterfly.

Skiable terrain: 800 acres

Trails: 67 / Lifts: 7

Powderhorn (est. 1966)

You might be thinking snow when you see the name, but it’s actually a reference to the horn of an ox or cow used to store gunpowder. Founders liked the old western nod—and, yes, the imagery of fluff high on the Grand Mesa.

Skiable terrain: 1,600 acres

Trails: 63 / Lifts: 4

Purgatory (est. 1965)

The Durango area resort was named for the creek running by the base. Where “Purgatory” historically came from is uncertain. In a Durango Herald interview, the ski area’s general manager from the beginning, “Chet” Anderson, recalled the name was “spicier” than other considerations.

Skiable terrain: 1,635 acres

Trails: 105 / Lifts: 11

Silverton (est. 2002)

Silverton served as a ski area for a new century in Colorado—an age of extreme adventure. Visitors from afar come to the remote outpost to drop to the piles of powder from a helicopter.

Skiable terrain: 1,819 acres, with 22,000 additional acres for heli-skiing and hike-to terrain

Lifts: 1

Snowmass (est. 1967)

Snowmass captivated the world’s imagination when it opened in Aspen, showcasing the full capabilities of a world-class ski resort. Today, the imagination struggles to comprehend the price of a lift ticket then: $6.50.

Skiable terrain: 3,339 acres

Trails: 94 / Lifts: 16

Steamboat (est. 1963)

For decades, locals on Howelsen Hill looked to the mighty shoulders of Storm Mountain. That was the original name of the ski area, which was made a reality with the help of Buddy Werner, a boundary-breaking ski racer. He died in an avalanche a year later.

Skiable terrain: 2,965 acres

Trails: 171 / Lifts: 21

Sunlight (est. 1966)

Another natural resource had gained fame many decades before in Glenwood Springs: the healing, geothermal waters of various hot springs. It’s an easy sell for Sunlight: skiing by day, soaking by night.

Skiable terrain: 730 acres

Trails: 72 / Lifts: 3

Telluride (est. 1972)

The once small, gritty Telluride was never meant to remain in the Wild West. No matter its isolation, the resort was found by the rich and famous, transforming the town into a luxury getaway—with the wild preserved on the snowy steeps and cirques above.

Skiable terrain: 2,000-plus acres

Trails: 148 / Lifts: 17

Vail (est. 1962)

In the ranching valley of Eagle County, Earl Eaton was raised to love skiing. He knew of back bowls that could attract skiers from near and far. After he showed Pete Seibert, the visionary of the 10th Mountain Division, the dream came true.

Skiable terrain: 5,317 acres

Trails: 195 / Lifts: 32

Winter Park (est. 1940)

The mountains filled with snow, but that did not mean Denverites needed to stay home. Far from it. The city and county of Denver joined the state’s ski craze, opening Winter Park to be a playground for residents.

Skiable terrain: 3,081 acres

Trails: 171 / Lifts: 28

Wolf Creek (est. 1938)

As Wolf Creek Pass was finished, a truck-driven rope tow appeared on the mountain outside Pagosa Springs. Local control shifted to developers, but the pride in deep, all-natural powder remained.