Educate me: UT/CO long weekends from the east

[p@wder]

yeah, yeah, jong fest.

After Switzerland I moved to Oregon and had a blast for the last 3 years but family commitments have seen me relocate to Richmond, VA :-(
So for this winter I will only be able to make some long weekend trips out west and I'm looking for some tips.

I've never skied UT or CO, I know about the bigger resorts but I actually like the smaller resorts (less crowds, cheaper, sometimes steeper/deeper). Kirkwood was my favorite when I lived in CA and Willamette pass I liked more than bachelor while in OR. I also prefer to tour than ride lifts unless there is reasonable fresh making it worthwhile (and dangerous outside resorts). For UT I will check out Alta/Silverton[edit , i meant snowbird]/Brighton etc but for Colorado I am sure there must be smaller places, e.g. how do loveland/Keystone/Copper Mtn compare?

In general UT looks a little easier with SLC super close to the resorts and there must be cheap accommodation close by. The down side is an extra $150 on the flights. Is there some obvious positive I'm missing on CO ? Where would one find cheap accommodation in CO near resorts. I don't need to actually stay in a resort, some cheap motel where I can grab a burger, beer and bed after a day skiing is fine.


Any tips/locations/hints for touring, most likely alone? I don't need steep&deep when I tour (especially when alone) - i just like to be out in the mountains so will certainly be conservative with route finding vs Oregon/Switzerland.


at least 2 of the trips will be holiday weekends, so any resorts quieter around then? Or should I ignore the resorts entirely and just tour?

[Buster Highmen]

For UT I will check out Alta/Silverton/Brighton etc but for Colorado I am sure there must be smaller places, e.g. how do loveland/Keystone/Copper Mtn compare?

Silverton is in SW Colorado, North of Durango by 50 miles of road, SE of Telluride by 12 miles as the crow flies, but about 90 miles of driving.
In the area are Wolf Creek (2 hours E. of Durango) Purgatory (Durango Mountain Resort, 30 N. of Durango), Telluride, Crested Butte. All worthy, though Purgatory gets the least respect.

Silverton has a ton of cheap beds and Pagosa Springs (by Wolf Creek) has inexpensive lodging away from the hot springs.

As for UT, if you've never been to Alta/Snowbird, you should go and same for Solitude. The less frequented places include Snow Basin and Powder Mountain.

[p@wder]

Silverton is in SW Colorado, North of Durango by 50 miles of road, SE of Telluride by 12 miles as the crow flies, but about 90 miles of driving.
In the area are Wolf Creek (2 hours E. of Durango) Purgatory (Durango Mountain Resort, 30 N. of Durango), Telluride, Crested Butte. All worthy, though Purgatory gets the least respect.

Silverton has a ton of cheap beds and Pagosa Springs (by Wolf Creek) has inexpensive lodging away from the hot springs.

As for UT, if you've never been to Alta/Snowbird, you should go and same for Solitude. The less frequented places include Snow Basin and Powder Mountain.

Thanks I had a brain fart and was thinking of snowbird UT. Silverton is another trip I have in my mind. I should check flights to Durango.

[Buster Highmen]

Thanks I had a brain fart and was thinking of snowbird UT. Silverton is another trip I have in my mind. I should check flights to Durango.

One gets reamed going into any of the stops out of Denver including and not limited to Aspen, Grand Junction, Montrose, Telluride and Durango unless you can find some special nonstop which do exist.

When targetting SWColorado, we usually go into Albuquerque and drive the next 6 hours to Silverton/Telluride. Car rentals are cheaper in Alb too.

There's hopper flights from Phoenix too.

There's lots of worthy spots closer to Denver too like Arapahoe Basin/Loveland or Winter Park or even Steamboat.

[Benny Profane]

Silverton will be difficult due to altitude changes. You're going to need more than a short weekend to acclimate enough to enjoy the hiking up there. Utah is a little lower, so easier for short trips. Jackson, too.

[P-ville Madman]

yeah, yeah, jong fest.

Is there some obvious positive I'm missing on CO ?

Yes - if you like weed.

[Harry]

Is there some obvious positive I'm missing on CO ?

Legal weed.


edit: ^^^beat me to it...

[p@wder]

One gets reamed going into any of the stops out of Denver including and not limited to Aspen, Grand Junction, Montrose, Telluride and Durango unless you can find some special nonstop which do exist.

When targetting SWColorado, we usually go into Albuquerque and drive the next 6 hours to Silverton/Telluride. Car rentals are cheaper in Alb too.

There's hopper flights from Phoenix too.

There's lots of worthy spots closer to Denver too like Arapahoe Basin/Loveland or Winter Park or even Steamboat.

Thanks for the tips. I will likely checkout Arapahoe Basin/Loveland to geta basic ski fix

[p@wder]

Yes - if you like weed.

how could I forget, a plus for sure

[Mr brownstone]

Utah-pros:

cheap/easy flights
airport close to snow
more stable snowpack than CO, generally.
more traffic in in a smaller area/range than in the CO bc. Meaning more skier compaction and many many skinners to follow from many trailheads close to the airport to become acquainted with terrain more conveniently.
Solitude resort
brighton-great bc access.
bird-skiers mountain with great terrain

Cons:

everyone does it.
lines at canyon mouths can suck. Wake up early.

ColoRADo-pros

Nice weather
Big mountains
mary jane
Mary jane
loveland on a mid week pow day with moderate winds refilling faster than you can track the shit up.
chair 8 on a pow day under ^^^^^^those circumstances.
vibe

Cons:

Wicked tricky snowpack, generally
driving
Nice weather
skiing copper when you should be bumping it the fuck up at mary jane

Any questions?

[hortence]

I'll be driving to Silverton from NM regularly and could maybe swing through Alb. if you need a ride. If it's going off, you'll also want to hit Taos.

Hope you like red eye flights.

[adrenalated]

For CO Front Range, Loveland and A-Basin are the best small resorts (and my preference). Loveland generally has better snow, A-Basin has better terrain. For cheap lodging, stay in Georgetown. Avoid on holiday weekends as traffic on I-70 is ridiculous. Touring on Berthoud Pass. Keystone is flat and gets no snow, Copper has a bit of decent terrain but overall I'd rather spend my money at Loveland or A-Basin.

Other CO destinations:
Silverton: totally unique experience, lots of hiking required, great terrain, good snow. Most of the season is guided only though (still worth doing if you've never been and can swing the cost). Rooms are cheap. Tough to get to.
Crested Butte: also great terrain, not great snow, expect to hit lots of rocks. Best place I've ever skied if you like super technical skiing and scaring yourself. Reasonably priced rooms at the CB Hostel, Christiana Guesthaus, Forest Queen Hotel, and Old Town Inn. Somewhat difficult to get to.
Telluride or Aspen: more expensive, also difficult to get to, but good terrain and much more of it.
Wolf Creek: tends to get great early season snow and will be 100% open earlier than most places. It has some short, fun terrain, but is kinda benchy so some people say it's flat. There are actually some steep and rowdy shots, but they're only 300-500ft of vert before benching out. Can be full of Texans over holidays.
Monarch: also worth a day or two and can be a good alternative to I-70 when traffic blows, or a good stop on the way between Denver and Crested Butte. 3hr from Denver. Lodging is reasonable in Salida. Not the steepest or gnarliest mountain, but some fun terrain, good snowfall, and not usually busy. Can be full of Texans over holidays.

[Generalstark]

Having flown west for many ski trips myself, I second the Albuquerque destination as the tits for easy in and out, easy car rentals, cheap flights and generally painless access to skiing. Weather is rarely an issue for flight cancellation. I have also flown lots in and out of Denver, and it can be a hassle, though the shuttles to ski areas can be good if you don't want to rent a car. Weather can be a factor in Denver. (this can affect flights to albuquerque as well so try to find direct flights) I was once stranded for a week without ski gear. At least my hot lady friend at the time lived in Vail, so I got a shuttle, and spent the time nordic skiing in my one pair of cotton pants and hangin' with her when she wasn't working. Sorry no pictures.

Denver area ski areas can be kind of lame, though Vail you can skin to the summit (if there really is one) and then drop to the backside and ski the back bowls and the other areas whatever they are called without a pass. They don't check tickets once you are on the mountain.

Southwestern CO and NW New Mexico (when snow is good)is where it is at. Taos, Wolf Creek, and Silverton are all super fun resorts with nearby access to BC terrain, though you will want to find some local knowledge for avy issues. I don;t know if this is still an option at Taos, but they used to stop checking lift tickets at 3pm, so you could ski free the last couple hours if you time the lifts right. The ridge closes, but you can still hit some fun terrain in a short time. Can also be good altitude adjustment if it is your first day out west.

[skifishbum]

damn jong you been here a while huh?
and damn near all your posts are condition based quality skier stuff
if you show up in ut i'd sure make an effort to bestow the standard maggot brofessional courtesies afforded to maggots
pm iceman for a full list of my credentials and references.
and flights to new hamshire gots to be cheaper
shirely there's a pro there sumwhere

[hortence]

Driving est from Denver you will have two to three mountain passes that may close for hours during a storm. Coming up from Albuquerque it is high desert, much less subject to storm and you hit the mountains only in the last 50 miles.

[Coño Frío]

Utah-pros:

cheap/easy flights
airport close to snow
more stable snowpack than CO, generally.
more traffic in in a smaller area/range than in the CO bc. Meaning more skier compaction and many many skinners to follow from many trailheads close to the airport to become acquainted with terrain more conveniently.
Solitude resort
brighton-great bc access.
bird-skiers mountain with great terrain

Any questions?

This.

I do this 4-5 times per year. Direct flight is essential. You don't want to miss a pow day because you missed your connection and ended up overnighting at total $#ithole near the airport in Detroit, or at a sub-par two-star 10 miles from the mall of America in Minneapolis. Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice, WTF was I thinking. Never again.

My MO is to take Friday off and fly direct to SLC, rent a car and drive straight to Brighton for 1/2 day and maybe some night turns, then down the hill to stay at a hotel in cottonwoods*, up early to beat the crowds to Alta, back to cottonwoods, hit Solitude on Sunday, then straight to the airport for the 4:50 flight back to DC.

*If it's dumping I change plans in the hope of being locked-in at the Peruvian. No better place to be in the morning when UDOT has LCC closed.

Flights may be a little more expensive than DEN, but if staying in SLC, lodging is less, and lift tickets are generally less. And you won't have to deal with the shitshow that is I-70 on a Sunday afternoon.

[hatchgreenchile]

Start with the low hanging fruit. LCC/BCC during a big storm cycle is unreal.
Don't undervalue some of the resorts close to Denver. A-Basin, MJ, Copper, BC, all great.
If you have time to drive, everyone will tell you that the best of CO is 2+ hours outside the city.

[whyturn]

I hate to say it but just go to UT. Then maybe hit sw co and NM. Then maybe try co if you still think it could be better. But I do 3 day to ut a fair amount and never looked back

[AmmergauerTele]

Look at Snowbird's website, I think they have some pretty good deals on stay and ski (maybe for free or quite cheap) till mid-Dec and starting in mid-April. I'm looking to pull that off from Virginia too.

[AmmergauerTele]

Stay in SLC/Sandy, Residence Inn or Hampton Inn, crush the free breakfast, bring the brown bag lunch they give you at the hotel, save some $$$, wash/rinse/repeat. Go LCC/BCC or Snowbasin/Pow Mtn depending on the white stuff….

[GPP33]

I can't believe people recommend anything along I-70 for a ski vacation. The terrain and often the snow is awesome but the crowds on any weekend, not just a holiday weekend, are unreal. Fresh turns last maybe until 9:00 at most places, a few stashes will last through noon but you won't know where they are yet.

Venture down to T-ride, CB or Wolf creek if you want to come to Co, otherwise go enjoy Ut. Pow gets tracked out pretty quick there too but it never feels quite as busy.

For BC come out to Co and stay in Fort Collins. Just up the Pouder River (hwy 14) is lots of easy to access awesome terrain. www.powderbuzz.com is the local forum. Lots of good peeps that you can probably hook up with to show you around. Snow pack can be super sketchy out here though so make sure you have your head on straight and all your proper gear.

[robgoose]

East coast to SLC for a long weekend is completely doable... With sweet terrain. If i knew i was doimg muktiple trips, I'd think about doimg a Mountain Collective pass and trying to get to Jackson or Aspen (via Eagle) on one trip.

[p@wder]

wow, so many excellent and informative replies, Thanks guys.
i didn;t realise I70 was so bad so I will bear that in mind, and flying in to Albuquerque hadn't even occurred to me.


will probably start out with Utah as it seems easiest to get buy. Very busy BC is just fine for me atm, might be able to tag along with people or at least know there are people around. I'm happy with solo BC, spent most of the last few winetrs going up the OR volanoes barely meeting anyone, but the coastal snow-pack is easy to assess so it was mostly about relaxed descents.

[skifishbum]

keep going further west, pro tip.

so what your sayin is in your professional opinion the weeds better than in CO.
right?

[Buster Highmen]

so what your sayin is in your professional opinion the weeds better than in CO.
right?

No. But when will I get the opportunity to reciprocate up here in our swampsnow all the brodacious goodness you've shown me down there? I'm pretty sure Bobby will throw in some too.