The Abandoneds: Forgotten Mountains

[ZomblibulaX]

I had a bunch of Ft. Lewis alum that did the Goliath back in the 70’s.

I got to jump it for what will almost certainly be the last time in 2008. We had a bunch of guys from Steamboat and Jackson down, and a few of us knuckleheads from Purg that hadn’t jumped before. There’s nothing like going 0-60 in two seconds when the only thing you can see past the lip of the jump is the parking lot.

[~mikey b]

that was good

ski rio too

[MakersTeleMark]

That Berthoud video is sweet, I was in a bunch of those comps and I think I recognize a few of those guys. If I remember right, for a while they were running a deal where a car load of four could get tickets for $20. Total. With shuttles picking up at the bottom of the pass. Was making plans to move to WP and make Berthoud my home mountain when they shut down for good.
Wonder if any ski areas are gonna go outta biz and join the list due to covid.

I think I remember Lemon Boy did too, with Linkins.

[snapt]

When I lived in Idaho's Balls we used to tour around on the defunct Taylor Mountain, it was pretty fun and got better snow than Kelly Canyon. The land owners shut down access but a quick google reveals it may be tourable again?

[thefrush]

if you ski at Niseko there is an abandoned ski hill just past Moiwa, lots of hot springs, an army barracks just to one side where they ski on wierd tele gear

Good touring over there. And ahhhh, the onsens.

[cstefanic]

Deep Creek, Montana

On the road from Anaconda to Wisdom/Big Hole.

https://mapcarta.com/23642020

My parents have a place right up the road from there. Still see the runs cut in to the hill--looks like it would have been a really fun little spot.

[dookeyXXX]

My parents have a place right up the road from there. Still see the runs cut in to the hill--looks like it would have been a really fun little spot.

Just my 2cents worth, but methinks you need to hit that this season...

[cstefanic]

Word has it that the folks that own it aren't keen on letting people up there. I think the reason it shut down in the first place was an injury-related insurance case. Also they tore out the bridge over the river, so the only path up there is through private property and gates. Would be fun to see how open they are to a "local" in the area, though.

[Canada1]

Ski rio. Skied it. If you are thinking about touring there, you probably drive by better terrain getting there.

[MiddleOfNight]

The old Marble resort .. towers, cables, abandoned lodge still there.
100% private. I guess a few years ago someone on a saucer sled crashed into a tree and either got really hurt, maybe died. The owner is super strict now and there is effectively no access.

http://www.coloradoskihistory.com/lost/marble.html

Also, Hayden was almost a go back in the 1930s (?) but I think failed with WW2. Still some road grades up there, and Hayden peak is a regular, albeit busy, tour. It's important that at least one person falls in the creek.

[skiJ]

I ran across this video after watching the Black Crowes film on the abandoned Ski Rio mountain. I'm sure some of you skied at these mountains before they closed and some have probably skied them since. What are they like? I find the whole idea of abandoned mountains pretty interesting and the uphill access a great prospect for tours in the future.

Just weighing in to say I enjoyed this video and the history of the commentary...

enjoy what you have while you can...

Thank you for this post and this thread - tj

[bonewrenched]

Iron Mountain--gotta love a ski area where the access road ends at the lodge--at the top of the hill.

Just gotta get there before the sleds track it out!

[Wookiee]

Solid video and enjoyed hearing from the folks who skied these hills in their heyday. There are a good number of defunct places in New England but don’t know of many that can still be skied. It seems most are in low snow areas, fully grown in, or now private property.

[myles long]

Great stoke - thanks for sharing.

Always loved this video:

Thanks for sharing this one! I remember skiing there when one of those comps was going on in 2000. Brings back such great memories of such a cool place to ski.

[myles long]

That Berthoud video is sweet, I was in a bunch of those comps and I think I recognize a few of those guys. If I remember right, for a while they were running a deal where a car load of four could get tickets for $20. Total. With shuttles picking up at the bottom of the pass. Was making plans to move to WP and make Berthoud my home mountain when they shut down for good.
Wonder if any ski areas are gonna go outta biz and join the list due to covid.

I remember the car load deals...I also seem to remember there was a variable priced lift ticket based on new snow or not...I think it was something like $25 for regular and $35 for a powder day. Riding those buses back up to the lifts never got old.

[mcf735]

Great share - thank you!

[adrenalated]

I missed this thread the first time around, so glad for this m series jong's bump!

Glad to see this movie get some attention outside of CO! As doebedoe said, the premiere of this was insanely fun, I still can't believe we had a packed house for it.
There are many mags that are a part of Friends of Berthoud Pass, including many of the OG founders. Some still post here, some don't.
Sadly, I never skied BP when it was a resort, I would have loved to.
I've explored around a few of the other CO abandoned ski areas, but lack of snowfall was a major reason many closed, and climate change has not improved that situation. Still some fun turns to be had out there.

[powdork]

I missed this thread the first time around, so glad for this m series jong's bump!

Glad to see this movie get some attention outside of CO! As doebedoe said, the premiere of this was insanely fun, I still can't believe we had a packed house for it.
There are many mags that are a part of Friends of Berthoud Pass, including many of the OG founders. Some still post here, some don't.
Sadly, I never skied BP when it was a resort, I would have loved to.
I've explored around a few of the other CO abandoned ski areas, but lack of snowfall was a major reason many closed, and climate change has not improved that situation. Still some fun turns to be had out there.

Huckasoreass for instance. And the first snowboarder in the Berthoud section of the movie looked like Robb Gaffney

[Jax]

Stagecoach Ski Area, just 17 miles south of Steamboat. Operated '73-'74, and they have failed to get it running since. There have been talks on and off over the past few years of reopening, the land owner went so far as to actually groom a few more 'runs' for the purpose of selling adjacent properties last year, but the reality, as Adrenalated has stated, is pretty much why it won't come to fruition unless some idiot millionaire wants to give a crack at it. The only benefit Stagecoach has is it's mostly north facing. I lived right at the base for a few years and enjoyed skinning up with my old pooch quite a bit. Some big cats live up in those woods.

I've often thought how cool it would be to get some MTB trails on that land though, DH and xc. As it is, the Stagecoach development is seeing a ton of action these days, so who knows what the future holds.


sorry, square pic from my insta

[AdironRider]

There's a ski lift setup out by the hot springs near steamboat. Is that an abandoned area or just some rich fucks play thing? The houses out there say rich fucks but I always wondered.

[adrenalated]

I've often thought how cool it would be to get some MTB trails on that land though, DH and xc.

A lot of the abandoned CO ski areas are small, lacking in snow, and don't have much steep skiing. In other words, perfect for MTB trails!

[stealurface831]

there is a place here in nc called hawksnest that used to be a ski mountain but is all tubing now. it would be perfect for mtb trails, according to my father.

[Foggy_Goggles]

Thanks for the video! I haven't seen it is forever. Ski at The Pass>Hang out at Da Pub was the story of my life for a long time and I'm thankful for that. Make Skiing Fun Again.

[Jax]

There's a ski lift setup out by the hot springs near steamboat. Is that an abandoned area or just some rich fucks play thing? The houses out there say rich fucks but I always wondered.

It was not a ski lift, it was used to transport something or other way back in the day, I'll see if I can find it again where I read about it. Owner of that property started Moots and after, Eriksen. Other folk up there include owner of Big Agnes, the town's only proctologist, and the owner of the hot springs. I'm lucky to live up there as well, but I'm broke AF, just fortunate to have landed a kick ass rental with a lot of land, incredible wilderness access and awesome neighbors.

[Jong Lafitte]

Lots of history on CO areas in these two books