Sparky
New member
I'm goig to Denver for a one week trip. I'm hoping to hit Breckenridge,Keystone,Copper and Loveland. Any suggestions as to what Blue and Black trails I should hit?
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Heading West
- Thread starter Sparky
- Start date
St. Bear
New member
If you can see it, ski it.
abc
Well-known member
Oh well, hope you got the drift of those cryptic replies.
Basically, mountains out west tend to be wide open (especially blacks), you ski what you can see. So a lot of times, "trails" doesn't really have the same meaning as in say, Jiminy Peak. (that said, Keystone is more like Jiminy, except I almost never ski there. I want to ski something I can't get back east)
Basically, mountains out west tend to be wide open (especially blacks), you ski what you can see. So a lot of times, "trails" doesn't really have the same meaning as in say, Jiminy Peak. (that said, Keystone is more like Jiminy, except I almost never ski there. I want to ski something I can't get back east)
Smellytele
Well-known member
skip Keystone and hit A-basin
steamboat1
New member
Why? I enjoyed Keystone alot the one day I skied there.
Smellytele
Well-known member
Not a big fan of the set up of up one side down the other, out and back, over a few hills. It forces everyone to either race to the way back of the ski area and work their way back or never make it out there and back. It limits were people can ski at the end of the day to the front part.
Smellytele
Well-known member
Also to get to most above tree line skiing you have to take a "tour" that cost over 200 to ride the cats. The outback bowl only costs an extra $10 but only runs to 1:30 because you have to make sure you can ski back across the whole ski area before close.
Calling Breckenridge resident Ski Stef and CO native SkiNEwhere to chime in with suggestions 
Abominable
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+1. It's been fifteen years, but A-basin is my best memory from a trip skiing all these Summit county places.
Suppose it depends on snow though.
Talisman
New member
Skip Loveland would be another option. Loveland had good snow and sparse crowd, but lacked the steeps of Arapaho. Not matter what you trade off, A-Basin should be on your "must" list.
St. Bear
New member
Yes, but not by that much. Avalanche Bowl and Over the Rainbow are just as steep and long as Pali, and there are tons of steep shots off the ridges if you're willing to hike/traverse a bit. You make it seem like Loveland is like Vail.
If you're into the more down-to-earth vibe, smaller crowds, and steeper terrain, then I agree on skipping Keystone in favor of A-Basin. If you want the "resort" experience, go to Keystone.
If you want to check out Cooper (two o's, one p... see my sig), send me a PM. I'd be glad to give you the grand tour.
Conditions in general are pretty good out here now. We did have a dry spell, but that's in the past. Snowing pretty consistently now, in smaller amounts at a time, but enough to keep everything fresh and soft.
If you want to check out Cooper (two o's, one p... see my sig), send me a PM. I'd be glad to give you the grand tour.
Conditions in general are pretty good out here now. We did have a dry spell, but that's in the past. Snowing pretty consistently now, in smaller amounts at a time, but enough to keep everything fresh and soft.
KevinF
Member
Ummmm... it's been a while since I skied Loveland, but if you're not finding steep stuff there, you're not looking very hard. It might require a little more work than finding steeps at A-Basin, but the steeps are there. Also, A-Basin gets much more crowded than Loveland does... you can find fresh powder easily at Loveland days after a storm.
Both places are best saved for sunny days.
skiNEwhere
Active member
Let me ask, is this more of an aspiration or have you already bought tickets? I ask because only Breck and Keystone fall under the same management (Vail Resorts) and have shared lift tickets. Copper and Loveland have different management. There are a lot of partnerships in the state, such as Winter Park/Copper and if you know where to look you can save money. If you've haven't bought anything yet though, it will be tough to find deals at this point.
What kind of terrain do you like? Some places are better than others based on what you're looking for.
Loveland is pretty cheap. Slow, long, chairlifts. Really windy. Good snow that stays fresh due to lack of crowds. The good thing about loveland is that you'll never wait in line. I wrote a little bit about it a while back http://forums.alpinezone.com/showthread.php/131571-Colorado-Ski-Guide?
Copper has a great mix of blue and blacks. Timberline has some nice groomers, and if that's too easy you can move up to the blacks off of the superbee which are groomed as well.
Personally I like Breck the most.
Peak 7 is all blue groomers, and Chair 6 is all single blacks with varying degrees of steepness and difficulty, along with Peak 10.
I never ski Keystone so I don't know much about it other than they don't get much snow and have a sprawling layout.
Pa. Patroller
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I had a great time a Loveland. Very laid back and cheaper.
Also like the trees on outback at keystone. Because it has a mellow rep. tge trees don't see alot of traffic.
I hate the layout of Breckenridge. Very hard to get around.
A basin is very good but NOT as good as most people seem to think. it has great terrain but only on pali. Otherwise just skis smaller then it actually is.
Also like the trees on outback at keystone. Because it has a mellow rep. tge trees don't see alot of traffic.
I hate the layout of Breckenridge. Very hard to get around.
A basin is very good but NOT as good as most people seem to think. it has great terrain but only on pali. Otherwise just skis smaller then it actually is.
Boston Bulldog
Member
Ridge retreating west Mid Month?
unless weather related I couldn't comprehend skiing all around Loveland and not getting a day in. It is textbook Colorado skiing without the big resort. Acre wise it's substantial, Chair 1, 9 and even four dish up good steep skiing and tracks out WAY slower than Summit. I suggest doing some hiking and signing up for the ridge cat to ski above 4 and 8. OTR trees on a snow day is all I need. Also good cheap dive bar.
I can only hope, when winter relaxes back east it starts in Norcal. Seems to be the trend for several years. There's early signs but we will see
I took my at the time GF to Cooper when we first moved to Colorado to get her accustomed to western skiing. We actually loved the chill vibe, she liked the mellow terrain, I had a blast seeking untracked all over.
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