Finally pulled the trigger - Colorado ski trip in Feb

[jimk]

Backpack with liquids or camelbak are both good. For lowest budget solution I sometimes just carry 12 oz water bottle in ski jacket pocket and refill a couple times during the day. This is out west at altitude. Back East I never carry water on the slopes, just drink in lodge a couple times per day.

Water bottle story: One time in Jan 2011 after a vigorous run at Snowbird I tried to wolf down a granola bar on the Mineral Basin Chair. I guess I had a really dry throat/mouth and the thing hit me like I swallowed a mouthful of sawdust. I was literally choking. My 12 oz bottle in my pocket was empty, but thank God my son still had half of his and if it wasn't a life saver, it was close to it.:dunce:

 

[TheArchitect]

Thanks to the OP for posting this thread. I'm making my first trip out west in late Feb (Alta-Snowbird) and the advice on altitude sickness is great. I have a Camelbak but hadn't considered electrolytes.

 

[dlague]

Www.Altitude-adjustment.com

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[dlague]

Oh another good point! The sun is much stronger higher up and sun protection is important. While on vacation last February in CO and now living here, your face gets burned faster.

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[dlague]

Here is the product (Altitude Adapt) we used on our trip which helped with altitude IMO. My wife even bought small canisters of Oxygen.

http://briangreen.net/2013/08/altitude-adapt-reader-testimonial.html

 

[Whitey]

Me personally I like Winter Park the most out of Copper, Steamboat and Winter Park but Steamboat is pretty awesome with Fresh snow...All three are good times. Copper and WP have better snow preservation and sit higher FYI.

Given that the Monday that we ski there will be Presidents' Day Monday, which do you think would be the better option, WP or Copper? I hate long lift lines. . . Either one is a option for us as they are both on the max pass and both are kind of on the way to Steamboat.

 

[RISkier]

I've read that altitude USUALLY isn't too much of a problem till you start sleeping at 8,000' and higher. Other than a little shortness of breath, neither my wife nor I have had any issues staying in Park City, and I think altitude at Steamboat is about the same as Park City. First time I slept in Frisco I thought my head was going to explode. I'd be surprised if you have too much trouble spending a night in Golden, then skiing at Copper, and then sleeping in Steamboat. And I'd echo the sage advice about hydration.

 

[snoseek]

Given that the Monday that we ski there will be Presidents' Day Monday, which do you think would be the better option, WP or Copper? I hate long lift lines. . . Either one is a option for us as they are both on the max pass and both are kind of on the way to Steamboat.

Honestly its a toss up but at Winter Park you can at least get away from the hustle if you ride the older doubles at mary jane, Eagle Wind or the Quad on the far lower right of the trail map (forget name). Personally I would be at Loveland that day.

 

[Whitey]

Honestly its a toss up but at Winter Park you can at least get away from the hustle if you ride the older doubles at mary jane, Eagle Wind or the Quad on the far lower right of the trail map (forget name). Personally I would be at Loveland that day.

Hear ya, I'd probably go to A-Basin or Loveland if all else was equal. But they aren't on the Max Pass and when skiing with a group of 4 - those day tix can add up fast. When I was working out the budget for this trip the lift tix were a killer without working in some kind of discounts. Hitting Max Pass Colorado mtns and using the max pass for the mtns it gives me in the east to ski just makes too much sense (but does limit my options too). I am OK with skiing the eastern mtns on the max pass this season, decent selection of mtns.

All good things require some sacrifice. . .

 

[Smellytele]

Hear ya, I'd probably go to A-Basin or Loveland if all else was equal. But they aren't on the Max Pass and when skiing with a group of 4 - those day tix can add up fast. When I was working out the budget for this trip the lift tix were a killer without working in some kind of discounts. Hitting Max Pass Colorado mtns and using the max pass for the mtns it gives me in the east to ski just makes too much sense (but does limit my options too). I am OK with skiing the eastern mtns on the max pass this season, decent selection of mtns.

All good things require some sacrifice. . .

You can usually find cheap tix to Loveland and sometimes A-basin easier than other mountains in CO.

 

[jimk]

Given that the Monday that we ski there will be Presidents' Day Monday, which do you think would be the better option, WP or Copper? I hate long lift lines. . . Either one is a option for us as they are both on the max pass and both are kind of on the way to Steamboat.

Probably about equal crowds, so probably take your pick, but something tells me Winter Park might clear out a little earlier than Copper. The return to Denver over Berthoud Pass can sometimes be challenging from Winter Park.

Hear ya, I'd probably go to A-Basin or Loveland if all else was equal. But they aren't on the Max Pass and when skiing with a group of 4 - those day tix can add up fast. When I was working out the budget for this trip the lift tix were a killer without working in some kind of discounts. Hitting Max Pass Colorado mtns and using the max pass for the mtns it gives me in the east to ski just makes too much sense (but does limit my options too). I am OK with skiing the eastern mtns on the max pass this season, decent selection of mtns.

All good things require some sacrifice. . .

No sacrifice. Copper, Winter Park, and Steamboat are a fine representation of western skiing and with a little luck you should catch superb conditions in late Feb.

Copper:

Steamboat:

 

[Whitey]

JimK -

Thank you! You've given me a lot of good info and I especially liked your write ups and trip reports. I am hoping I get more snow than what you got in 2013. I have dreams of skiing knee deep powder thru the trees in SS.

 

[dlague]

Hear ya, I'd probably go to A-Basin or Loveland if all else was equal. But they aren't on the Max Pass and when skiing with a group of 4 - those day tix can add up fast. When I was working out the budget for this trip the lift tix were a killer without working in some kind of discounts. Hitting Max Pass Colorado mtns and using the max pass for the mtns it gives me in the east to ski just makes too much sense (but does limit my options too). I am OK with skiing the eastern mtns on the max pass this season, decent selection of mtns.

All good things require some sacrifice. . .

Order a couple Gems Cards and get 2 for 1 at A Basin and Loveland. If you only use it once probably not worth it only save $7-15 on first use. After that those 2 for 1 deals add up to a lot of savings.

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[Whitey]

Reading all of the links and info people have posted here about handling the altitude and altitude sickness. Each one has some version of the following in them: "Avoiding caffeine, alcohol, and unhealthy foods will help with preventing altitude sickness and help you adjust to the altitude"

"Caffeine, alcohol, and unhealthy foods"???? I call that "apres ski". Looks like I am gonna be altitude sick and hungover on this trip. . .

That's like saying that as long as you avoid the sex, the drugs, and don't swim in the pool - then a trip to the Playboy mansion can be a nice, healthy visit. That may be true, but without those things - why go at all?

 

[dlague]

Reading all of the links and info people have posted here about handling the altitude and altitude sickness. Each one has some version of the following in them: "Avoiding caffeine, alcohol, and unhealthy foods will help with preventing altitude sickness and help you adjust to the altitude"

"Caffeine, alcohol, and unhealthy foods"???? I call that "apres ski". Looks like I am gonna be altitude sick and hungover on this trip. . .

That's like saying that as long as you avoid the sex, the drugs, and don't swim in the pool - then a trip to the Playboy mansion can be a nice, healthy visit. That may be true, but without those things - why go at all?

I did not bother following that advice. While we ate at our condo, we did partake in apres ski for sure! Also always had my coffee in the AM.

Some people are not affected by it as much.


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[jimk]

Whitey, your group is going to sleep in Golden (elev 5700') first night and Steamboat Springs (elev 6700) rest of trip. That's a great schedule for keeping altitude problems at a minimum. If anyone in your group has issues they will probably feel it at the end of the first ski day because Copper and WP are both high, but when you sleep in Steamboat that night it will probably alleviate things fairly well. Skip the booze first night or two and then it's bottoms up.:beer:

PS: this is about four year old info, so take with grain of salt, but Here’s my best Steamboat lunch tip: $15 will get you Hazie’s great soup and salad bar with wait service at the top of the gondola, linen table cloths, and stunning views while one level down the hoards in the cafeteria are paying about the same for burgers and fries. Not my photo:

 

[Cornhead]

Ha, I've been "forced" to ski out West. My first trip was completely out of the blue. My sister, an artist in NYC, regularly rented a studio in Santa Fe. She asked if I wanted to join her for a week in March. I brought my boots and rented skis. Santa Fe and Taos on that trip. Went back again 4yrs later. Added Pajarito to the list.

Three yrs ago my kid moved to Boulder. Damn, forced to ski CO. A-basin and Wolf Creek there. Skied 6 days at A-basin, 2 at Taos for $269. I checked on a day pass to Breck while I was out there, $135!

Have fun, I strongly recommend carrying something to drink. I left my water bottle in the car one day at Taos. I thought if I drank regularly from the various lodges I'd be good, I wasn't, felt like shit. Was fine every other time.

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[dlague]

Whitey, your group is going to sleep in Golden (elev 5700') first night and Steamboat Springs (elev 6700) rest of trip. That's a great schedule for keeping altitude problems at a minimum. If anyone in your group has issues they will probably feel it at the end of the first ski day because Copper and WP are both high, but when you sleep in Steamboat that night it will probably alleviate things fairly well. Skip the booze first night or two and then it's bottoms up.:beer:

PS: this is about four year old info, so take with grain of salt, but Here’s my best Steamboat lunch tip: $15 will get you Hazie’s great soup and salad bar with wait service at the top of the gondola, linen table cloths, and stunning views while one level down the hoards in the cafeteria are paying about the same for burgers and fries. Not my photo:

Agree 5000-6000 ft is not an issue for sleeping. When we stayed in Dillon at 9100 ft nights were tough but we stayed in Colorado Springs (6800 ft) our final night of our trip due to an interview there and sleeping was way more comfortable.

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[Whitey]

Wheels up tonight. I will post some stuff as we go through the week. We are going to do Copper-Steamboat-Winter Park. With 4 days at SS and just 1 day each at WP and CM. Skis/boots/helmets/gear were delivered to our hotel on Friday so we just have to pack our clothes for the flight & then grab our gear when we get to the hotel, that's nice. I was a little surprised at how much our ski gear weighed when I packed it to ship. Group of 5, our gear including boots/skis/helmets/boot bags/etc was about 175 lbs! I guess I never really thought about that before. That's about 35 lbs of gear per person. Thank god I get a good discount on shipping.

Kind of crazy that for 10+ years I've been skiing northeast areas during Feb school break with my family. We have skied some pretty sh!tty conditions (some good too). Especially last year when we left earlier for the first time ever for us from a ski trip (it was that bad). Now that I finally pulled the trigger on a western trip for Feb school vacation and of course the conditions up north are some of the best in years. Oh well, not looking for sympathy for a guy who is about to ski CO for a week. . .

 

[jimk]

Should see some bumps out there, maybe spring bump ski conditions. I'm about one week behind you going to CO also. Interested to hear how conditions are at Copper.