Most notably, Steamboat Ski Resort will wrap up its $220 million Full Steam Ahead redevelopment project, extending the Wild Blue Gondola from the Greenhorn Ranch learning center to the top of Sunshine Peak. Every hour, it can transport up to 10,000 guests from the base to the summit, a thirteen-minute commute across 3.16 miles. Once complete, it will claim fame as North America’s fastest and longest ten-passenger gondola.
In addition, Steamboat will open the Mahogany Ridge Express quad chairlift, offering access to 655 more acres of advanced and expert terrain. Featured on its updated trail map and now considered in-bounds, Fish Creek Canyon and the area previously known as Pioneer Ridge will make Steamboat the second-largest ski resort in Colorado.
“To now be in the final phase and see Full Steam Ahead become a reality is beyond words. Winter 2023-’24 will be a new era for the resort, but we’ll always be the same Steamboat at our roots,” says Rob Perlman, president and COO of Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation.
Aspen Mountain’s new hand-painted trail map, created by illustrator Rad Smith, pictures the Hero’s expansion.
Aspen Mountain
The six-person Bergman Express lift is Keystone Resort’s latest project. With its installation, no longer will skiers and riders need to earn their turns down the Bergman and Erickson bowls. The expansion covers more than 550 acres and features sixteen fresh trails for all skill levels.
More good news for Epic pass holders: Breckenridge Ski Resort has updated its two-seater 5-Chair into a high-speed quad, now called Five SuperChair. The improvement will better support traffic below Peak 8, the resort’s busiest base area, and will also provide access to its large terrain park, which is moving one run over to Freeway. Freestyle skiers will also want to head to Peak 9 this season — Breck’s medium-sized park will be set on Lower American, while its small park will remain on Eldorado, at the bottom of the Mercury Superchair.
Wolf Creek Ski Area is expanding its beginner terrain by constructing Tumbler, a new quad lift. It will add to the Beginner Lifts package, which includes the existing Nova Chair and Lynx Lift and costs just $44 on non-peak dates. Similarly, Granby Ranch is increasing its beginner terrain via the new SunKid Covered Carpet, located between the Milestone and Conquest lifts. Two covered carpets will service the green, blue and black runs at Hoedown Hill, Colorado’s newest ski area, which is part of the Water Valley Company in Windsor. Spanning twelve acres and having a 130-foot vertical drop, Hoedown will largely cater to novice skiers and riders local to northern Colorado — an audience that back in the ’70s and ’80s frequented Greeley’s now-defunct Sharktooth Ski Area.
Martin Lind, CEO of the Water Valley Company, grew up going to Sharktooth, and its accessibility inspired the new project. “Hoedown Hill will provide fun and adventure at an affordable price for the entire family of all ages," he says.
Also this season, Winter Park Resort will debut its six-person Wild Spur Express lift, formerly a four-passenger lift known as Pioneer Express. When it opens in late November or early December, it will increase uphill capacity by more than 40 percent, transporting 2,800 guests per hour. It also features a new mid-point loading zone, meaning more laps on Vasquez Ridge’s intermediate and advanced upper trails.
Even better, the top of the Wild Spur Express lift will feature on-mountain dining from four new pop-ups serving grilled cheese, Philly cheesesteaks, walking tacos and quesadillas. These dining spots will also appear at the top of the Super Gauge lift, the Mary Jane base area and the bottom of the Olympia lift.
Copper Mountain is introducing a mid-mountain, full-service restaurant: Forage and Feast. Its Colorado-inspired cuisine will be served within the new 25,000-square-foot Aerie lodge, complete with a bar, lounge and private event space. It will replace Solitude Station at the top of the American Eagle lift, which unloads on the Aerie’s second-floor deck.
Purgatory Resort has also updated its on-mountain eatery, Dante’s Lodge, installing LED lights and Dyson hand dryers that have helped to make the establishment almost entirely paper-free. It has also invested in low-energy solutions to snowmaking, efforts that simultaneously improved production capabilities and efficiency by 25 percent. Arapahoe Basin Ski Area announced that as of October, it’s running with 100 percent renewable energy — a major milestone toward its goal of carbon neutrality by 2025. “So many A-Basin projects benefit from utilizing renewable electricity,” notes Sustainability Manager Mike Nathan, who adds, “I’m especially excited to continue growing our electric vehicle charging infrastructure, knowing that those guest trips to the ski area are now fueled by carbon-free clean electricity.”
Eldora Mountain’s Nordic Center has gone completely solar to reduce its carbon footprint. It will also debut a new, 12,000-square-foot ski and ride school at its base, which will double as its adaptive sports building. Nonprofit Ignite Adaptive Sports has operated at Eldora for decades and will now have a permanent station for its programming, which is accessible via RTD’s public transportation system.
Finally, two Colorado ski areas are under new ownership this season. In September, previous holder Burwell Enterprises announced that Echo Mountain, the closest ski area to Denver, was acquired by Jogan Inc., which is headquartered in Englewood.
And after 24 years, Silverton Mountain owners Aaron and Jen Brill sold their creation to Andy Culp and Brock Strasbourger, co-founders of Heli Adventures, an adventure travel operator based in Aspen. Heli-skiing and boarding will remain accessible, as will guided experiences across Silverton’s steep, ungroomed terrain.
“There will be no changes whatsoever to the ski program this coming season,” says Culp, who plans to gently evolve Silverton Mountain throughout the next few years. “I think what's resonated with the community is the personal angle that we [bring] to this operation. We are not just some corporate group sitting in an office somewhere. I'm in Silverton building on Greene Street right now. We’re true Coloradans, and super excited about the opportunity.”
Colorado's ski resorts:
Arapahoe Basin
Open now/closing TBD
970-468-0718
arapahoebasin.com
Aspen Highlands Ski Resort
Opening December 4/closing April 7, 2024
970-923-1227
aspensnowmass.com
Aspen Mountain Ski Resort
Opening November 23/closing April 21, 2024
970-923-1227
aspensnowmass.com
Beaver Creek Resort
Opening November 22/closing TBD
970-754-4636
beavercreek.com
Breckenridge Ski Resort
Open now/closing TBD
970-453-5000
breckenridge.com
Buttermilk Ski Resort
Opening December 9/closing March 31, 2024
970-923-1227
aspensnowmass.com
Copper Mountain Resort
Open now/closing TBD
866-656-1546
coppercolorado.com
Crested Butte Mountain Resort
Opening November 22/closing TBD
970-754-0005
skicb.com
Echo Mountain
Opening/closing TBD
720-899-2100
echomntn.com
Eldora Mountain
Open now/closing TBD
303-440-8700
eldora.com
Granby Ranch
Opening December 8/closing TBD
888-850-4615
granbyranch.com
Hesperus Ski Area
Opening/closing TBD
970-385-2199
ski-hesperus.com
Howelsen Hill Ski Area
Opening November 25/closing March 24, 2024
970-879-8499
steamboatsprings.net/ski
Kendall Mountain Ski Area
Opening December 15/closing TBD
970-387-5522
skikendall.com
Keystone Resort
Open now/closing TBD
970-496-4386
keystoneresort.com
Loveland Ski Area
Open now/closing TBD
303-571-5580
skiloveland.com
Monarch Mountain
Opening/closing TBD
719-530-5000
skimonarch.com
Powderhorn Mountain Resort
Opening November 24/closing TBD
970-268-5700
powderhorn.com
Purgatory Resort
Open now/closing April 7, 2024
970-385-2100
purgatory.ski
Silverton Mountain Ski Area
Opening November 25/closing April 14, 2024
970-387-5706
silvertonmountain.com
Ski Cooper
Opening December 6/closing April 7, 2024
719-486-2277
skicooper.com
Snowmass Ski Area
Opening November 23/closing April 14, 2024
970-923-1227
aspensnowmass.com
Steamboat Ski Resort
Opening November 22/closing TBD
800-922-2722
steamboat.com
Sunlight Mountain Resort
Opening December 8/closing TBD
970-945-7491
sunlightmtn.com
Telluride Ski Resort
Opening November 24/closing April 7, 2024
800-778-8581
tellurideskiresort.com
Vail Ski Resort
Open now/closing TBD
970-754-8245
vail.com
Winter Park Resort
Open now/closing TBD
970-726-5514
winterparkresort.com
Wolf Creek Ski Area
Open now/closing TBD
970-264-5639
wolfcreekski.com
