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The Higher You Go, The Better The Snow: Summit County
By Lillian Ross
No other county in Colorado is so aptly named. Summit County boasts some of the state’s highest peaks — consequently, some of the state’s highest ski and snowboard areas. Besides their heady elevations, the advantages of high altitude recreation can be summed up in one simple phrase: The higher you go, the better the snow.
When you’re skiing or riding your board on mountain peaks between 12,000 and 13,000 feet high, snow quality is primo. Light and dry snow is a given, which means the new snow in which you’re blasting through bowls of powder — or carving your turns through moguls — is easy to maneuver and a joy to play in.
Summit County hasn’t forgotten its mining past, when gold and silver riches were plucked from the earth. Today’s riches are white, but those who seek out the white gold covering the hills believe they’ve found the recreational mother lode.
BRECKENRIDGE
There’s Breckenridge, the town, and Breckenridge, the mountain, or more precisely, the mountains.
The town, a restored Victorian mining community, is one of the largest historic districts in Colorado, with more than 150 structures listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Care has been taken to maintain the integrity of the historic buildings, while new developments integrate and blend so as to offer a concerted look.
The mountains — Peaks 7, 8, 9, and 10 of the Ten Mile Range — stand as sentinels behind the town and serve as the nucleus of the Breckenridge Ski Resort. More than two-dozen high-tech lifts serve 140 trails and 772 acres of gentle to extremely challenging terrain.
Breckenridge, the town, offers close to 100 restaurants featuring cuisine from every corner of the globe; and there are twice as many gift and clothing shops, art galleries and antique stores lining Main Street. Then, 72 outlet stores are just a 10-minute bus ride away.
Up on the mountains, snowboard competitions provide excitement — the Vans Triple Crown of Snowboarding, Dec. 12 to 14, and the Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix, Jan. 8-11. But, the two events that put modern-day Breckenridge on the map are Ullr Fest, a week-long homage to the Norse God of Winter, Jan. 9-15, and the International Snow Sculpture Championships Jan. 27 through Feb. 1. Here, teams from around the world sculpt 12-ft. tall, 20-ton blocks of snow into outstanding works of art
Ice skate indoors or out, mush your own dog sled or drive a snowmobile on a guided tour. Check out the live performances at the Backstage Theater, or workout at the state-of-the-art Breckenridge Recreation Center.
COPPER MOUNTAIN RESORT
The happening place in Summit County, on and off the mountain, is Copper. Its sexy, new village is vibrant. Very European in feel and eclectic by design, a dynamic mix of shops, restaurants and nightclubs spills forth excitement.
Amazing soups and stews are put forth at The Swivel, and Endo’s Adrenaline Cafe gives you a taste of the new flavor of the resort. Pravda lets you experience a Russian-style dance club. And, it wouldn’t be a ski resort without a traditional Irish pub, Larkin’s Cross.
Yet, there’s a family niche at West Lake Market with ice skating, picnic areas, and kids’ play structure. It also boasts one of the finest athletic clubs in Colorado, with a lap pool, weight room and state-of-the-art machines.
The award-winning ski mountain seems to have been designed by Mother Nature herself — advanced terrain to the east, novice slopes to the west, and in between, plenty of area just right for intermediates. This way, beginners won’t be intimidated by zoomers, and zoomers won’t have to slow down for beginners.
Snowboarders are in heaven at Copper, with its rider-friendly attitude; competitions are held all season long.
Copper’s signature event, the Eenie Weenie Bikini Contest, now in its 19th year, will take place on April 18, snow or shine. Costumes, or lack thereof, are classic.
When you want to retire the boards for a little while, go touring — on snowshoes, snowmobiles, and even at stream-fronts on fly-fishing tours.
When you’re in a western frame of mind, hop on a horse-drawn sleigh for a ride through the forest to a heated tent and dinner with all the trimmings.
KEYSTONE
Max Dercum, the man who envisioned and pioneered a ski mountain in his backyard, finally got his long overdue recognition. The front side of Keystone is now called Dercum Mountain.
Max and Edna Dercum bought what is now Ski Tip Lodge, up Montezuma Valley from Keystone. With Max’s U.S. Forest Service and business connections, progress was started on the development of Keystone Mountain with its groomed cruising boulevards
Then, the lights were turned on, and 13 of Keystone’s runs became dreamy night skiing terrain.
Next came North Peak, peeking up behind Keystone. It shows off its legendary bump runs with names like Ambush and Bullet. (Intermediates, relax; there’s terrain for you, too.) The Outback is Keystone’s third and final chapter. With 800 acres of glades and bowls, it offers pure nirvana for accomplished skiers and riders.
Keystone Resort has a dual personality. The original Keystone Village is a Currier & Ives portrait with lighted trees atop a large ice skating lake, surrounded by condominiums and shopping plazas. River Run Village is its contemporary counterpart. Here, at the foot of the gondola, is a pedestrian-style neighborhood with condominium homes rising above shops and restaurants.
Keystone offers a full array of activities, the newest of which is its Alpine Institute, offering hands-on courses taught by professionals. There’s after sports yoga, a hockey clinic, tennis clinic, a mountaintop trek, snowshoe ecological tours, and full-moon snowshoe tours.
Of course, you can count on cross country skiing, horse-drawn sleigh rides, ice-skating and snowmobiling. The resort then sweetens your choices with stargazing workshops and wine appreciation seminars.
More than anything, Keystone is a family resort. Kids’ activities rule. Ski school lessons for children prepare them for a life of skiing. There are toddler sleds on the ice skating lake. Redtail, the Mountain Man, tells tales of the West to kids encircled around an open fire.
Family dining choices are everywhere, from Gassy’s to Ida Belle’s to fondue at the top of the mountain.
Keystone’s signature restaurants — the Alpenglow Stube, The Keystone Ranch and Ski Tip Lodge — offer exquisite, unforgettable choices.
SUMMER AT THE SUMMIT
Many of the locals who came to the Summit for the winter stayed for the incredible summer due to the sunshine, temperatures in the 70s, and more to do than in a full winter.
Sailboats and canoes fill Lake Dillon with its 25-mile shoreline. Paddle- boaters and kayakers navigate the small lakes at all Summit County resorts, while fishermen catch their fill of rainbow trout and kokanee salmon.
Rafters looking for whitewater, roller coaster waves find them on the Blue and Arkansas Rivers. Milder float trips ride the upper Colorado River.
Championship golf is offered at Bre-ckenridge (a Jack Nicklaus design), Copper Mountain (Pete and Perry Dye), Keystone’s two courses (one is by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.), and Silverthorne’s Raven Golf Club. At this elevation, golf balls travel 15 percent farther than at sea level. Drives are ego building; short games are challenging.
The hills of Summit County are alive with the sounds of music — from casual performances in Copper Mountain or Keystone’s plazas to jazz headliners on the floating stage of Breckenridge’s Maggie Pond. Classical evenings are unforgettable at the Breckenridge Music Festival, with the 90-piece National Repertory Orchestra.
Four-wheel tours take you above timberline to the Continental Divide. Or, you can bike the high country; each resort lets you take a rental or your own bike on chairlifts and gondolas, then ride down special bike trails.
A paved bike path circles Summit County, allowing you to ride from Keystone, around Lake Dillon to Breckenridge, and up Ten Mile Canyon to Copper Mountain.
If you still want some downhill thrills, ride a special sled (with brakes) on the dual tracks of Breckenridge’s Alpine Slide. One lane is for slow riders, while the other is for those who want to go all out down the hill. A chairlift brings you and your sled to the top of the tracks.
The West wouldn’t be the West without horseback rides. You have your choice of trail rides into the woods and the hills. Wagon rides take you to dinners in the woods, and at barn dances, you can let your hair down.
Take along a llama on a lunch hike. You walk; these gentle beasts carry the goodies. Or, hike on your own throughout miles of trails in the Summit.
Each resort runs its chairlift for drop-dead gorgeous scenic rides on the mountain. At Keystone, the gondola brings you to the summit of Keystone Mountain, then to North Peak to dine at the Alpenglow Stube. As a summer bonus, most restaurants offer the warm pleasure of patio dining.
You’ll also enjoy a wide variety of outlet stores and local shops that carry everything from antiques to southwestern art. With so much to offer, the Summit doesn’t miss a beat year-round.
Lillian Ross is a freelance writer who writes weekly travel stories for The Denver Post, and travel stories for Colorado Expressions Magazine.
Aspen and Snowmass
When you’re skiing or riding your board on mountain peaks between 12,000 and 13,000 feet high, snow quality is primo. Light and dry snow is a given, which means the new snow in which you’re blasting through bowls of powder — or carving your turns through moguls — is easy to maneuver and a joy to play in.
Up on the mountains, snowboard competitions provide excitement — the Vans Triple Crown of Snowboarding, Dec. 12 to 14, and the Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix, Jan. 8-11. But, the two events that put modern-day Breckenridge on the map are Ullr Fest, a week-long homage to the Norse God of Winter, Jan. 9-15, and the International Snow Sculpture Championships Jan. 27 through Feb. 1. Here, teams from around the world sculpt 12-ft. tall, 20-ton blocks of snow into outstanding works of art
Copper’s signature event, the Eenie Weenie Bikini Contest, now in its 19th year, will take place on April 18, snow or shine. Costumes, or lack thereof, are classic.
Sailboats and canoes fill Lake Dillon with its 25-mile shoreline. Paddle- boaters and kayakers navigate the small lakes at all Summit County resorts, while fishermen catch their fill of rainbow trout and kokanee salmon.