F Vail

[TonyC]

No argument from me on A-Basin, but high alpine at Breck is better than Copper's IMHO, longer sustained fall lines. April groomer skiing is probably better at Copper due to higher proportion of north facing.

Breck's unpleasantness is highly a function of crowds, and they weren't bad when the two days I skied there first week of April 2011, even though one of those days had 13 inches new snow.

 

[Benny Profane]

2011 is so, 2011. The front range just keeps on exploding, and Breck is a far flung rec town to that front range, centered in Denver. It's a thing for Denver kids to drive up there for partying Friday or Saturday, without skiing. Like Hunter to Jersey and CT. kids. Best analogy is the Hamptons to NYC and surrounding towns. Long drive in traffic to party, both ways.

If I go back to Colorado, I'll do Aspen, but not Summit. It's a mess.

 

[TonyC]

2011 is so, 2011.

Point conceded. However you Northeasterners know as much as anyone that most people who live in cold winter climates blow off skiing as soon as it gets warm enough at home for golf and other warm weather recreation. I suspect that's true in Denver and Salt Lake too, and the recent syndrome of increased local crowding of daytrip ski resorts eases off sometime in the spring. Copper and A-Basin are also as accessible to those Denver locals.

My last Front Range trip was late April 2015 to Loveland, Winter Park and A-Basin. I was in Colorado late March this year, but not in Summit: 2 days Crested Butte, Monarch, 2 days Beaver Creek, Vail, Aspen Highlands, Snowmass. 14 inches new the second day at Beaver Creek with decent leftovers the next day at Vail.

 

[takeahike46er]

@ Breck... Is this for real? Even remotely possible?

As a Whistler skier, it’s not only possible, I believe I’ve seen worse

Big powder days midwinter, especially in a lean year, sure bring out the masses!

 

[Benny Profane]

Point conceded. However you Northeasterners know as much as anyone that most people who live in cold winter climates blow off skiing as soon as it gets warm enough at home for golf and other warm weather recreation. I suspect that's true in Denver and Salt Lake too, and the recent syndrome of increased local crowding of daytrip ski resorts eases off sometime in the spring. Copper and A-Basin are also as accessible to those Denver locals. My last Front Range trip was late April 2015 to Loveland, Winter Park and A-Basin.

Oh yeah, agreed
Two of the best powder days I have had when living in Summit were the first and second April Mondays in 2013 or something, dates are lost in the haze. Loveland got hammered over both weekends, chair 9 was closed, but opened the next day to bluebird crystals in the air. It was ridiculous. Lapped chair 9 seven times first thing. First three runs, I swear, were just, turn left off the chair, go down, repeat. I was skiing right next to my tracks each time, nobody else tracked over them. Just, fly like bird. I actually stopped once to have company on the quad. Like, dude, isn't this awesome? Yeah. Everybody was working and biking in 70 degree Denver, no tourists. That's key. Tourists stop late March. But Abasin is good til May.

 

[Ripitz]

I lived for a month in Breckenridge in 2008. The top gets wind scoured and the rest is flat. No plans to go back.

 

[Benny Profane]

Hard to argue. But, there's fun up there.

Another thing. Breck is so big, and has such a large base of locals working, that it gets cut up immediately by them in a storm. One morning I realized I was racing to get goods against, like, a hundred instructors in the trees before they had to go to work.yellow jackets everywhere. Frenzy.

 

[Harvey]

Breck is so big, and has such a large base of locals working, that it gets cut up immediately by them in a storm. One morning I realized I was racing to get goods against, like, a hundred instructors in the trees before they had to go to work.yellow jackets everywhere. Frenzy.

This does not sound fun.

 

[Ripitz]

Another thing. Breck is so big, and has such a large base of locals working, that it gets cut up immediately by them in a storm. One morning I realized I was racing to get goods against, like, a hundred instructors in the trees before they had to go to work.yellow jackets everywhere. Frenzy.

Truth

 

[Ripitz]

Hard to argue. But, there's fun up there.

There was some fun stuff off E-Chair if you ducked in behind that restaurant.