jamesdeluxe
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2020
As you may remember from my previous two visits in 2010 and 2017, Monarch definitely rates amongst my favorite locals areas in North America, so when I flew into Denver last Sunday and saw that Wolf Creek and Monarch had by far the deepest bases of snow in Colorado, the decision was easy for this weekend. I drove up Friday night and when I left my motel in Salida the next morning, things were looking fine in the valley. However, this sign on Route 50 leading up to Monarch Pass told a different story:
Ten minutes later, it looked like this and by the time I got to the ski area, it was snowing sideways. The skiing all day was fantastic, but 30+mph wind gusts froze my hands whenever I took them out of my mittens and kept me from taking pix.
Sunday morning was looking much more promising and when I pulled into the parking lot at 8 am, seeing a ski patroller's untracked run with his dog bounding through the snow after him was a sign of how it'd be today:
With more snow tonight, they'll clear 150 inches YTD by tomorrow morning.
The skies never quite cleared up so the pix from my beater camera aren't fabulous:
Lots of relaxed meadow skipping:
Reverse shot:
Mirkwood Basin was closed for avy work, so I traversed left to Outback Bowl:
A couple shots of this lady:
Three shots of her husband:
The groomers were skiing nicely too:
Given its modest vertical, Monarch has all fixed-grip chairs: one triple and three doubles. The old-school doubles should bring a smile to Upstate NY lift freaks:
I walked right up to the plaque to see the date of manufacture but it was rubbed off -- I'm guessing early 1970s?
A nice start to my season.
Ten minutes later, it looked like this and by the time I got to the ski area, it was snowing sideways. The skiing all day was fantastic, but 30+mph wind gusts froze my hands whenever I took them out of my mittens and kept me from taking pix.
Sunday morning was looking much more promising and when I pulled into the parking lot at 8 am, seeing a ski patroller's untracked run with his dog bounding through the snow after him was a sign of how it'd be today:
With more snow tonight, they'll clear 150 inches YTD by tomorrow morning.
The skies never quite cleared up so the pix from my beater camera aren't fabulous:
Lots of relaxed meadow skipping:
Reverse shot:
Mirkwood Basin was closed for avy work, so I traversed left to Outback Bowl:
A couple shots of this lady:
Three shots of her husband:
The groomers were skiing nicely too:
Given its modest vertical, Monarch has all fixed-grip chairs: one triple and three doubles. The old-school doubles should bring a smile to Upstate NY lift freaks:
I walked right up to the plaque to see the date of manufacture but it was rubbed off -- I'm guessing early 1970s?
A nice start to my season.
Last edited:
