Northern Colorado Resorts Open Up With New Lifts, Terrain
The Continental Divide brings deep snowfall to northern Colorado's mountains where three ski and snowboard operations are constantly upping their games.
Up north, Steamboat (3,741 a., 3,668 vert.) wraps up a multi-year overhaul up with the extension of the new Wild Blue Gondola to the 10,384-foot-high summit of Sunshine Peak, and a high-speed chair for more expert terrain.
The 10-seat gondola cabins load at the base, head to a mid-station at the revamped Greenhorn Ranch learning center, and then take a sharp right to complete a 13-minute run to the top. The Wild Blue base-to-summit gondola will nearly double the ability to get people out of the totally remodeled base area and help loosen morning and late-day choke points.
Also added to the trail map is a detachable quad on the far east boundary off Mahogany Ridge into the Fish Creek area -- long a locals' powder stash. The new quad serves 655 acres of gullies and glades, and eliminates a hike out.
About 80 miles down U.S. 40, Winter Park's (3,081 a., 3,060 vert.) skiers and riders who want more out of the Denver-owned hill will get a glimpse of the future with a new six-pack in the mountain's midsection.
Named Wild Spur Express, the new detachable six-seater runs along the same route as the 36-year-old Pioneer Express four-pack, one of the oldest high-speed chairs in Colorado. The new detachable chair increases uphill capacity by 30% in the popular Vasquez Ridge section. To further ease congestion, officials added a mid-station to keep more folks on the hill.
The new high-speed is the first move of a proposed multi-year project to expand the Vasquez Ridge and Cirque sections, which top out at 12,060 feet elevation. Also planned is a three-mile gondola from the downtown Winter Park.
About 30 miles north, Granby Ranch Ski Resort (406 a., 1,000 vert.) continues to dig its way out of a tumultuous 40-year history. Being the only Colorado ski and snowboard mountain on private land has attracted, over the years, all manner of developers with schemes of varying success. New ownership in 2021 promised stability
New this season is a 400-foot-long conveyor at the base to further promote Granby as a learner's hill.
Granby's on the Indy Pass, while both Steamboat and Winter Park accept Ikon Pass.
