From Groomers To Bowls, Copper Mountain Offers Up A Full Menu
If you were to design the most complete ski and snowboard mountain, the template might well be Colorado's Copper Mountain.
From West Village's ballroom greens to Central's fast-running blues to the serious slashes off Alpine chair -- plus the acres of bowls above -- Copper Mountain has plenty of something for everyone.
Rising nearly 3,000 vertical feet out of I-70, Copper spreads across 2,500 lift-accessible acres under three 12,000-foot peaks -- an expanse so large the trail map has three insets and faces all compass points save due south. Sitting in the middle of Colorado's highest ground, Copper catches as much snow as anyone.
Weekends and powder days draw Front Rangers by the thousands but, with massive parking lots, efficient shuttles and 24 well-linked lifts, even the biggest crowds can be splayed around to keep the lines within reason.
Reworked West Village (with aptly named The Schoolhouse lodge) is where beginners, novices, relaxers and park rats find a groomed home. Three chairlifts work in progression to safely up the ante and get folks higher up the hill. The Kokomo Express is dedicated to four Woodward terrain parks of varying difficulty.
Around to condo-crammed Central Village, a pair of high-speeds hustle folks high onto the hill. The line between green and blue begins the blur here, as the pitch steepens and the groomers stretch their legs. Green-rated Coppertone merges with blue Carefree, while blues Bittersweet and Main Vein carve from top to bottom.
From here, things get serious. The Super Bee six-pack spins out of East Village, and nary a green can be found. Speedster carving and straight-lining is the name of the game here; World Cup downhillers train on the Andy's Encore/Ore Deal course that descends 2,300 feet in two miles.
To skier's right are the true blacks of Copper. Far East, Too Much, Formidable and others free-fall relentlessly. No-hurry Alpine double -- still a fixed grip after 45 years -- gives thighs a much welcomed break.
Then, atop of it all, Copper puts up its toughest tests. From the top of the base area lifts, four alpine bowls await to rival any in the Rockies. Chairlifts run to the ridges above Resolution, Spaulding, Union and Copper bowls. A couple of surface lifts fill in the uphill matrix.
From there, muscle up for steep and deep laps, as most lines end up with a runout to the lift. Drainpipe down Resolution Bowl, Taco in Copper Bowl and Cornice Chute on Spaulding Bowl are just a few of the lusty lines for those that dare. Plus, plenty of hike-to terrain up toward Jacques Peak (13,205).
And from these summits, the views of the Ten-Mile Range to the east, Gore Range to the north, and state's highest Mosquito Range in the south should give cause to pause and be grateful for all that Copper Mountain has to offer.
