Long known as one of the friendliest and most charming town in the Rockies, Crested Butte has a way of making any outdoor activity unsurpassable. Over 100 years of rich history and diverse terrain, ranging from pancake-flat field to Everest-steep inclines, have afforded this little mountain town a top-notch reputation for skiing, mountain biking, hiking, and any other outdoor sport you can think of.
But Crested Butte Mountain Resort, three miles from the town’s historical district, has had its fair share of problems in the recent past. Blasé ownership and a shortage of funds have inspired complaints about slow and aging lifts, poorly groomed trails, and sub-par customer service. However the conditions—including as much as 25 feet of snow each year, the most double-black-diamond runs in Colorado, and some of the best snowboarding terrain in North America—have always been a constant, leaving the weary skier and ‘boarder to decide if it’s worth enduring the bad to enjoy the good. The area now is in the middle of a $57.3 million improvement project that will expand the lodge and acres of runs.
But now there’s a new sheriff in town. As of March 2004, Tim and Diane Mueller, owners of Okemo Mountain Resort in Ludlow, VT, bid on Crested Butte Mountain Resort and undertook the task of restoring every one of the resorts 1,000 acres. They’ve have already invested millions for a series of facelifts, including remodeling the base-area buildings, expanding snowmaking and slope grooming capabilities, and installing a new lift that will add three new trails and 15 intermediate acres. The Magic Carpet lift will also be lengthened to increase capacity for beginners, and a fleet of Snowcats. Long-term visions include a new Mt. Crested Butte Town Center and an expansion to neighboring Snodgrass Mountain. And, considering the aforementioned ideal conditions and terrain, we suspect that this is just the beginning of a lot of really great things to come.
Where: 28 miles from Gunnison, via Colorado 135
What's There: 2,775-foot vertical drop (3,062-foot drop, including hike-to terrain), 121 trails, 1,167 acres, four high-speed quads, two fixed-grip quads, two triple chairs, three double chairs, three surface lifts, two Magic Carpets, and a snowboard park.
New additions for the 2009-10 season include the remodeling of the Ice Bar restaurant; new base area Adventure Park complete with year-round synthetic ice rink, bungee trampolines, and a climbing wall; installation of a lift-served tubing hill; the addition of a new combined beginner learning area for children and adults; and upgrades to the Outpost Building Day Lodge.
During the 2008-09 season increased and expanded airline service made it MUCH easier to reach the Butte, a new "Camp CB" replaced Kids World, and on-mountain terrain expanded in Teocalli Bowl. In 2009-10 Ice Bar restaurant is slated for a remodeling; a new base area Adventure Park will be built, complete with year-round synthetic ice rink, bungee trampolines, and a climbing wall; a lift-served tubing hill will be installed; and a new combined beginner learning area for children and adults will be added.
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$60 or less;