Plenty of snow and a “bluebird day” in late February
By Eileen Ogintz
Everyone is smiling, grooving to the music of The Lil Smokies—the adults, the kids, even it seems the pooches in the audience.
“I love the family vibe,” said Christen Zuvka, who now lives in Chicago but has been skiing at Copper Mountain since she was a kid going to ski school.
Copper Mountain, just 75 miles from Denver and off the major Interstate 70, has long been popular with Denverites. It is part of the IKON pass that provides access to more than 50 snow resorts, Copper, with 2,450 acres of varied terrain is seeing more snow sports lovers from around the country.
Said Loati Bullo. “Everyone comes for the mountain and the adventure…and a good time!”
That was especially true during Subaru WinterFest that draws mountain lovers for the music, the swag (beanies and insulated mugs!), free demos, the chance to meet avalanche dogs, snacks (s’mores! Kate’s Real Food, coffee and hot chocolate!)
“It’s just super fun,” said Melissa McAdams, enjoying her third WinterFest. “And I really like the swag.”
“You always learn something new,” said Rachel Bilski, from Wisco.)n who is spending her first year out of high school working at Copper Mountain, like the Leave No Trace principles in the mountains (respect wildlife, dispose of waste properly…leave what you find and more.)
Subaru will host additional WinterFests in California (Sierra-at-Tahoe March 23-24) Utah (Snowbird April 5-7) and Oregon (Mt. Bachelor April 12-14) . They are among the many spring celebrations and festivals at snow resorts around the country.
“This brings people together,” said Aaron Cole, a Subaru spokesman, noting that those here are given $5 tokens to designate a charity for Subaru to donate as part of their “Share the Love” campaign, including Operation Warm that connects underserved youth with community resources, SheJumps that creates outdoor experiences for girls and women, and Wasatch Back Country Rescue which provides rapid avalanche and winter related mountain rescues.
“There’s a lot of energy,” observed Mitchell Bryan, noting that he and his friends prefer Copper rather than bigger, even busier resorts. “Very chill, not pretentious,” agreed Joelle Friedlander, noting that the free parking coupled with the efficient shuttle system was also a plus.
I can’t ski this season as I’m rehabbing from knee surgeries but my husband, Andy Yemma, certainly enjoyed his time on the slopes and I was able to ride the gondola up to meet him at the new Aerie mid-mountain lodge where skiers and riders were enjoying the spectacular views of the Gore and Ten Mile Ranges while chowing down both at the Forage & Feast Restaurant & Bar (the burger was so big we split it!) There was an eclectic menu including roasted beet salad, Beef Brisket chili, Colorado mountain trout and a kids’ menu complete with kids mocktails (That New Shirley perhaps with pineapple, grenadine and ginger ale) Downstairs is a five station food hall (everything from elk bratwurst to ramen bowls, stone fired flatbreads, mac and cheese, chili and soup, even a hot chocolate bar and candy sold by the bag. (Nothing like a few gummy worms to spur you on after lunch!)
“This has been our go-to mountain since we had kids,” said Tom Terrell, here with his wife and two young kids.
“I like that there I some steep, some medium and some easy places,” added Maddie Terrell, 7.
In fact, skiers, and riders here all opined that a big plus of Copper Mountain is the way its terrain is naturally divided with trails getting progressively harder as you move west to east. Copper also includes some of Colorado’s best advanced terrain on the backside of the mountain in Copper Bowl and on Tucker Mountain.
“It’s very easy to navigate,” said Rene Perez, skiing here with her two grown kids since they were young. She added that unlike other mountain resorts, you don’t need to worry about making a wrong turn and finding yourself on terrain that is too difficult. “You can just enjoy the day,” she said.
And that’s clearly what everyone was doing, not allowing the notorious weekend traffic to spoil their fun.
“The mountain has a lot to offer,” said Joelle Friedlander, especially in spring (early in the day) when it is sunny and warm. Just don’t tell too many people to come!”
