Crested Butte or Heavenly

[Tricia]

@Philpug and @Tricia absolutely need to hit up CB. An absolute must ski mountain for advanced skiers looking for a challenge. You can spend weeks exploring the nooks and cranny's of what seems like a really small place but isn't. Of course when you do that on your own you may be traversing or climbing uphill to get yourself out of a tight situation but that's part of the fun.

So you're saying that we should hire you to be our guide for such a trip?

 

[Jack skis]

It grows on me everytime I go there. No matter how good you think you are, you will find spots that make think you twice. I was trying to think of all the 'expert' mountains that I've skied what is most like it and the only one that I think comes close is Taos. Taos has bigger more obvious lines but still has that tight super steep nooks and crannies thing going on. Parts of the Bird as well but that mountain is so big and my time there is limited.

Recent posts about CB have improved my mood significantly. I like the reference to Taos. As you stand at the base at Taos and look up the lift line you have no sense of what you'll find up on the mountain. At CB base you see the Peak so have a better sense of what's up, but the Headwall, Teo(s), and Northface are all completely out of sight, as are the bumps, trees, and blacks from the top of the Silver Queen to the base.

Another post recommends a guide for heading into the North Face Good idea for the West Side, Banana, Peel, etc., too. At my age I'm past showing you around, but can show you where to get into trouble if that's your game. Well, maybe not trouble so much as extreme fun.

As far as snow coverage goes, some years are better than others. Not unusual for ski areas.

 

[Snowfan]

As a CB skier I'm really getting depressed here. I assume I won't see any of you on the mountain in 2017-18. More for myself. Hope we all have a good snow year wherever we are.

I'm sure you will see me there this season. I dig the place.

 

[Jerez]

Things I've learned about CB:
- Unless you're a truly elite skier, the snow quality can very much dictate what you're willing to ski. I've dropped Third bowl only once in my 4 trips there.

 

[mdf]

So which of you CB fans are going to be the 2019 Gathermeister?

 

[TonyC]

I agree Taos is probably the closest analogy.

So which of you CB fans are going to be the 2019 Gathermeister?

If you are too worried about adequate coverage/snow at Taos to schedule at Gathering there, you should be more worried about CB.

Some of the fun steep terrain faces SW so mid march onwards can get crusty.

Yes, we skied in 1992 that in mid-afternoon after it had softened. But the bottom line is coverage, so I'll still take my chances with late March/early April over late January/early February.

- It really is a tale of two resorts: mellow cruisers and steeps. Not much in between except a bit off of Silver queen that is advanced but not expert.

I agree, Taos has more for the "in between, advanced but not expert." CB has more at the beginner/low intermediate level.

As far as snow coverage goes, some years are better than others. Not unusual for ski areas.

Yes, but it is quite unusual that a "below average coverage" season means that a substantial amount of terrain never opens at all. Mammoth, despite notorious Sierra volatility, has had only 2 seasons like that in 50 years. CB needs a substantially above average season for Third Bowl, for example, to open.

I will point out that in 2015 I considered Taos a reasonable speculation for a Gathering, as long as it was no earlier than mid-February. The same criterion should apply to CB, with the realization that if you schedule it a year ahead, you may wind up with only 2/3 to 3/4 of the mountain open.

 

[UGASkiDawg]

I agree Taos is probably the closest analogy.

If you are too worried about adequate coverage/snow at Taos to schedule at Gathering there, you should be more worried about CB.

Yes, we skied in 1992 that in mid-afternoon after it had softened. But the bottom line is coverage, so I'll still take my chances with late March/early April over late January/early February.


I agree, Taos has more for the "in between, advanced but not expert." CB has more at the beginner/low intermediate level.


Yes, but it is quite unusual that a "below average coverage" season means that a substantial amount of terrain never opens at all. Mammoth, despite notorious Sierra volatility, has had only 2 seasons like that in 50 years. CB needs a substantially above average season for Third Bowl, for example, to open.

I will point out that in 2015 I considered Taos a reasonable speculation for a Gathering, as long as it was no earlier than mid-February. The same criterion should apply to CB, with the realization that if you schedule it a year ahead, you may wind up with only 2/3 to 3/4 of the mountain open.

2/3rds of CB is better than 100% of most mountains...

 

[mdf]

If you are too worried about adequate coverage/snow at Taos to schedule at Gathering there, you should be more worried about CB.

I was willing to lobby for Taos... but you are right, CB is probably a hard sell.

 

[SBrown]

2/3rds of CB is better than 100% of most mountains...

Yes, but not for 2/3 of skiers.

 

[TonyC]

One idea to consider is to split a Gathering week between Crested Butte and Telluride. That what I did on the 1992 spring break trip. For those coming from afar, the Montrose airport is between the two resorts.

 

[Philpug]

2019 locations will not be discussed until the this years Gathering.

 

[fatbob]

2019 locations will no
t be discussed until the this years Gathering.

Spoilsport - you're denying a great 'American tradition a couple of years of campaigning just to get the nomination to be on the ballot. I hear WB started its pep rallies for 2021 the day you left.

 

[TonyC]

2019 locations will not be discussed until the this years Gathering.

I am aware of the the formal rules about Gatherings, and will not make comments like this online during a Gathering or the immediate lead-in period. I do not see the harm of discussing new ideas during the off season. Consider them trial balloons to gauge sentiment, and perhaps an inspiration to someone local when the time comes.

Crested Butte is an intriguing place but with considerable snow coverage risk. Perhaps some people on the fence would give it a chance if it were not a commitment for a whole week.

I'm obviously a variety junkie who likes to try new places, as evidenced by my ski area count of 212. I applaud that the Gatherings branched out to Aspen and Whistler. I'll bet many attendees enjoyed skiing those places for the first time with some local guidance.

 

[UGASkiDawg]

So you're saying that we should hire you to be our guide for such a trip?

I work cheap....might charge you a beer at Ulley's but be careful you definitely get what you pay for

 

[UGASkiDawg]

For some reason this thread made me think of this classic scene from one of my all time favorite movies

 

[Snowfan]

Here is a video from Powder.com on CB...
http://www.powder.com/latitudes/passing-through-crested-butte-co/

 

[Jeff N]

Crested Butte is awesome, IF the High and North Face T Bar terrain is open and IF you can ski it.

If the good stuff is closed or you don't ski it, it isn't worth the trip. Minus those two lifts, you have a few long cruisers off of paradise, some short cruisers off East River, some REALLY SHORT cruisers on West Wall, pretty short cruisers on Gold Link, and a couple of decent advanced runs off Silver Queen. The green runs on Red Lady can be somewhat funish, I guess.

Really good terrain off the T bars and short cruisers are pretty much the CB experience. The Headwall and North Face areas are very approachable for a decent skier, a wrong turn in Spellbound and Teocalli cliffs you out, Billy goat pillow moves are a must in Third Bowl.

Late January is NOT late enough to have even a reasonable expectation for the T Bar terrain to be open I'm not sure it has ever opened that early. Any chance of March or April?

Skied 4 days at CB 2 seasons ago in April, closing weekend on Midwinter snow top to bottom. The mountain is all North, High up, sheltered, so go there late in the season.

Edit- on second thought, Banana was a bit rough in snow quality in April. Faces a bit West. Everything else stellar.

 

[Jeff N]

Taos vs. CB- I've skied both. There is a reason they are often compared. For reference, the most difficult thing I've skied at Taos was Stauffenberg. Entry scared the HELL out of me, once committed I loved it, but WOW.

Didn't ski anything like that at Crested Butte, but that is because you can scout Stauffenberg and most of the nasty stuff at Taos from below. Most of the truly wild stuff at CB you won't see until you drop in and see.

I didn't ski anything terribly gnarly at CB. Lots of Laps in North Face, none in Spellbound or further over, none in Teocalli. Couldn't scout, skiing alone, wasn't going to push it. Steepest thing I got on was Last Steep, and it was certainly steep, but not Stauffenberg steep. Headwall and the upper North Face bowls were another step below last steep. None of this gets into the more technical terrain further in.

But god was it fun.

I've seen video of Third Bowl. Pay my hospital bill and maybe $50,000 on top, and I'll ski it with you. Or put a gun to my head, but I'm not touching it otherwise.

 

[StuckonI70]

There are very few videos on Youtube of Third Bowl - that tells you something about how much it is open.
The entrance is tough because it is very steep trees, but once you're in, it's incredible. It really opens up in the second half, such a sick zone. It's very challenging back there, but I think there are tougher runs at that mountain (Dead End, High Life, a firm & bumped up Big Chute)
North Face terrain is really hard to describe, you kind of have to see it in person for the light bulb to go off. You see areas like Staircase or Spellbound glade on the map, but they just don't tell the story of what you're in for.

 

[SBrown]

Crested Butte is awesome, IF the High and North Face T Bar terrain is open and IF you can ski it....

Late January is NOT late enough to have even a reasonable expectation for the T Bar terrain to be open I'm not sure it has ever opened that early. Any chance of March or April?

Skied 4 days at CB 2 seasons ago in April, closing weekend on Midwinter snow top to bottom. The mountain is all North, High up, sheltered, so go there late in the season.

Edit- on second thought, Banana was a bit rough in snow quality in April. Faces a bit West. Everything else stellar.

I would say on average this is true, but I have twice skied CB the second week in January when much of the t-bar terrain was open. Not all, but close.