New Mexico — One of the most famous abandoned ski resorts in the country is Ski Rio.
Its large vertical drop and extensive terrain offerings made it one of the most beloved ski areas in New Mexico. However, various factors, including minimal natural snowfall, financial issues, mismanagement, and tough competition (it was situated near Taos and Angel Fire), led to its closure in 2000. Ski Rio’s history was full of debt, lawsuits, foreclosures, bankruptcies, different owners, and closures.
Watch
In Skier72’s latest episode of The Lost Resorts, he dives into the complex history of Ski Rio. In the video, he discusses the history of Ski Rio, why it closed, the revival attempts, and the topography of the slopes. It’s one of his most compressive episodes in this series, thanks to help from SRG Skiing and ColoradoSkiHistory. It sounds like it took Skier72 a lot of work to put this video together, so we’re grateful for his work in telling the complete story behind Ski Rio.
Image/Video Credits: Skier72, Skimap.org