It’s no secret that it’s been a slow start to the ski season in much of Colorado. A lot of resorts still have very limited terrain supplied mainly by snowmaking (huge shoutout to the incredibly hardworking snowmaking teams) especially in the Summit County area. It’s been a lot of groomer skiing with very little moguls or powder laps, if any, but it feels like that’s finally starting to change.
On Saturday, January 10th, Arapahoe Basin opened up their Pallavicini Lift, providing access to some of the first proper steep and deep terrain of the season. Grizzly Road, North Chute, Powder Keg, Slalom Slope, and South Chute are all open, along with West Wall and Cornice Run (accessible via both Pallavicini and Lenawee). That adds several black diamonds to Arapahoe Basin’s open terrain, which was previously limited to blues and greens (albeit very well groomed and fun to rip blues and greens).
Personally I skied Slalom Slope, South Chute, North Chute, and West Wall on Saturday, grabbing several of my first powder laps of the season. Pallavicini opened up right around 12pm, bringing a swarm of skiers and snowboarders to the base of the mountain excited to ride one of the best chairlifts in Colorado. The excitement was very real, as was the skiing.
Arapahoe Basin also announced an expansion of their limited and directed skiing program in the Pali and Front Side zones, allowing skiers and riders to take advantage of yet-to-open terrain with ski patrol guides. Visitors should keep an eye out for patrollers stationed around the mountain by rope lines and closures. Those patrollers will wait for a group to gather before taking them through a guided route, but the terrain will close immediately after. This won’t be posted on the website or social media, so guests will just have to keep an eye out and jump when they see an opportunity. Participants should be aware of their own limits when it comes to terrain.
Many of the ski resorts in Summit County and Front Range Colorado still have a long way to go, but this past weekend felt like things were really coming along. Winter Park opened Mary Jane on Friday, Copper Mountain opened Sierra and Rendezvous, Breckenridge opened E-Chair, and, of course, Arapahoe Basin opened Pallavicini. Winter feels like it’s finally here.
