Copper Mountain Resort

Copper really is a terrain-divided mountain. I like to start on the hard stuff and work my way over towards the Timberline Express for the end of the day. Be warned - runs like Far East off of the Alpine Chair can get some massive bumps! Great lifts, lots of diverse terrain and lots of choices for places to eat. Parking and taking the buses is simple and free. If you're an intermediate skier, take the Sierra lift up and check out the Timber Ridge run. You can get a chance to check out Union Bowl on the way up the lift and then ski a super fun blue run down.

Copper, like any other hill in Colorado is amazing if there's fresh pow blanketing the slopes. The trick is finding powder stashes that haven't been scraped bare. For this I like the back side of Union Peak which is serviced by the old school, slow double chairs, Blackjack and Mountain Chief. This area, known as Copper Bowl, is a bit difficult to get to, which is the reason that if there is pow to be found, you'll have a good chance of finding it here.

Another area that earn high marks for likely hood of having pow is Spaulding Bowl to Resolution Bowl. Once you drop into Spaulding, there is one way out, and that's the Resolution triple chair.

Copper's super pipe is generally nicely groomed and is certainly world class in its size.

Copper earns points for my favorite place to eat, Endo's. I love the Greek gyro ($10) and a beer for lunch.

Parking is never an issue, but the free parking lots are serviced by buses. Not a big deal, but not as convenient as the free parking with walking access at Mary Jane or Loveland. Copper is located right off of I-70, so it's ultra convenient. Unlike Breck or Keystone, there are no small, 2 lane roads to file down. If you heading to Copper from the east, once you pass the Breckenridge exit of Frisco, traffic dissipates and it's smooth sailing. Unfortunately the reverse is true heading home, smooth sailing until Frisco and then you can expect backups.