Telluride, USA

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Snowmaking machines: 204 acres
Resort height: 2,659m, 8,725ft
Highest lift: 4008m/13,150ft
No. of lifts: 18
No. of slopes: 125

Total piste length: 2000 acres
Snowparks: 4
Purpose built: No
Glacier: No
City Stop Overs: New York, Washington, Chicago

Transfer times:
Montrose: 1hour 30mins

Snow: Beginners: Intermediates: Advanced: Snowboarding: Off piste: Après-ski: Non skiers:

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The Peaks Resort and Spa
Sat 11th Feb 2012 Sleeps: 2 - 4
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Ice House Lodge
Sat 11th Feb 2012 Sleeps: 2 - 6
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telluride ski resort

Telluride is often ignored by skiers as it lacks the name of an Aspen or Vail, but what it lacks for in status it makes up for in skiing experience. Telluride is an old gold and silver mining town, famous for being the location of Butch Cassidy’s first bank heist, retaining its character through the remaining old red-brick and timber buildings. It is Telluride’s rich history, friendly atmosphere and small-scale, which provides the resort with a Wild Western type of charm. Historically the place to rush to for gold, now it is the skiing in Telluride that visitors rush to this old South-Western Colorado town for.

Skiing and boarding in Telluride

Located in the Uncompahgre National Forest, under the colossal 13,320 ft Palmyra Peak, Telluride ski resort possesses some of the best skiing in Colorado. From the serenity of Telluride’s Prospect Bowl to the extremes of Revelation Bowl, there is something for everyone when skiing in Telluride. Catering for the novice and the expert skier, Telluride provides both easy terrain and more demanding steep chutes. Visitors can easily take a high-speed gondola from the old town to the top station and Telluride’s Mountain Village, providing excellent access to the countless slopes on offer. In addition, the ski resort of Telluride is very snowboarder friendly with few cat tracks and minimal occasion for boarders to navigate long, flat areas of piste. For the skier who likes to freestyle, big air or just simply enjoys more challenging terrain, the resort of Telluride has four Snow Parks: Hoot Brown, Butterfly, Ute and Air Garden.

From intimate slopes to open glades, skiing in Telluride provides ample opportunity for the beginner. Telluride has some 23% of its trails devoted to the novice skier. The main area for the beginner in Telluride is Meadows and the areas around Lift 1, with a collection of rolling, gently undulating trails that would boost the confidence of any beginner skiing in Telluride.

The resort caters excellently for the intermediate skiing in Telluride. Of particular interest to the intermediate skier in Telluride will be the variety of rolling terrain, chutes and moderate pitches around Lift 5. Further challenges for the intermediate in the ski resort of Telluride can be found along the 5km long See Forever, the electric speed of Misty Maiden and the pistes of ‘Magnolia’ and ‘Sand’ on Prospect Bowl.

Such is the versatile nature of the resort of Telluride; there is ample space for the advanced expert looking for particularly challenging terrain. First and foremost, the advanced skier in Telluride can attempt the infamous 958m/3,140km, black diamond bump trail known quite appropriately as The Plunge. Similarly the Bushwacker, Mammoth, Joint Point and the testing Kant-Mak-M trails offer plenty of scope for the fast and furious advanced skier in Telluride. Alternatively, for tree skiing there is the Apex as well as the notorious ‘Champagne Powder’ of the Gold Hill which accesses some of the more challenging skiing territory in Telluride’s Revelation Bowl. Of further interest to the advanced skier in the resort of Telluride, might be the San Juan Hut system. With 73km of expert terrain from Telluride to Ouray up and over the Sneffles range, temporary shelter for overnight accommodation and even the possibility of heliskiing, the San Juan range terrain provides the ultimate backcountry skiing experience.

Apres ski in Telluride

Between them, the town of Telluride and the Mountain Village, have close to sixty restaurants. Indeed, for many visitors the restaurants in the ski resort of Telluride are one its main strengths. Add to this the twenty or so bars and you can see that the après ski in Telluride provides something for everyone, from the family-friendly restaurant to the late night saloon.

The ski resort of Telluride has a superb choice of après-ski venues and entertainment ideas to suit every pocket and taste. When not skiing in Telluride, visitors are encouraged to try their hand at an array of activities including dog sledding, horse-riding, snowshoeing, ice skating, snowmobiling and glider rides. In addition, the suitably-named Thrill Hill provides the added benefit of floodlit activities from flood-lit tubing, sledding and snow biking. The new Station Recreation in the mountain village offers similar après ski opportunities in Telluride, providing for those curious enough to try their hand at a Broomball game, ice climbing, Nordic skiing and sleigh rides.

For the visitor to the resort of Telluride who truly wants to ‘get away from it all’ there are plenty of spas, saunas and steam rooms. In fact, it is for this reason that Conde Nast’s ‘Traveller Magazine’ put the ski resort of Telluride in its ‘Top five’ for North American ski resorts, highlighting its excellent convalescent, pampering qualities. For the shopaholic, the ski resort of Telluride has an excellent variety of boutiques, clothing stores, sports stores, art galleries, bookstores and coffee shops, particularly considering the relatively small size of the ski resort of Telluride.

For après-ski options whilst on the mountain, the ski resort of Telluride presents a superb collection of restaurants for any skier looking for a break from the slopes. For the skier looking for that truly authentic American dining experience, diners can head to the Gorono restaurant, located midway on the Misty Maiden, a historic ranch-style building that offers American favourites and barbecues. Similarly, Big Billie’s at the base of lifts 1 and 10 offers a similar South-Western fare. When looking for a pizza in the ski resort of Telluride, skiers are spoilt for choice, with the choice of grabbing a slice at either the Pizza Chalet or That Pizza Place. Already gaining notoriety in the ski resort of Telluride is the newest mountain restaurant Allred’s. Although a private member’s club by day, this glittering après-ski venue is open to all at night, offering haute-cuisine with spectacular views of the surrounding terrain of Telluride ski resort.

Apres-ski in Telluride can have a quiet sophistication about it, offering smart cocktail bars and traditional, formal restaurants. Of particular note for après-ski in Telluride is the cocktail bar in the New Sheridan Bar, complete with its original turn-of-the-century (1895) hand-carved wood bar and billiards room. If this floats your boat then, then be sure to check out the Noir Bar in the Blue Point Grill, which serves as both a fashionable drinking venue and hip seafood and steak house. Other sophisticated restaurants in the ski resort of Telluride include the Marmotte, Harmon’s Rustico Ristorante, Campagna and the highly recommended Honga’s Lotus Petal.

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