There's an Aspen for Everyone

When you think of Aspen what's the first thing that comes to mind? Luxury? Fur? Powder? Wealth? Great skiing? I think everyone may have a different first impression having been or even having not been before. But there's an Aspen for everyone. If you want the Luxury vacation, it's there. If you want the powder stashes, they're there. Visiting Aspen for the second time, I have fallen even more in love with this town.
Yes, you see the perfectly done up women with their Louis Vuitton and carry on pup on the last leg of the flight with you. Yes, when you walk downtown you see every name brand designer store. But for my time in Aspen, I never felt the wealthy/rich/luxury vibe. I'm sure a lot of this has to do with my staying with my friends who live there, but even if you're going on a vacation not knowing someone who lives there, if that vibe is not for you, you don't have to feel it.

From Town looking up to Ajax

Aspen is comprised of 4 mountains to ski. Ajax is located right in the heart of Aspen with the gondola at the base of town center. Highlands and Buttermilk are a short drive away, Snowmass a little father. Aspen has great public transportation with free buses to all the mountains. This is often better than a car as you have to pay for parking (unless you have 4 people in the car, then it's free!)

Snowmass

Day 1: Ajax

I arrived on Thursday night and spent Friday skiing Ajax. I spent the morning skiing warm up cruisers from top to bottom. I forgot how long a run can be out west compared to our East Coast skiing! Last year, I don't remember feeling effects of altitude, but this year I was feeling it. I made sure to drink plenty of water the night before and even through out the day, but at the end of the day I had a dull lingering headache. Is that what being a year older can do to you?! It was snowing through out the day which was beautiful, but made for no views at the top which are spectacular to see.

From last years trip.Views from the top of Ajax. Highland Bowl in perfect sight.

Aimee (my best friend who lives there) was able to join me with some of her co-workers for some lunchtime runs. This is another reason why I love Aspen. The culture is amazing. [In some instances] it is acceptable to come in late if it's a powder day & going out for lunch time runs (skiing or actually running) is OK. When I have gone for lunch runs before I am taking the back stairwell and being as inconspicuous as possible. Not because I'm doing something wrong or against the rules but because no one does it, it's not the norm.
Anyways, I finished out the afternoon with some more leisurely runs (after a few hard ones with the locals during lunch).

After finishing out the ski day around 3:30 I eventually picked Alex up at the airport. He had some trouble flying into Aspen and just before landing had to be re-routed back to Denver. I was nervous he wouldn't make it in that night, but it all worked out. We had made a reservation for the four of us at Prospect  to celebrate Aimee and Mikes Engagement as well as Aimee's 30th! Prospect is located in Hotel Jerome. If you're vacationing in Aspen, checking out Hotel Jerome is a must. It's home to J-Bar and The Living Room. Both awesome spots for a cocktail.

 

Day 2: Aspen Highlands & Highland Bowl

We woke up to a reported 4" of new snow in town and 7" in Highland Bowl. "Powder Panic" set in and we got on the road and headed off to Highlands. Having skied highland bowl last year, I knew what to expect. But this year the altitude was affecting me so much more. While they were still bombing in the bowl we took a "warm up" run. Un-groomed bumps with fresh snow on a steep trail. My legs were screaming and my heart pounding. Midway through this run I remember thinking that I might not ski the bowl today. I had done it last year, so I would be OK with not doing it this year (In hindsight, no, I wouldn't have!).

After riding up the lift for our second run the ropes were dropped for the bowl, off Mike and Aimee went, and off I followed. They have a cat that takes you up the first part of the hike (about a 1/4 mile) or you can choose to begin your hike right from the start. As we waited in line for the cat many dropped out of line and begin to hike as it was taking a long time. As Aimee and Mike debated to begin hiking from the bottom, I persuaded us to stay in line (thanks guys for sticking with me!). I took several breaks on the climb up. In fact, I actually took almost as much time resting as I did hiking. Resting is perfectly fine, but take care to step off the main trail and don't stop to rest if there is no where for you to do so. There are some spots that are only wide enough for one person to pass at a time. It took me 44 min to hike to the top, 27 of those were active moving minutes. It is a 1/2 mile climb to the peak from where the cat drops you off and a gain of 663 ft. there are options to ski down before hitting the peak if you wish.

 Weather was in our favor this day which was a blessing, we got above the clouds and wind was minimal. I wouldn't want to hike this in high winds.

 

Mike throws his skis over his shoulder and carries them up, some use a simple ski strap to carry them up (I think you can but them in the ski patrol hut just before you head in to start the hike) I am most comfortable using my ski carry on my pack.  

 

 

After I got to the peak, I totally forgot about the discomfort, the shortness of breath, the screaming muscles & how hard it felt for me to actually get my self up there. It's all worth it in the end.  

 

A few minutes after being at the peak, Aimee and Mikes friends came up. Another awesome thing about Aspen is you run into your friends everywhere!

 

We were rewarded with a run down of fresh powder (it felt more like a foot had fallen!) We skied down G4, off to skiers right where there are some trees. The steepness of this run feels comparable to some of the steepest glades you might find back east.

 After some more runs and a stop at a lookout to see Maroon Bells and Capitol Peak, we headed down to  Highlands Alehouse to watch the Pats win. 

Our day didn't end there. After a few hours of relaxing we slapped our skins on our skis, packed our packs with wine, cheese, hot chocolate, peppermint schnaps, warm layers and headed out to skin up Ajax to watch fireworks that were going on as part of Winterskol. 

 

Watching the fireworks from such a unique vantage point was amazing. They were being set off  a trail over from where we stood. It's also beautiful to see the town of Aspen all lit up at night. The skin up was hard work and tiring, but a good jumping off point for knowing what we were getting ourselves into for Monday's adventure. 

 

 

Day 3: Aspen Snowmass

After a long and exhausting day 2 we all felt the need to sleep in a little bit, after a lazy morning of getting going we were all surprised when we saw how much snow had fallen the night before. It looked like another 6 inches. Again, powder panic setting in. We finally made it onto the slopes and immediately went up to Burnt Mountain. It's a short hike up off the lift and usually offers incredible views which were lacking today do to the continued snowfall, which was totally fine. When Alex and I skied here last year the mountain hadn't gotten any new snow but we still found some small powder stashes around, so we were excited to go back!

After a run there Mike took us over to Hanging Valley. Another area that is a short hike in. More powder awaited.

Snowmass has it's own village to it which is fun to walk around in. Shops, restaurants, etc. They have some great Apres spots with outdoor fire pits where Aimee and I found ourselves sipping (guzzling?) margaritas while we waited for the guys to come pick us up.  Perfect ending to a jam packed weekend!

Day 4 & 5

Our Trip to McNamara Hut! This gets its own post which is coming soon. But, we made it there and back in one piece. It was absolutely amazing.

Some of my takeaways & favorites from Aspen

Do: Ski Highland Bowl
Do: Hike to where you can ski in bounds for fresh snow
Do Not: Ski out of bounds
Do Not: Leave your skins at home even if you don't plan on touring. A skin up Ajax at night is worth it for the view of the town at night, and that one last run down with no one else on the mountain.
Do: Plan a hut trip if you have the time. Saves you money on a day of lodging and skiing on the mountain!
Do: Have a cocktail at Jbar
Do: Eat at White House. Small inside, small menu, but delicious. They don't take reservations but not a problem. Put your name on the list, go have a beer at Aspen Brewing Company (another to do on the list anyways) and they'll text you when your table is ready.
Do Not: Be afraid to take the public transit system.
Do Not: feel the need to check out the wine cabin @ Snowmass. Believe me, it's not what it sounds like.
Do Not: push anyone off the chairlift