Conditions Report
Report from Sunday, February 16, 2025
For most ski resorts, it is easy to sum up who the resort best caters to or what the resort is known for. Steamboat is known for its intermediate glades, Vail is known for its legendary back bowls, and Arapahoe Basin is an expert-only paradise. Copper Mountain, on the other hand, cannot be as easily summed up as resorts like these. With an evenly dispersed difficulty between beginner, intermediate, and expert terrain, alongside offering one of the best terrain parks in North America and being known as the go-to alpine training ground in the state, Copper Mountain has a little bit of everything to offer.
Quick Facts & History
- Date Opened: 1972
- Multi-Destination Pass: Ikon Pass
- Number of Trails: 157
- Skiable Acres: 2,538
- Vertical Drop: 2,738′
- Base Elevation: 9,712′
- Summit Elevation: 12,441′
- Average Annual Snowfall: 305″
- Terrain Breakdown:
- Beginner: 24%
- Intermediate: 26%
- Advanced: 32%
- Expert: 10%
- Number of Lifts: 24
- Night Skiing: No
- Other Activities:
- Tubing
When you head out to a mountain as big as Copper Mountain for the first time, it is hard to know where to even start. With the resort reporting over half a foot of fresh snow, it seemed logical to get as high and far away from the base of the resort as possible.
With my first day at Copper Mountain being a powder day the Sunday of Presidents Day weekend, I had adjusted my expectations for what the crowds and lift lines would look like. As one of the busiest days of the year for any ski resort, I could not blame the mountain for long lines or hard-to-find parking. After spending 30 minutes stuck in traffic on the notorious I-70 followed by then seeing 90% of cars get off at the Copper Mountain exit, my feelings quickly sank about getting a taste of any powder that day.
- Related: Colorado’s “I-70 Problem”
Yet to my surprise, the process of getting up onto the mountain was surprisingly smooth, with the Far East Parking Lot having plenty of room and shuttle buses whisking people to all areas of the village from there. Once we got off the shuttle bus, lift lines for both the American Eagle and American Flyer exceeded no more than 5 minutes and we were swiftly up the mountain with our day on the way.
As a first-timer, getting around Copper Mountain took some getting used to. With so many lifts going every which was and so many little zones to explore, it is hard to know what to try first. Chairlift lines did persist in some areas, but skiers did a good job spreading out evenly across the entire mountain.
Even with at some points longer-than-hoped-for wait times, the quest for powder paid off, and there were great turns to be had off the backside of the resort. Later in the day as those areas began to get tracked out, a short hike up Union Peak paid dividends with additional untouched powder stashes.
As the day went on and avalanche mitigation work continued, it was just after noon when the Three Bears lift opened for guests. Tucker Mountain certainly offers the most challenging terrain on the mountain. The advantage of it opening later than the rest of the resort is that you can experience bonus powder laps later in the day if you time it right. I was successfully able to taste some additional powder, and I wish I could have lapped Three Bears all day long. But there was more mountain to explore.
Something that is easy for experienced skiers such as myself to overlook when visiting ski resorts is what the resort offers intermediate and beginner skiers. Something unique I noticed with Copper Mountains is the large vertical that is offered to all experience levels. Multiple greens reach as high up the mountain as the Rendezvous Chairlift, allowing even beginner skiers to get high up into the alpine terrain to ski greens while being surrounded by skiers of all ability levels. Unlike other resorts, these beginner trails weren’t simple switchbacks or cat tracks but rather proper beginner trails. Any beginner would be thrilled to have such long, high, easy-going trails from top to bottom.
After continuing to try out various zones across the resort, it was only late in the day that I eventually found my favorite area at Copper. Tucked away off lookers left of Copper Mountain is the Spaulding Bowl and Resolution chairlift below it. When I entered this zone at 2 pm, there was still plenty of untouched snow and great lines to be found, with little lift lines. Like many others, I found that when staring at the Copper Mountain trail map your eyes are instantly drawn to the backside of Copper and Tucker Mountain. If I were to go back to Copper, especially on a powder day, I would set my eyes on Spaulding Bowl and enjoy everything that part of the resort has to offer. Sometimes the best skiing is right in front of you, and you don’t need to overthink it.
Copper Mountain truly has something for everyone, making it a perfect pick if you are skiing with a group of varying skill levels, or are looking to experience a little bit of everything. Its terrain parks are world-class, the views from one of the highest-elevation ski resorts on the continent are breathtaking, and it was recently announced that this will be hosting the FIS World Cup Alpine racing next November, bringing its Alpine training program and facilities into the spotlight.
No skier or rider can go wrong with checking out Copper Mountain at least once. One day was not nearly enough time to fully get to know this resort, but it was enough to give me a taste of everything Copper has to offer.
Conditions
Ski Stats
Weather Outlook
Photos
For more information, check out Copper Mountain’s website.
