skiing

Keystone Resort (shown) and Arapahoe Basin in Summit County both began snowmaking operations overnight on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. Snowmaking continued Thursday. (Provided by Katie Young/Keystone Resort)

Snowmaking kicks off at Summit County ski resorts

By Tiney Ricciardi

October 15, 2026 at 9:48 a.m.

The countdown to ski season is officially on.

Pedestrians walk down Main Street on the first day of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

Skiers or cinephiles: How the Sundance fest’s move could affect Colorado’s slopes this winter

By John Wenzel

October 13, 2026 at 1:08 p.m.

The event debuts in Boulder in Jan. 21-31, 2027, with an expected 100,000 attendees. But...

Joel Gratz, founder of OpenSnow, skis at Vail in February 2023. (Courtesy OpenSnow)

OpenSnow forecasters say El Niño is increasing odds of a snowy winter

By The Summit Daily

October 7, 2026 at 9:00 a.m.

Based on past El Niño events, forecasters gave Colorado a ‘50-50’ shot at an above-average...

Vail Resort opened limited terrain offerings in the Back Bowls on Thursday. Usually the Back Bowls are open in January, but Colorado's record low snowpack caused delays. (Max Ritter/Vail Resort)

Vail Resorts reports lagging Epic Pass sales but predicts ‘significant recovery’ after last year’s historically bad ski season

By The Steamboat Pilot

September 30, 2026 at 9:01 a.m.

During a fourth quarter earnings call with investors Sept. 28, Vail Resorts reported annual revenues...

Snowboarders ride a lift at Keystone Ski Resort on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Colorado ski resort opening dates for the 2026-27 season

By Tiney Ricciardi

September 29, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

With talk of a Super El Niño in the forecast, powderhounds are hoping for a...

George Gillett, former owner of Vail Associates, died Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. He was 87. (Courtesy photo)

Ski industry innovator and former Vail owner George Gillett Jr. dies after battle with Alzheimer’s

By The Vail Daily

September 23, 2026 at 12:49 p.m.

George Gillett Jr., Gillett, born Oct. 22, 1938, in Wisconsin, was 87 years old when...

Hikers walk at the site of the now-melted St. Mary’s Glacier in Clear Creek County near Idaho Springs on Friday, September 18, 2026. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

St. Mary’s Glacier melted away. Will Colorado’s iconic snowfield ever return?

By Noelle Phillips

September 19, 2026 at 10:25 a.m.

Colorado’s ongoing drought and record-hot summer, which scientists attribute to global warming, caused the snowfield...

John Douthit has worked for local ski maker Icelantic for nine years. (Max Scheinblum, BusinessDen)

Icelantic Skis moves out of downtown Golden

By Max Scheinblum

September 19, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

"Let’s make sure we invest in our customers and the customer experience and make it...

A skier makes her way down the slopes at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area on Loveland Pass, Colorado on June 16, 2024. (Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

Here’s how to ski for $80 at a Summit County resort this winter

By Tiney Ricciardi

September 16, 2026 at 10:42 a.m.

Arapahoe Basin ski area is marking a milestone birthday this winter and to celebrate, it’s...

A skier makes turns on FIS after eight inches of snow on Aspen Mountain on Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022, in Aspen, Colo. (Kelsey Brunner/The Aspen Times via AP)

Aspen Snowmass selling $3.75 lift tickets — no joke — to celebrate 80th anniversary

By Tiney Ricciardi

September 15, 2026 at 7:06 a.m.

Aspen Snowmass ski resort celebrates its 80th anniversary this winter and if you act fast,...

Loveland Ski Area is one of 11 ski areas in COlorado on the Indy Pass, on sale Sep.t 8. (Casey Day/Provided by Loveland ski area)

Budget-friendly Indy Pass now on sale for 2026-27 ski season

By Tiney Ricciardi

September 8, 2026 at 10:57 a.m.

It’s no secret that investing in a ski pass can feel like highway robbery. But...

Kelsey Worthington and Gabbie Attardi organize snowboards at Christy Sports Ski & Patio in Littleton, Colorado on Thursday, August 17, 2023. Employees set items out in preparation for Christy Sport’s powder daze sale. (Rebecca Slezak/Special to The Denver Post)

5 gear sales to get you stoked for ski season, starting Labor Day weekend

By Tiney Ricciardi

September 2, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

Are you ready for the Super El Niño? You can be if you start shopping...

Skiers descend Vail Mountain on Jan. 10. The mountain is seeing historically low snowpack, which is affecting tourism revenue in the town of Vail.
(John LaConte, Vail Daily)

Vail announces 2026-27 opening dates for its Colorado ski resorts

By Tiney Ricciardi

August 18, 2026 at 10:57 a.m.

Goodbye heat dome, hello ... ski season?

Most Colorado resorts currently have base depths of 30% to 50% below normal. Base depths at Arapahoe Basin (shown), Keystone and Loveland Pass are running more than 40% below normal. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

A-Basin details plans for more parking, snowmaking and a highway bridge

By Tiney Ricciardi

July 29, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

If you’ve ever driven to Arapahoe Basin on a powder day, you know how difficult...

A man, a boy and a dog riding on a horse drawn wagon that is carrying three large nuggets of silver in Aspen, 1894. The silver in the wagon are pieces of the largest silver nugget ever mined in the United States, that had to be broken apart for removal from the mine and transportation. According to a letter written by D.F. Rolhfing in 1938, the silver nugget weighed 2,060 pounds but had to be trimmed down to 1,840 pounds to be removed from the mine.. (Aspen Historical Society)

Before skiing, three Colorado towns boomed with 19th century mining

By John Meyer

July 27, 2026 at 5:29 a.m.

Aspen, Breckenridge and Telluride lured gold and silver seekers hoping to strike it rich.

A snowboarder navigates down the hill at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area in Summit County, Colorado, on Tuesday, December 16, 2025. Colorado ski resorts faced sparse snow early in the 2025 season -- a harbinger of record-low snowpack for the 2025-26 ski season. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Last winter’s extreme snow drought was a sign of the West’s future, Colorado study finds

By Elise Schmelzer

July 22, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

Extreme snow droughts like the one that plagued the West this winter will become more...

U.S. Paralympic skier and cancer survivor Thomas Walsh launches out of the start gate on a slalom course during a training session at Vail on Jan. 30, 2018. Walsh was training for the 2018 Winter Paralympic Games in PyeongChang South Korea. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)

Database shows 80 Colorado athletes, coaches have been banned or restricted from Olympic and Paralympic sports

By Sam Tabachnik

July 21, 2026 at 5:45 p.m.

The Denver-based U.S. Center for SafeSport on Tuesday announced it will begin publicizing weekly additions...

Vail hopes new ‘white glove’ amenities, food upgrades will build skier loyalty

By Tiney Ricciardi

July 15, 2026 at 5:35 p.m.

Vail Resorts is adding new features to the My Epic app, such as the ability...

Flowers grow under the Little Nell Lift on June 29, 2019 in Aspen, Colorado. Because the lift will soon be dismantled and replaced, Aspen One is auctioning off chairs to the public.(Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Want to own a piece of ski history? Aspen is now auctioning lift chairs

By Tiney Ricciardi

July 10, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.

Bidding is open now through July 19.

Members of the Long Jon bluegrass band perform during the opening day of the 50th Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Town Park in Telluride, Colo.,Thursday, June 15, 2023. The event returned to Telluride June18-21, 2026 following a tumultuous winter in the town. (William Woody, Special to The Denver Post)

Can summer festival season cure Telluride’s winter blues?

By Tiney Ricciardi

June 23, 2026 at 9:54 a.m.

Telluride Bluegrass Festival kicks off summer of 'happy campers' after tough ski season.

Vail Resorts announced a 12.5% decline in skier days this past season, driven largely by poor snow at its resorts in the mountain west. The company owns 37 ski areas across North America, five in Colorado. (Andy Cross/Denver Post file)

Vail Resorts says skier days fell 12.5% for the 2025-26 season due to poor snow

By John Meyer

June 9, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.

Due to abysmal snowfall in Colorado and across much of the mountain west, Vail Resorts...

A map produced by the U.S. Drought Monitor shows the severity of drought across Colorado as of June 2, 2026. (Image from U.S. Drought Monitor)

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis declares statewide drought emergency

By Elise Schmelzer

June 5, 2026 at 10:51 a.m.

Colorado's state leadership on Thursday declared a drought emergency as this winter's record-low snowpack and...

A snowboarder avoids an area where the snow is thin and the ground is exposed at Breckenridge Ski Resort on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Skier visits plummeted in 2025-26 season, according to trade group

By John Meyer

June 4, 2026 at 3:57 p.m.

Colorado ski resorts suffered through an abysmal season in 2025-26 because of near-record-low snowfall, but...

The Knapp Ranch in the Vail Valley is for sale at $65.5 million. The publishers of Architectural Digest and other magazines built the ranch west of Vail more than 30 years ago. (Photo provided by Todd Winslow Pierce)

Vail-area ranch owned by Architectural Digest publisher for sale at $66.5M

By Judith Kohler

June 3, 2026 at 6:34 a.m.

The 287-acre Knapp Ranch west of Vail fronts West Lake Creek, sits near wilderness area.

The Arapahoe Basin ski area in Summit County on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Colorado ski season ends this weekend with final resort set to close

By John Meyer

May 6, 2026 at 12:51 p.m.

Colorado's wacky spring, which has given us May weather in March and March weather in...

Colorado man with ski injury fights insurance plan that requires reauthorization of his care every 2 days

By Meg Wingerter

April 23, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.

About 99% of people in Medicare Advantage must get prior authorization for at least some...