CRESTED BUTTE — An epic storm cycle has made Crested Butte the snowiest spot in Colorado — .
Denver Post journalists Jason Blevins and Helen H. Richardson take us into the deep powder and show the scene in Crested Butte, where so many have said it’s like nothing they’ve ever seen before.
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Scraping shovels. Beeping backhoes. Bomb blasts.
The Crested Butte powder-day alarm clock.
Check the . Damn. It’s game time, once again.
Grab a fistful of Advil. Shovel a shrinking path. Race for the bus.
And then abandon all responsibility for yet another day skiing Colorado’s snowiest hill.
Yes all the snow removal last week was a major hassle. But shoulders sore from shoveling fade pretty quickly when you are skiing a foot of fresh powder every single day. (In truth, just about everything fades into the background when the skiing is this good. The morning lift ride up the Silver Queen is filled with angst about work, family, bills, shoveling. Then, right at the top of the mountain, the phone loses reception. And the only thing that matters is skiing.)
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Skier Scooter Gates takes advantage of the huge amounts of powder while skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Hopper, who has lived in the are for over 25 years, said he has never seen such incredible conditions. The ski area has had over 90 inches of snow in less than 10 days.
This month, Crested Butte Mountain Resort shed its frustrating reputation as the donut hole skipped by most storms that hit Colorado from the northwest. A flow of moisture from the southwest pierced the Gunnison Valley and made this end-of-the-road hamlet a blustery bullseye. A relentless series of storms riding the damp Pineapple Express has turned Crested Butte into a snowglobe. More than 100 inches of snow blanketed the state’s steepest hill in the first 12 days of the January.
The skiing is all-time in Crested Butte right now. Last time it was this good, it was the epic winter of 1992-93 and everyone was riding 210 giant slalom boards. There was no such thing as surfy fat skis with rockered tips designed to versus sink and carve.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Michelle and Greg Pearson walk past huge snow drifts outside of their rented house that seems buried in snow on their way to dinner on Jan. 11, 2017 in Crested Butte.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Phil Escue walks through a small path towards his snow buried house on January 10, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. About 93 inches has fallen in the area in 8 days and more is expected over the week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Houses are buried in snow on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
The downtown area is scenic and idyllic with the freshly fallen snow on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
A skier takes advantage of the huge amounts of powder while skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Skier John Hopper takes advantage of the huge amounts of powder while skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Hopper, who has lived in the are for over 25 years, said he has never seen such incredible conditions. The ski area has had over 90 inches of snow in less than 10 days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
White out conditions and high winds made for challenging skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. The area has gotten almost 100 inches of snow in the past 10 days and more is expected in the coming week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Nate Dougherty has a beard full of snow and ice from skiing while he and other skiers and snowboarders brave wind and white out conditions as they wait in the lift line at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. The area has gotten almost 100 inches of snow in the past 10 days and more is expected in the coming week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Gary Davis keeps on top of shoveling the pathway to his house as snow continues to fall on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
A stop sign is buried in snow on January 10, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. About 93 inches has fallen in the area in 8 days and more is expected over the week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Rob Quint, works to pull snow off of the house of his roof on January 10, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. About 93 inches has fallen in the area in 8 days and more is expected over the week. Quint says in the 35 years that he has lived in Crested Butte he has never seen this amount of snow.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Nicole Akselrad lets her dog Nershi have fun in the large snow banks along streets on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Mule deer stay together in large bands and forage in the deep snow along Colorado Highway 114 on January 10, 2017 southeast of Gunnison, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Mule deer forage in the deep snow along Colorado Highway 114 on January 10, 2017 southeast of Gunnison, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Anthony Allred, with Centennial State Roofing company works with a crew of four to dig over several feet of snow off of a commercial roof top on January 10, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. About 93 inches has fallen in the area in 8 days and more is expected over the week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Trucker Dave Christian, middle, gets help from fellow trucker Tom Hoage, right, putting on chains as they and other big rigs wait and hope for Monarch Pass to reopen on January 10, 2017 near Poncha Springs, Colorado. A winter storm that has dumped feet not inches of snow in the southern mountains has created hazardous driving conditions and closed Monarch Pass for almost 24 hours.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Trucker Dave Christian, left, gets help from fellow trucker Tom Hoage, right, putting on chains as they and other big rigs wait and hope for Monarch Pass to reopen on January 10, 2017 near Poncha Springs, Colorado. A winter storm that has dumped feet not inches of snow in the southern mountains has created hazardous driving conditions and closed Monarch Pass for almost 24 hours.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
John Williams, who drove from Pueblo, right, waits and at the bottom of Monarch Pass hoping it will reopen soon on January 10, 2017 near Poncha Springs, Colorado. A winter storm that has dumped feet not inches of snow in the southern mountains has created hazardous driving conditions and closed Monarch Pass for almost 24 hours.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
A shop owner digs out snow between two buildings on January 10, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. About 93 inches has fallen in the area in 8 days and more is expected over the week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Rob Mahedy keeps on top of shoveling the pathway of a house as snow continues to fall on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Snowplows work on plowing huge amounts of powder at the ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. The area has gotten almost 100 inches of snow in the past 10 days and more is expected in the coming week.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Skier Scooter Gates takes advantage of the huge amounts of powder while skiing at Crested Butte ski area on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. The ski area has had over 90 inches of snow in less than 10 days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Pedestrians walk by huge snow drifts along streets on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Al and Linda Landgraff, from St. Peter, Minnesota, walk down the snowy main street as they shop on Jan. 11, 2017 in Crested Butte.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Gary Davis cleans off his car outside of his house as snow continues to fall on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
MJ Johnson, left, and Katie Griebe, right, walk by huge snow drifts along streets on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Quaint stores are covered with snow on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
People dig out of the huge amounts of snow on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Shoppers walk by quaint stores covered with snow on January 11, 2017 in Crested Butte, Colorado. Downtown Crested Butte has been inundated with more than 100 inches of snow in the past days. More snow is expected in the upcoming days.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
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Michelle and Greg Pearson walk past huge snow drifts outside of their rented house that seems buried in snow on their way to dinner on Jan. 11, 2017 in Crested Butte.
The mountain’s season-to-date snowfall — more than 200 inches — has already surpassed the total of last season. And the season before that. The base has reached more than 8 feet, a stack of snow that transformed the area from one of Colorado’s more technical hills into a feathery dance floor.
And the winter wonderland party is just getting started. Ski patrol hasn’t even opened the shining jewels in the Spellbound and Phoenix bowls. The future has rarely been brighter for Crested Butte skiers.
Morasses of edge-blowing, ski-shattering rocks on runs like the once-daunting Sock It To Me and the formerly cliffed-out Cesspool have been sculpted into buttery-smooth meadows. Fields of jagged stone above Tower 11 have become high-speed flow lines. Slow billy-goating through rocks — a mandatory Crested Butte skill — has yielded to high-speed carving down the Butte’s renowned extreme terrain.
There’s a communal sense of awe at how well the mountain is skiing, evidenced by the high-fives and ski-pole taps shared by snow-blasted strangers on the hill.
“I’ve never seen it like this” is a common refrain, shared by skiers who knew Crested Butte could shine but maybe not so brilliantly. And definitely not for weeks on end.
It hasn’t been this good in years, decades even.
Boot protectors — thatap what they call skis around here — are emerging from hard days without even a nick.
“My grandma can ski Cesspool, dude!” says a local, trading fist bumps over beers at The Avalanche.
