TELLURIDE SKI MOUNTAIN
WORLD FAMOUS SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING
THE TERRAIN
Today the Telluride Ski Area touts 2,000 acres of skiable terrain with 115 total trails. Trail Difficulty is currently 23% Beginner; 36% Intermediate and 41% Advanced to Expert. The Area enjoys 18 lifts (2 Gondolas; 7 high speed quads; 1 fixed quad; 2 triples; 2 doubles; 2 Magic Carpets; and 2 surface lifts) with a total vertical drop of 4,425 feet. Telluride’s lift-served vertical drop is now 3,845 feet (1,172 m) – From the tallest lift – Revelation Lift at 12,570 feet to the bottom of Lift 7 at 8,725 feet. The lift capacity is 22,386+ per hour.
THE EXPERIENCE
The Telluride Ski Area offers a comfortable mountain experience for all levels of skiers thanks to a mix of quality terrain. From beginner and expert groomed runs to challenging bump runs, every skier will enjoy their experience. Notably, beginners and intermediate skiers can ride to the highest peaks and enjoy terrain and views customarily reserved for the experts.
THE SKI AREA HISTORY
The Telluride Ski Area began with runs from the top of Lift 6 to the base of what is now Lift 1. Of the 5 original lifts none existed on the Telluride side. Instead, a bus drove skiers from town and dropped them off – Mountain Village, as we know it, did not exist at this time. Lift 1 accessed Lifts 3 and 4 and from there you could access Lifts 5 and 6. In 1975 enough mining claims were purchased and agreements were made with the National Forest Service to put in Lift 7 from Telluride, and the Telluride Ski Area was born.
In 1978 Lifts 8, 9, and 10 were built, and more runs were cut down the north side of the ski area. In the years to follow Ski Area restaurants were built, the Mountain Village was developed, the Gondola was constructed and snowboarding parks were created.
In recent years the Telluride Ski Resort has added four additional Lifts and expanded the area by 733 acres into the Prospect Bowl.
Telluride continued its aggressive upgrades with the Prospect Bowl expansion in 2001. This new bowl opened mostly intermediate and expert terrain above the Palmyra chair. During the summer of 2001, three new Doppelmayr Express Quads were installed, providing excellent access to some of the state’s best steeps.
Recently, Telski announced the opening of Black Iron Bowl, adding an additional eight runs and 1,000 acres of hike-to terrain, and they’ve gone even higher. Palmyra Peak access expands the ski area by more than 200 acres and boasts 2,000 additional vertical feet. Palmyra’s skiable terrain is located on the north face of the 13,320-foot peak.
FOR SKI AREA MAPS: CLICK HERE.