Ski Cooper Alpine/Downhill Resorts Resort (Are you this resort?)

General Comments/Likes

Ski Cooper may be Colorado’s ultimate locals’/families’ hill. Fifteen minutes from Leadville, it is not close to anywhere else. Coming via I-70 you would have to pass so many bigger mountains. Coming from the south would present options like Breckenridge and Monarch. Certainly those areas have much more challenging terrain.

But Cooper would be a great place to learn or to teach someone to ski. Its groomers are respectably long and remarkably consistent in pitch. Its 1200 feet of vert is spread pretty evenly top-to-bottom with only a few surprising rollovers/ledges. Norming to other areas Coop’s steepest runs are in the blue to blackish-blue level at most. The toughest runs are down the ridge separating the back and front. You’ll be tempted to peek behind the “Green Door.” Even the blue and green groomers are interesting however because they are peppered with tree islands like swiss cheese. You can weave in an out of these stands and they give Coop the look and feel of a bigger mountain.

Coop does have perfect aspect, ensuring lasting, high quality snow. The front side faces northwest and the back north-northeast. The front double is pretty slow. The back triple moves a bit faster. Both chairs are low and friendly, consistent with the area’s even pitch. On a holiday weekend (MLK Jr.) there were no lift lines.

The setting, atop Tennessee Pass, just above the former Camp Hale, where the 10th Mountain Division originated, is historic and visually stunning. This is the high country. The Continental Divide wraps around the area, with craggy and cirque-scarred Homestake Peak and Galena Mountain looming the west. To the northeast arcs Chicago Ridge, an impressively large tenure where Cooper’s cat-ski operation prowls.

The base area is compact, the cafeteria, bar/lounge and ski shop are homey and unpretentious. Prices are modest. Food is typical day-lodge fare. Cooper is very kid-friendly. There’s lots of parking and easy access from US 24. Adjacent to the slopes lies the Tennessee Pass Nordic Center and access to the 10th Mountain Division Hut system.

The $42 regular lift ticket must be among the cheapest in the state. At that price Cooper is decent value for the money.

Dislikes

As noted, the chairs are slow and the terrain is not very challenging. However, the cat-ski ops should take care of that, if you’ve got the money.