If you've ever seen people skiing down the slopes of Copper before the lifts open, they're probably part of a growing tribe who enjoy skiing up the mountain just as much as going down. Skiing up the slopes has become so popular that resorts have started to establish common sense safety rules to avoid accidents with industrial snowmaking and grooming equipment.
And now that snowmaking is done for the season at Copper, the resort has opened uphill access for guests. Uphill access is permitted at Copper Mountain with the 2014/2015 Up-Hill Access Pass. All guests are required to have a pass to skin or snowshoe within the resort boundary during non-operational hours. To obtain the pass, guests must complete and sign an uphill access waiver and wear a reflective armband in plain sight while going up-hill. This pass is free and available for pick up at Copper Mountain’s Lower Patrol Room, located next to the American Flyer lift behind Jack’s, from 5 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily.
Uphill access is restricted to non-operating hours. Guests taking advantage uphill travel in the morning must be at the restrooms at the top of Collage before lifts open to the public at 9 a.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. on weekends. Evening up-hill access will not be granted until after 5 p.m.
All trail and rope closures must be adhered to. Guests utilizing up-hill access must remain in the middle of the trail and avoid blind spots. The following routes are the only routes open to up-hill access:
From East Village:
Up Skid Road, Main Vein, Rhapsody, Copperopolis, Collage ending at the restrooms at the top of Collage.
From Center Village:
- Up Main Vein, Rhapsody, Copperopolis, Collage ending at the restrooms at the top of Collage.
- Carefree to Coppertone ending at the tree island at the top of Coppertone where the trail intersects Highpoint.
From Union Creek (to Janet's Cabin):
Up Roundabout to West Ten Mile ending at the National Forest Access Point gate.
Filed in Colorado News | Copper Mountain News | Skiing/Snowboarding |