‘The essence of skiing’
Aspen, Colorado, has 153 new acres of terrain. Bring in the Champagne
The influencers were not in Aspen to ski. In their Barbie-pink ski suits, they rode the Silver Queen gondola to the top of the mountain, smiling for their cameras and social media feeds. Soon they would get back on the gondola and ride down, perhaps to pose for more content with a glass of Champagne at Ajax Tavern at the resort base.
They did not care that after almost two weeks without snow in what was already a below-average year, a storm had finally come through, giving skied-out bump runs new life.
But the rest of us did. I had come to Aspen in early February to ski Aspen Mountain’s newest terrain, an area called Hero’s that, as you look uphill, sits on the mountain’s left shoulder and offers 153 new acres of skiing, most of it rated double-black diamond. It is the first big development on the mountain since the Silver Queen gondola opened in 1986.
“There are not new ski resorts being built in North America,” said Geoff Buchheister, CEO of Aspen Skiing Co. “You have to innovate.”
First the snow had to fall, though. When I had skied the area with Buchheister and a group of Ski Co. execs a few days before, conditions had been sketchy.
The snow was hard and slick as we made our way through the trees to a steep, mogul-covered slope called Loushin’s that tested my resolve and the newly sharpened edges of my skis.
But now, those hard, skied-off bumps were pillowy, and the glades at the bottom offered a chance to dance through the trees. My companion and I did a few laps, skiing the Powerline Chute and one called Here’s To ..., both of which led to a series of glades, then hit Walsh’s, a more wide-open slope.
From Pandora’s to Hero’s
The expansion has been a long time coming. “When we moved here 18 years ago, they were already talking about putting in a lift,” said Pete Louras, 74, who retired to Aspen with his wife in 2005 and is a 100-days-a-year skier. Last summer, they watched from their living room as helicopters put pieces of the chairlift in place.
For decades, the area had been accessible only through a backcountry gate. As far back as the 1980s, some ski patrollers were suggesting turning it into inbounds terrain, referring to it as Pandora’s, for the mythic woman who unleashed the evils of the world. The resort first put it in its 1997 master plan under that name.
Some locals objected, saying the area would change if it were opened as inbounds skiing. (“It has,” Buchheister said, adding that more people were skiing it and that moguls built up faster.) There were also ownership issues: The resort sits on a patchwork of White River National Forest, private land and mining claims. Environmental impact studies were needed.
Finally, in 2021, the expansion was approved and work began on Pandora’s: A road and trails were cut, power was brought in and the woods were thinned to create glades.
Buchheister moved to Aspen in March 2023, lured in large part by the idea of working with James Crown, the CEO of Henry Crown & Co., which owns Aspen Snowmass and Alterra Mountain Co., the ski resort conglomerate and purveyor of the multimountain IKON pass. “He was a really compelling mentor,” Buchheister said.
Then, on June 25, his 70th birthday, Crown died in a crash at the Aspen Motorsports Park racetrack in nearby Woody Creek.
Against that backdrop, Pandora’s became Hero’s and the slopes have been named for locals like ski patroller Cory Brettman, who died in an avalanche in the area. The slope under the new lift is named Jim’s, for Crown.
Good skiing, partying
Tucked at the end of the Roaring Fork Valley, Aspen Snowmass is far enough away from major cities to not draw big weekend crowds. It accepts the IKON pass but limits the number of days for many passholders and requires reservations. It can also be dizzyingly expensive to stay and dine in town.
The resort is unusual in that it comprises four separate mountains with distinct personalities. Friendly Buttermilk has nothing but beginner slopes and terrain parks. The bruiser, Snowmass, where 40% of visitors ski, sprawls across 3,300 acres, with a mix of slopes and open terrain, appealing to all levels of skiers. Much smaller, Aspen Highlands and Aspen Mountain, have only intermediate and expert runs.
When asked what makes Aspen different, Buchheister said: “Aspen is an experience that’s quality-based. We capture the essence of skiing.”
Especially when skiing Aspen and Aspen Highlands, that feels true. There are no fancy new lifts or glitzy base lodges, just good, hard skiing.
But equally true is that, as the influencers made clear, many come to Aspen with no intention of skiing. And why not? There’s the Aspen Art Museum with its new building by star Japanese architect Shigeru Ban. There are Gucci, Valentino and Prada stores. There’s West End Social, a great new restaurant at the Aspen Meadows resort. And there is Veuve Clicquot Champagne at seemingly every turn, including bottles on ice in midmountain restaurants.
Hedge against global warming?
It was not originally planned with climate change in mind, but Hero’s has the advantage of sitting high up on the mountain and facing north, which, Buchheister said, should help mitigate the effects of global warming, because the altitude and the aspect mean snow will stay in place longer.
That could be a significant advantage, as climate change threatens the future of the snow-sports industry. Auden Schendler, the chief of sustainability for Aspen One, the parent company of Ski Co., said the area has lost 30 days of winter since 1980. “Spring runoff happens earlier and it happens quicker.”
That many visitors fly in to the area on private planes is an irony not lost on Schendler, who said the way to cut down on private flights would be to charge a carbon tax at the airport — something he has asked the FAA about. In the meantime, “Aspen’s power is the media play. We have wealthy and influential guests who are really into skiing and the outdoors.”