CRESTED BUTTE — It was 5 degrees when the first contingent of nearly 900 Nordic ski racers poled away from the Elk Avenue starting line Saturday morning in a cloud of frosty breath, a clatter of bells, and a racket of whoops and hollers. Neon tutus fluttered over skin-tight racing suits. A few Viking horns […]
snow
Posted inColoradans, Environment, News, Outdoors
A declining number of avalanche deaths in Colorado, the West in the past four seasons buoys hope
They tried to kick blocks of snow from the cornice, hoping a tumbling chunk might trigger an avalanche. “All we were getting were crumbles. We just couldn’t get a big enough block to go,” said Bryan Wickenhauser, a champion ski mountaineering racer from Gunnison. “So yeah, there was some hesitancy. But we were all committed. […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
Colorado’s snow season is starting off strong. These satellite photos tell the story.
Colorado’s snow season is starting off strong, giving the state’s drought-parched agricultural industry high hopes for a quenching runoff come spring. “Definitely been a good start here,” said Russell Danielson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder. “Overall, the state has seen pretty healthy precipitation, snowpack so far this fall.” Compared with last […]
Posted inBusiness, News, Outdoors
More Colorado ski areas — including Vail, Beaver Creek and Aspen — to open early for 2018-19 season
Vail and Beaver Creek mountains will join other Colorado resorts in opening early for the 2018-19 season. The Vail Daily reports Vail, originally slated to open Friday, will open for the season at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. Beaver Creek will open Saturday, four days ahead of its scheduled Nov. 21 opening date. The early openings come as […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
Colorado’s drought persists, with abnormally dry conditions covering 83 percent of the state
Colorado’s drought is persisting, with about 83 percent of the state listed under some level of abnormally dry conditions and a growing area of severe and extreme aridity. A U.S. Drought Monitor Report released Thursday shows no significant improvement in drought conditions across Colorado dating back to Oct. 9. Although the percentage of the state […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Outdoors, Water
El Nino weather pattern could bring drought relief to Colorado, broader southwestern U.S.
By Tim Talley, The Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY — Climatologists said Wednesday that conditions are right for an El Nino weather pattern to develop that could bring wetter-than-normal conditions this winter in drought-stricken areas of the southwestern U.S. But they also note there is no guarantee that an El Nino event would bring more rain […]
Posted inBusiness, Coloradans, Crime and Courts, News, Outdoors
Colorado Ski Safety Act tested in two trials involving in-bounds avalanches
EAGLE — Every skier in central Colorado was fired up when the snow finally arrived that fourth Sunday in January six years ago. It had been a cold, dry season with too few powder days. By the end of the day, inbounds avalanches had killed two skiers, marking one of the darkest days in Colorado […]
Posted inBusiness, Outdoors
At the height of the ski pass war, Wolf Creek — with its $70 lift ticket — remains defiantly independent
WOLF CREEK — As the first flakes frost the highest peaks, the Colorado-sparked season pass war is ablaze. It’s a new world for skiers, with resorts across the U.S. aligning into two distinct camps. In one corner, the nascent Alterra Mountain Company this week fired off a list of new partners for the Ikon Pass, which offers unlimited […]