Crested Butte
Crested Butte Colorado
Crested Butte in Colorado is a real beaut of a ski resort and ski town! Whether you call it “Crusty Butt” or Crested Butte, this is a place of extremes. It’s well known for the extreme ski and snowboard terrain, the extreme friendliness, and the extremely laid back culture.
Crested Butte is pretty close to
Aspen as the crow flies, but in the glitz and glamour stakes, Crested Butte is far far away. CB has no aspirations to be like Aspen or other upscale ski towns, so this is not the location to visit if you like very “resorty” places. Crested Butte prides itself on being “real” and down to earth; the sort of place where a ski bum could get very comfortable.
The charming town of Crested Butte is located 3 miles from Crested Butte Mountain (ie the ski resort). The historic Victorian town has a population of only 1,700 people, and the colourful buildings look like they’re from a western movie set. The town is sometimes labelled as the last real Colorado ski town. It’s a reminder of what some of the other Colorado ski towns used to be like before the developers arrived.
Crested Butte Ski and Snowboard Terrain
The Crested Butte ski resort is renowned for quality ski terrain rather than quantity. The size of the skiable area is 1,167 acres (472 hectares). This is well below average for a Colorado or U.S. ski resort, but once you get into the off-piste areas, the ski resort feels much larger than the statistic. The vertical drop is 846 metres (2,775 feet), or when you include the hike-to-terrain it extends to 933 metres (3,062 feet).
The terrain statistics are 23% beginner, 57% intermediate, and 20% advanced, however this doesn’t paint the true picture of Crested Butte. In reality the ski resort is very well suited to beginners, whilst intermediates are likely to get bored very quickly. Similarly there is very little single black diamond terrain for advanced riders.
Crested Butte’s signature is the double black diamond slopes. The upper parts of the mountain are steep and rocky and offer a diversity of terrain including bowls, chutes, glades, and mandatory cliff jumps. This is some of the gnarliest terrain to be found at a North American ski resort. It’s for good reason that Crested Butte hosts various extreme freeskiing championships!
The only potential limitation of this expert terrain is that it needs decent snow cover. Crested Butte ski resort receives a very respectable 300 inches (7.6 metres) of snow on average per season, but sometimes the snowfall can be a little iffy. Thankfully the mountain has high elevation and a mainly northerly aspect, and during relatively dry seasons, CB can rely on their man-made snow which covers most of the mellow areas (29% of the mountain).
Where is Crested Butte Mountain Resort?
Crested Butte ski resort is located in the Colorado Rockies Elk Mountain Range. The historic town is a few miles from the ski resort, 28 miles north of Gunnison, and 229 miles southwest of Denver.
The drive from the Denver International Airport takes about 5 hours depending on road and weather conditions. Other gateway airports are the Crested Butte/Gunnison airport which is a 30 minute drive from Crested Butte, or the Montrose airport which is 90 minutes away. Both regional airports are serviced by shuttles, and once in Crested Butte, a car is not necessary.
Crested Butte Lodging
Crested Butte lodging is available either in the town of Crested Butte or at the ski resort base area known as Mount Crested Butte. A free shuttle bus connects the two areas.
Many of the Mount Crested Butte accommodations are ski-in ski-out and include condominiums and hotels, some of which are particularly ritzy.
Lodging in town includes hostels, lodges, and B&Bs. Whilst not as convenient to the slopes, some skiers choose to stay in town because it’s more economical, they enjoy the “realness” of the town, and there is more nightlife. Lodging for the very frugally minded is available in Gunnison, a half hour drive away.
Crested Butte Accommodations Listings
Ski Resort Facilities and Activities
Crested Butte Mountain Resort provides excellent facilities and services for skiers and snowboarders. The base area of the ski resort has been refurbished and further development continues at CB.
Other than downhill skiing and snowboarding at the resort, other activities include cross country skiing on 60km (37 miles) of groomed tracks, tubing, horse riding, snowshoeing, and ice skating.
Powderhounds that are super keen for fresh powder can go
cat skiing at nearby CS Irwin, and other backcountry ski tours are available in the Crested Butte area.
More Reasons to Ski or Snowboard at Crested Butte
Crested Butte may be a little light on for nightlife, but that’s because there’s a lack of visitors to this little piece of paradise. If you want pumping nightlife and crowds, go visit one of the ski resorts on the I-70 corridor. Crested Butte is somewhat remote relative to most other
Colorado ski resorts, but this is a major drawcard because of the associated lack of crowds. Other than the die-hard locals, there are no day trippers to steal your fresh lines on those delightfully steep slopes!
Crested Butte used to be renowned for free lift passes early in the season, but unfortunately a free lift ticket is now only available on opening day. The end of the season at Crested Butte used to be famous for skiing in the nuddy, but that too is no longer thanks to lots of naked crusty butts involved in a melee and inappropriate behaviour. However if you want to celebrate the end of the season (or any part of the season) by skiing in a bikini, you can go for it!