109 miles W. of Denver, 150 miles E. of Grand Junction
Consistently ranked the country's most popular ski resort by skiers and ski magazines almost since its inception, Vail is the big one. It's hard to imagine a more celebrated spot to schuss. Off the slopes, Vail is an incredibly compact Tyrolean village, frequented by almost as many Europeans as Americans, a situation that lends its restaurants, lodgings, and trendy shops a more transatlantic feel than other Colorado resorts. But the size of the mountain and the difficulty and excitement of many of its trails are still what draw the faithful.
Historically speaking, there is very little in the town's past to indicate that Vail would become the megadestination it has. Until U.S. 6 was built through Vail Pass in 1939, the only inhabitants were a handful of sheep ranchers. Dropping farther back into history, it's worth noting that the resort could never have been possible if it weren't for severe droughts in the 1850s and 1860s that resulted in numerous forest fires. The burnings created the wide-open ridges and back bowls that make skiers and snowboarders the world over quiver in their boots.
It was only when veterans of the 10th Mountain Division, who trained during World War II at Camp Hale, 23 miles south of the valley, returned in the 1950s that the reality of skiing was realized. One of them, Peter Siebert (1924-2002), urged development of this mountain land in the White River National Forest, and through his vision, Vail opened to skiers in December 1962, immediately becoming one of the largest ski areas in the United States. Additional ski-lift capacity made Vail America's largest ski resort by 1964.
Beaver Creek, built in 1980, has quickly garnered a reputation as an elegant (and pricey) vacation spot. Like Vail, it is a four-season resort that offers golf (the course was designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.), hot-air ballooning, mountain biking, fishing, and horseback riding, in addition to skiing. Its atmosphere is a bit more formal than the surrounding area, and its nightlife tends more toward refined piano bars than rowdy saloons, but the exclusivity of its après-ski spots isn't reflected on the slopes. At Beaver Creek, there's a trail for everyone. Experts are challenged but beginners aren't left out -- they too can head straight to the top and then ski all the way down on a trail that matches their skill level.
