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Monarch, CO. Monarch Mountain has announced that the 2007-08 season closing date has been moved to April 13, 2008. Scheduled closing had been April 6, 2008 but due to a record amount of snowfall in December and January the season has been extended. Total snowfall for the two month period has been more than 259 inches.
Monarch opened for the season on December 8, 2007 with a 51 inch mid-mountain base depth and is currently reporting an 83 inch base depth. “We opened late this year missing Thanksgiving but we have more than made up for the late start” said Greg Ralph, Monarch Marketing Director. “We are going to add 7 days to the end of our season, we missed 16 days early, it sends a good message to our season pass holders that we are committed to giving them as much skiing as possible” added Ralph.
Being located on top of the Continental Divide in the center of Colorado Monarch averages an annual snowfall of over 350 inches. This season is on track to exceed all records in Monarch’s 69 year operating history. Having received over 285 inches so far this season Monarch’s management is confident that the area will have great conditions through mid-April. “Traditionally our snowiest months are still ahead of us” said Ralph.
For the latest information on snow conditions, weather reports, deals and road information visit www.skimonarch.com. Monarch is located in the San Isabel National Forest 20 miles west of Salida, CO.
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Monarch, CO…Monarch Mountain has teamed up with nine other ski areas to add variety and value for season pass holders. Monarch season pass holders will be able to ski free or at a discounted rate at other western ski areas during the 2007-08 winter season.
In Colorado Crested Butte, Loveland, Purgatory, Sunlight and Powderhorn are offering Monarch season pass holders three free days of skiing this year. Silverton Mountain is providing one day of complementary skiing during their “Unguided Season”.
New Mexico ski areas Angel Fire Resort and Pajarito Mountain are each offering three free days of skiing for Monarch pass holders. Monarch skiers looking to travel a little further will be able to ski at Alta, Utah for half price throughout the 2007-08 ski season.
“Partnering with these other resorts adds a great deal of variety for our pass holders” said Rich Moorhead, Monarch President. “Being able to ski more areas makes our passes more valuable and the feedback from our skiers has been great”
Pass holders from all of the Monarch partner ski areas will be able to experience Monarch Mountain this season as all of the benefits are reciprocal with Monarch.
Monarch season passes are on sale at a discounted rate through November 3, 2007. Adults (ages 16-62) $299, High School/College Students $299, Student (ages 13-15) $179, Juniors (ages 7-12) $89, Seniors (ages 62-69) $179. Kids 6 and under and 70 and older always ski/ride for free at Monarch.
Monarch Mountain located in South Central Colorado is what you expect from a real Colorado ski area. Abundant natural snow (350 + in.) and friendly people are two of the areas strongest attributes. You walk from your car right to the lifts, prices are reasonable, and the runs flow naturally back to the base area. At Monarch you’ll lose the crowds but not your friends.
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Monarch, CO…Monarch is investing over one million dollars this summer on capital improvements designed to enhance the guest experience. New buildings and a new Magic Carpet surface lift head the list of capital improvements for the 2006-07 winter season.
An 8400 square foot building is being constructed to house a new rental shop and ski school center. The building will be located just west of the lift ticket windows giving guests easy access to everything they need to get on the mountain. New rental equipment will be added including snowboards, high performance and Telemark skis.
The existing rental shop is being converted to a 2400 square foot dining area with grab and go food service. A 1000 square foot seasonal and day locker room will be also part of the old rental shop conversion. A new restroom building is being built just outside the locker/dining area. To speed the ticketing process a new ticket window is being added to ticket sales.
“Monarch is known for friendly, low-hassle, convenient skiing but on busy days there were some areas we needed to improve upon” said Rich Moorhead, Monarch’s CEO. “The new facilities will speed up the rental process and make it much easier to register for ski & ride lessons. In addition the new restrooms and expanded seating will make the Monarch experience better for everyone.”
On the mountain improvements are planned for this season as well. A new 80 foot Magic Carpet lift will be added to the Children’s teaching area. The terrain in the teaching area is more than doubling in size providing more space for beginners to comfortably learn on.
For information on Monarch Mountain please go to www.skiMonarch.com or call (719) 530-5000.
Contact: Greg Ralph 719.530.5080 greg@skimonarch.com
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Cat’s out of the Bag
A little- known Colorado ski area has a little-known secret: Monarch Snowcat Tours.
Snowcat guide Andy Ruggles has a deeply cleft chin and an extravagant black mane streaked with gray that bobs at his shoulders. He looks like Beethoven, if Beethoven had been a skier. Outside the cat, Ruggles wags one of his mismatched poles like it’s a baton summoning his orchestra, and we follow the maestro into Staircase, a tight glade that drops, pauses, then drops again, its snaky lines guarded by branches so low they require limbo moves. The run spits us out at the base area of Monarch Mountain.
Though you may not know the name, Monarch is one of Colorado’s secrets, an entertaining little hill 120 miles from Colorado Springs that’s off the radar of most of the state’s skiers. Predictably, there’s rarely a liftline and no jockeying for the 350-plus annual inches of powder. As if that weren’t good enough, there’s also Monarch Snowcat Tours, a spunky little operation next door (run by Monarch Mountain) that proves wrong the established wisdom that snowcat skiing at resorts holds no thrill for experienced skiers.
At the top of the Breezeway chairlift we’re greeted by a sunburst-yellow snowcat with bucket seats, carpeting, heaters and a six-CD stereo. The only thing missing is a wet bar. The snowcat operation’s 770 acres of terrain straddle the backbone of the Continental Divide where the Sawatch Mountains meet the Sangre de Cristos. Drop into the east, and you’ll find the wind and sun-protected stashes. Several of these runs spit us out at the base area, where we ride a lift to meet the snowcat again.
If there’s a crimp in the snowcat operation, its brief runs; they average only about 700 vertical feet. When you’re cat-skiing, though, the upside of brevity is volume. Strong groups can squeeze in 17 runs a day here, even with a pit stop at the ski area’s lodge for a hot lunch.
In the afternoon, we head west of the divide to No Name Bowl, a broad splay of lightly treed faces with lingering runs. Above us lie the delicious lines and chutes of No Name Peak- steeper terrain that Monarch hopes eventually to open. The west facing terrain gets buckets of bright sun and more wind, which can result in variable conditions. High on the ridge today, however, the snow is dense and smooth, like clotted cream, and we play for hours in the trees. By sundown, grinning and tuckered, we retreat to the base lodge with a thorough appreciation for the fact that bigger does not always mean better.
Fit For A King, Monarch’s 670 acres in south-central Colorado are greatly augmented by the 770 additional acres of powder-swathed terrain offered by Monarch Snowcat Tours.
By, Christopher Solomon
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Monarch Mountain/Colorado
Maybe you`ve blasted past it on your way to Crested Butte. Or floated far below it on a summertime raft trip down the Arkansas River. But if you`ve never skied at Monarch Mountain, you are missing one of the most underrated resorts in the Rockies.
Monarch sits atop the Continental Divide at the summit of 11,312-foot Monarch Pass, and it gets the snowfall to prove it. Averaging over 350 inches, Monarch is owned by a group of Colorado-based businesspeople and is one of eight smallish ski areas touted in Colorado Ski Country`s `Gems` program- meaning you get the good skiing without the hustle and hassle of some of the bigger destinations.
Long a favorite of hardcore Colorado locals living along a stretch of U.S. 50 between Salida and Gunnison, Colorado, Monarch has recently become a favorite of many Denver-area skiers, in large part because you can drive there without battling the crowds of I-70. This year the resort added 130 acres of expert terrain by opening the Mirkwood Basin area to anyone willing to make the 10-minute hike up from the Breezeway lift.
And if the 800 acres of light, dry Sawatch Range snow isn`t enough for you, sign up for a day with the Monarch Snowcat Tours and get 10 to 12 runs down 900 feet of advanced terrain.
For one of the best views possible from a ski run in the Lower 48, take the Panorama lift to the top of the Continental Divide. Take in the view, snap a couple of photos, then dive in. - Tom Bie |
Nov. 23 Opening Day
Monarch Mountain is an intimate, family-oriented ski area located in south central Colorado near Salida. Monarch boasts an annual average of 350` of snowfall to cover its 800 acres of terrain, with trails ranging in difficulty from beginner to expert. Services include a ski and snowboarding school offering group and private lessons, a children`s center, and a base lodge with an extensive menu of food and drinks.
New this season:
- 130 acres of hike-able terrain in Mirkwood basin
- Mirkwood guided tours: 4 hours, 1-6 people, 7yrs and older, Green, Blue and Black terrain.
- A conveyor lift for children-safe, easy access, less walking
- Adult Group Lesson Season Pass: includes unlimited 2-hour adult clinics, $20 off any private lesson, and access into any adult program.
For those with a more adventurous spirit, Monarch also offers guided snowcat tours on an additional 770 acres of advanced slopes atop of the Continental Divide.
Weekly Programs:
The Monarch Lesson Pass, for $299, offers unlimited afternoon group lessons. The Lesson Pass may, also, be used for the following 2005-06 eight-week Adult Programs: Racing Mondays, Masters Tuesdays, Women`s Wednesdays, Tele Thursdays and Freeride Fridays. This pass does not include a lift ticket so a daily ticket or season pass is required to participate in any lesson. Additional program: Shredders (5-Week snowboard program)
Special Events:
• October 8th Matchstick Productions `The Hit List` 7:30 @ The Steamplant, Salida
• October 22 Teton Gravity Research `Tangerine Dream` 7:00 @ The Steamplant, Salida
• December 31 New Year’s Eve Celebration – Parade of Lights
• Jan 13 – Mar 3 Town Races (8 Consecutive Fridays)
• Feb 5 USSA Slalom Event
• March 4 Snowshoe Scramble
• March 11-23 Spring Break
• March 12 Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge
• March 25 Big Air Competition
• TBD Lumber Jack Festival
Advance Skier Options:
Skiable acres: 800 inbounds lift served and hikeable. 770 Snowcat served.
Included in the cost of a lift ticket is the new 130acre Mirkwood Basin accessed by a quick 10-minute hike from the top of the Breezeway lift. Previously only accessible via the area’s Snowcat service, this expansion lets skiers hike to a powder wonderland of steep, expert chutes and glades.
Monarch Snowcat Tours begin late November and run through late March. At the beginning of the day, professional guides explain what to expect and what items to bring. These same guides expose clients to 800 acres of unbelievable terrain, untouched by many. Lunch is held in a private dining area at the main lodge followed by more spectacular runs. For reservations, please call: 888.996.7669 ext 5101 or email snowsales@skimonarch.com.
Web Revamp: www.skimonarch.com
Not only is everything you want to know available at the click of your finger, this winter go online for Monarch’s WEB CAM for the latest footage in weather and events.
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Monarch Mountain is listed as one of seven places to “Go South for empty Highways and Big Mountains.” Editor Tom Winter begins by writing, “ Forget about the skiing madhouse known as I-70 and head south. Once on the road, you will find the steepest terrain in Colorado…scary enough that once you’ve learned how to handle it, you’ll be able to ski anything in the world.” Winter continues with “Monarch isn`t that steep, but it more than makes up for it in the quality and abundance of its snowfall. The resort has just opened quality hike-to terrain that used to be reserved for its snowcat operation in Mirkwood Basin, a collection of trees and ridges that encompass 130 acres.”
Freeskier’s “Top Snowcat Skiing” article rates Monarch Mountain third in the Continental US. `Monarch Powder Cats service 900 acres, all of which are just outside the Monarch ski area boundary. But Monarch Powder Cats proves the old adage that looks can be deceiving. The terrain is steep, the snow falls in copious amounts and the attitude is laid back, which is why FREESKIER tries to fill one of their cats with a bunch of prows every winter for an epic day`
According to Monarch’s marketing director, Greg Ralph, a significant number of the Powder Cats reservations come from industry staff and states, “Monarch is where ski bums go on their day off.”
For more information on Monarch Mountain’s 2005-2006 season call 888.996.7669 or check out the Web www.skimonarch.com
Monarch...real snow, real people, real friendly, real Colorado
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