Eldora skiing (Denver, Boulder, Thornton: ski resorts, live, price)

[twowolves]

Isn't Eldora closer to Denver than any other ski location? I know it's prob not like Vail or Keystone, but it's prob fine for famililes who live locally and wish to not have to travel several hrs just for a day of skiing.

How many min/hrs would you say Eldora would be from Denver downtown??

Or, better yet, the Thornton area....?

Does anyone go there to ski? How is it? Price and skiing-wise?

THanks!

Hey, can someone tell me how to get the 'befriend' icon next to my screen name?? I noticed some posters have it and some don't.

[Augie Daugie]

I don't ski - but I do go to Eldora to hike. It takes between 75 and 90 minutes to get there by car.

[Katiana]

Probably about an hour, maybe a little more, from Thornton. Depends on where in Thornton, for starts. About 1/2 hr. from Boulder. Maybe 1 1/2 hr from downtown Denver?

My friends from back east think it looks as good as many of the big name eastern resorts. It's not what you'd call cheap, but discounts are available. It's a windy place.

[tfox]

I got a season pass there one season (student $99 deal). The drive time is fairly short, but on a good day you could probably make it to Loveland quicker than you could make it to Eldora. The advantage is that there's not much traffic at all going up to Eldora, even though it's only 2-lane roads the whole way; you'll almost never be stuck in traffic.

It is indeed very windy there, though some days much more so than others.

It is fairly small; you could probably do just about everything there is to do there in one day. So, if you only go 2-3 times during a season to Eldora, you probably wouldn't be bored, but there's not enough there to keep you occupied all season long if you go frequently.

The other thing to consider about Eldora is that its snowfall patterns are quite different from many of the other ski resorts. So, upslope storms usually dump heavily on Eldora, and don't impact the rest of the resorts at all. So, there are occasions when the conditions at Eldora CAN be the best in Colorado by a long shot (i.e., after a big dumping from an upslope storm).

Eldora does have a nicely done cross-country area; I know a number of people that go to Eldora strictly for that purpose, and then occasionally keep Eldora as an option for downhill given the right conditions.

[vegaspilgrim]

Eldora is okay. I've skiied there a few times. Eldora would blow away pretty much any ski area in the southwest, that's for sure. For Colorado though it's not a whole lot to brag about. I prefer going to Loveland. Awesome views, incredibly easy to access, really high elevation so it's open really early and late in the season, no lines, no frills, no tourists, just great skiing.

[cjski21]

My advice, go to Loveland. It is much larger and not much farther in distance when coming from Denver. Best of all, Loveland is never crowded.

[Neditate]

Hi twowolves! I live 15 minutes from Eldora. I ski there 2-3 times a week all season long. It's usually quiet on weekdays - weekends can get crowded when there's a good upslope snowstorm. (As tfox said, there are times when the snow is better at Eldora than many other locations.)
It is less expensive than Summit County resorts, last year lift tickets were $59 but you can get discounted tickets. If you spend $10 for the Colorado Gems card you get $15 off at Eldora, and deals at several other ski areas (A Basin, Echo Mtn., Loveland)
2008-09 Colorado Gems Card