Photo: Steamboat Gondola (by Greg Burke) 1. The Snow... this Colorado resort receives over 350 inches of their trademark Champagne Powder each season, often the most of any Colorado resort. When eastern resorts are having downer years for downhillers, the sprawling Steamboat, Colorado's third largest ski resort with 3,668-vertcal feet and 3,000 acres of terrain, usually sees plenty of "white out" days. |
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Photo: Steamboat's Billy Kidd, Director of Skiing (by Greg Burke) 4. Olympic Training... If you want to be a good skier, ski where the Olympians do. Steamboat, nicknamed “Ski Town USA,” is the breeding ground to 56 Winter Olympians (and counting)…the most of any town in America. They even have an Olympic Cauldron in the center of town that burns during the Winter Games.
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Photo: Billy Kidd skiing Steamboat (by Greg Burke) 5. Ski with Billy Kidd... Steamboat is the only ski area I know that offers free ski clinics with Olympic Medalists and World Champions, Billy Kidd and Nelson Carmichael. Do you see Bode doing this at Bretton Woods?
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Photo: Steamboat Grand Hotel (by Greg Burke) 7. The Grand... Steamboat is home to some grand lodging… literally. The monstrous Steamboat Grand at the base, built in 1998, is a posh, proximate place to crash.
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Photo: Strawberry Park Hot Springs at Steamboat (photo by Greg Burke) 8. Natural Hot Springs... Hot springs are the ultimate après ski, and Steamboat Springs has 150 of them – hence the name. Strawberry Park Hot Springs is a beautiful, warm and wonderful natural spring. The 104-degree mineral springs are aesthetically impressive and super soothing. Take the kids for a geological dip during daylight – or visit at night for an adults-only (suits optional) “hot spring.”
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Photo: Steamboat Chute 1 (by Greg Burke) 10. The Terrain... Steamboat's got everything from wide-open cruisers, to steeps, glades, bumps and chutes - all covered in glorious Colorado snow. When it’s a “three wire winter” in Steamboat, that’s ranchers’ terminology for measuring deep snow to the top of the fence, its time to go!
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Photo: Steamboat Morningside (by Greg Burke)
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Photo: Slopeside Grill Après Ski in Steamboat, Colorado (by Greg Burke) |
