Trip Report
Can you really beat a Summer trip to Telluride?
Summer skiing, tremendous hiking, scenic vistas in every direction…
And then there are the sunsets…oh boy, the SUNSETS!
Telluride: July 1st – 15th, 2017
Ahhhhh Summer is finally upon us! The best time of the year for the smell of freshly cut grass, sunscreen and burnt meat on a grill.
Summer in Telluride, Colorado is quite special. It offers superb trial running, hiking, biking, wildflower viewing and summer camp for the kiddos. However, it also embraces skiing’s second season…hiking and ski-exploring those solidified slivers of snow in the backcountry of America’s largest mountains. The Telluride area offers some sweet high-altitude, north-facing skiing with the easiest access being in and around Alta Lakes and Imogene Pass. Most of the skiing in early July occurs at elevations between 12,000 and 13,500 feet and can be quite uncrowded.
Summer in Lake Tahoe isn’t too bad either, but on this trip we’re going to bypass Tahoe for Telluride!
The rest of the Sierra looking pretty wintry for the end of June…
Nice view of Aspen and the surrounding peaks…
And then flying into Montrose, Colorado…the airport where most will fly into when headed to Telluride…
Our 1 year old fancies the old Atomic ARC…
And just like that, we are on the gondola and ready to get outside…
One of the best ways to acclimatize is to head up to Bear Creek Falls…
Who doesn’t like a roaring waterfall?
Views from the Falls aren’t too shabby either…
Good old Colorado Ave in the Summer…
Staying up at Mountain Village provides prolonged sunsets…
July 1st, 2017 – SKI DAY!!!!
For my first day of skiing, I decided to head up Silver Mountain, a personally familiar zone above Alta Lakes…
As I climbed up the main snowfield, I figured an eastern facing chute would provide a better sliding surface in the morning…
But when I turned the corner, the chute went all the way to the summit!
Summer skiing selfie game is super strong…
Can you beat the Summer summit views in and around Telluride?
With rain clouds forming and a lunch date with my wife, I had to make a quick descent…
The chute turned out to be quite longer than I was anticipating, but I was not complaining…
As the clouds covered the sun, the crux of the chute wasn’t going to last much longer…
The next day, the plan was to hike to Gold Hill…
The wildflowers were just beginning to bring color to the landscape…
With the San Joaquin in the background, we continued on the planned route…
Prospect basin and Mt. Wilson say hello as we gain elevation…
This kid has goals. One of which being the top of the Revelation Chair before the afternoon storms roll into the area…
With his summit reached, mom and son ran back down as Dad continued on toward Palmyra…
Well, the sun decided to play hide and seek but I still got a great view of Palmyra Peak…
July 3rd, 2017 – More Skiing!
While we were in Telluride, the kids did a few weeks of Telluride Academy – highly recommended summer camp if your kids like the outdoors…
I decided to grab a Jeep and see what the snow gods had for me up on Imogene Pass…
After parking the Jeep at the bottom of the snowfield, I began hiking up into Savage Basin and noticed little bit of fresh snow…BONUS!
In years past, I usually don’t ski up here until August. Early July gives you WAY more options…
I think its time to do some skiing…just me and the birds, or planes…
I decided to ski the chute on hard skiers right because it looked a bit smoother than the direct fall-line…
Another lap and of course, time to catch my breath and take some scenic photos!
Imogene Pass at 13,114 feet can take you to Ouray (more pics later in the blog)…
On my second lap, I found a tasty chute on far skiers left…
Not bad morning of July skiing! Now its time for lunch in town…
My GPS said there was a highway around here somewhere…
July 4th on Main Street and like any other small town the people GOT OUT HERE EARLY!
But before we watch the parade, my daughter and youngest son are going to loop the Jud Wiebe Trail…
Love the contrasting climate and vegatation on this hike…
Yup, he’s on my back and honestly, not helping at all…
BUT THEY BROUGHT BACK THE UNICORN FRAP FOR A DAY!!!!!!
Ahhhh, Sunsetting on the Gondola…
Up and back down into town…and by the way, Imogene Pass is way up near that patch of snow
And then finally on Colorado Ave just before the sun goes to sleep…
A jeep tour up Imogene Pass but this time with the kids!!!
When the weather is warm, we take the kids to the pool…
No days off for this family…this time a morning hike up to the top of Chair 9!
Views of Dihedral, Mountain Quail and Palmyra…
Made it to Giuseppe’s but sadly no pulled pork sandwiches to be found…
Oh, hey Beck…that set was like ‘WOW!’
JULY 10th, 2017 – Even More Skiing!
Another morning above Alta Lakes meant some uphill and downhill activity before lunch…
The colors were popping through the scree…
Let the suffering begin…
’Oh hey camera, who looks better? The chute or the old man skiing in the Summer?’
I think I’ll sit down for a minute and reflect on life…
Up and on the opposite side of the chute, the wildflowers were ridiculous…some would say ‘telluridiculous.’
Let’s get a look at this chute shall we? Yup, I’m doing at least two laps!
Off the top was buttery smooth but the conditions got progressively bumpy on the descent…
On the second lap, I just followed the areas that were ‘groomed.’
The force with this one is strong as he’s looking at some burly Blizzards…
Let’s roam the town then shall we?
Main street…tons of coffee, books, candy, food, toys…you get the drift
This town has some character everywhere you look…
Sometimes its nice to seem some rain clouds…
After dropping off the older kids at Telluride Academy, this young one requested a sherpa to Bear Creek Falls…
Hmmmm, I don’t think its deep enough for a huck…
The 13th month old made it…translation: DAD MADE IT!
Summer Concert Series up in Mountain Village is always a good idea on a Wednesday night…
Chairlifts love soaking in the the Summer sun…
Pro tip: Gondola rides can save your legs…
Another thing to do on a rainy day is to head over to Ouray and grab some lunch…
Who doesn’t enjoy a decent local brewery?
Its also a great place to view some of the classic architecture…
July 14th, 2017 – ANOTHER DAY OF SKIING!
Back at Alta Lakes and what’s this? A skiing partner? No way!!!! Stoked to have ReelMotion on board…
Lots of Direct Messages on Instagram to convince him to tag along on this blind ski date…
Definitely some melting happening over the past few days since my last visit…
Personally, I like to run up these things with crampons…
Summer storms bring stunning contrasting sights…
Proof that it was Summer…
Jesse is all smiles. Probably because he knows he’s going to slay some mid-July turns…
The author begins to ‘groom’ the slope…
Here’s a more personal view of the powder day…
It’s best to spray the rocks for that added flair…
See what I did there with the above sequence? Here’s the next photo…
Jesse eyes up his final turn on the first lap…
Shorts? Check. Skis? Check. That’s about right…
Time to go back up for another go!
As it started to rain, Jesse takes the photo of the day…
And then its back to California where Winter clings deep into the Summer of 2017…
