# 3 Best parks near Denver!



## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

A-Basin is the place to go for good snow, steeps, and bumps. They have one of the best setups for hanging out in the lodge and on the beach along the mountain. That said, the park there sucks and probably isn't worth your time. Keystone has had a great park the last couple of years but it might be iffy that time of year because of snow. Breck has one of the best parks in the country and, yes, it will be crowded. Copper and Vail are good and both have great bowls. Winter Park's park is alright. I haven't been in the park at Beaver Creek or Loveland so I can't help you there.

COUNT


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## fet123 (Aug 27, 2006)

COUNT said:


> A-Basin is the place to go for good snow, steeps, and bumps. They have one of the best setups for hanging out in the lodge and on the beach along the mountain. That said, the park there sucks and probably isn't worth your time. Keystone has had a great park the last couple of years but it might be iffy that time of year because of snow. Breck has one of the best parks in the country and, yes, it will be crowded. Copper and Vail are good and both have great bowls. Winter Park's park is alright. I haven't been in the park at Beaver Creek or Loveland so I can't help you there.
> 
> COUNT


I am sorry maybe i wasent to clear, I am not looking for parks mostly, I like riding trails not as much parks. That said what about snow in vail and copper in thats time of the year, Well let me refrase it out of those parks wich 3 are the best at time in the year, Snow wise And crouds?
I want to do 3 diferent parks, you have to understand the biggest park I been in is Camelback in PA, the park is not bad, but its small only 150 acres compared to this resorts this place is a child playground, So I want to enjoy this trip the most and make the most out of it.
thanks.


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

Sorry. Having computer issues. Double Post.

COUNT


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

Sorry. Still having computer issues. Triple Post.

COUNT


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

Finally got it: Vail is awesome for all around and has a good park. It will be crowded but it is so big that you may be able to avoid the crowds a little bit. Keystone is a great choice as they have a decent variety of terrain and a good park. Plus the park is lit up at night. Copper would be good; they have a good park and great bowls. Breck only has a little bit of true bowl skiing but they have a lot of other great terrain and one of the country's best parks. It will be the most crowded in the county but possibly not as bad if you hit it up on your last day. Keystone's snow quality can be hit and miss for that time of year but is always at least decent (especially compared to the east). Breck and Vail will both have good snow. One reason to pick Breck over Copper would be because you can then just by a Vail Resorts multiday ticket. You typically get a slightly better rate when you buy multiple days at once and then you still have the option of changing your plans and switching around which day you ski which area. And you could go back and ski Keystone every night after you get done at Breck, Vail, etc. A-Basin has a marginal park but they do have one. They have the best steeps and bumps in the county and a nice homely small-town atmosphere that you won't get at any of the other places you've mentioned. And you can ski there on a VRI ticket, also.

COUNT


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## jennifer (Oct 14, 2003)

LOVELAND for sure!!!!! The best snow, great skiing above treeline if chair 9 is open, no crowds, nice people, more laid-back that the others, FREE CLOSE-IN parking, plus food and drinks WAY cheaper than the other places, and the non-skiing family have a short 30 second walk to the lodge where they have beautiful, close-up views of the slopes and can watch you and others ski down.


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## boatnbike (Aug 11, 2006)

Fet123,
Stop worrying so much about snow conditions. No matter what anyone posts here, there is absolutly know way to know what conditions will be like the first week in January at any resorts in Colorado until you are much closer to your visit date. Even if some resorts get dumped on early, a week of warm weather could turn great conditions into below average conditions that early in the season. All the resorts near Summit are great mountains. Choosing one over the other is mostly a matter of personal preference. Snow conditions will likely be very similar at all of them. Your best bet is to plan to visit a resort that has snow-making capabilities. Vail, Breck, Copper & Keystone all have ample snow-making so, even it the weather doesn't cooperate, there will still be some runs (greens & blues) available. I don't beleive A-Basin or Loveland have snow making but I could be wrong. Count's idea of buying a Vail Resorts multi-day ticket makes a lot of sense for you. That way you have the option of skiing at Vail, Breck, Keystone or A-Basin. Vail definately has the best bowls although there's not snow making in bowls and it's possible they won't be open, (most likely they will, though). If you're staying in Summit, I doubt you want to consider any other resorts. It would be an hour drive to Winter Park (where I work) and I doubt the conditions would be that much better. Winter Park is a great mountain but no as much for snowboarders (several flat spots).

As for equipment rentals, there are many places in Summit to rent good equipment. Check the internet. I don't think you want to rent at the resort. It's more expensive and while you would have the ability to take it back should something go wrong, the chance of that happening isn't great and you'd have to re-rent every time you change resorts. Major hassle. I'd just rent somewhere in Summit and if you don't like it, you could trade it out at the end of the day.

Also, when you say "parks" I think you mean resorts or mountains. When people are reading your posts, they think you're talking about terrain parks, (half-pipes, rails, etc.) I think you're confusing some people. I hope this helps and have fun!


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## fet123 (Aug 27, 2006)

boatnbike said:


> Fet123,
> Stop worrying so much about snow conditions. No matter what anyone posts here, there is absolutly know way to know what conditions will be like the first week in January at any resorts in Colorado until you are much closer to your visit date. Even if some resorts get dumped on early, a week of warm weather could turn great conditions into below average conditions that early in the season. All the resorts near Summit are great mountains. Choosing one over the other is mostly a matter of personal preference. Snow conditions will likely be very similar at all of them. Your best bet is to plan to visit a resort that has snow-making capabilities. Vail, Breck, Copper & Keystone all have ample snow-making so, even it the weather doesn't cooperate, there will still be some runs (greens & blues) available. I don't beleive A-Basin or Loveland have snow making but I could be wrong. Count's idea of buying a Vail Resorts multi-day ticket makes a lot of sense for you. That way you have the option of skiing at Vail, Breck, Keystone or A-Basin. Vail definately has the best bowls although there's not snow making in bowls and it's possible they won't be open, (most likely they will, though). If you're staying in Summit, I doubt you want to consider any other resorts. It would be an hour drive to Winter Park (where I work) and I doubt the conditions would be that much better. Winter Park is a great mountain but no as much for snowboarders (several flat spots).
> 
> As for equipment rentals, there are many places in Summit to rent good equipment. Check the internet. I don't think you want to rent at the resort. It's more expensive and while you would have the ability to take it back should something go wrong, the chance of that happening isn't great and you'd have to re-rent every time you change resorts. Major hassle. I'd just rent somewhere in Summit and if you don't like it, you could trade it out at the end of the day.
> ...



Thanks that helps, yes I guess any snow is goingot better than the east coast, but with the help of weather everything will go right, this is all the info i need thanks a lot for your time.


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

Loveland and A-Basin do both have snowmaking. A-Basin's is limited but will get them open in October. Loveland has one of the best snowmaking crews out there. For rentals, I would recommend Columbine Ski and Sport in Dillon. They are one of the cheapest around and also have the best service of anywhere. Their location in town makes it easy to swap gear before or after your day on the hill if you have any issues. Luck.

COUNT


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## fet123 (Aug 27, 2006)

COUNT said:


> Loveland and A-Basin do both have snowmaking. A-Basin's is limited but will get them open in October. Loveland has one of the best snowmaking crews out there. For rentals, I would recommend Columbine Ski and Sport in Dillon. They are one of the cheapest around and also have the best service of anywhere. Their location in town makes it easy to swap gear before or after your day on the hill if you have any issues. Luck.
> 
> COUNT


Thanks I am going to contact one of the ski shops tomorrow for reservation of equipment, cause there email is down.

Tahnks a lot


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## COUNT (Jul 5, 2005)

Just FYI, you might have trouble reserving rental equipment right now as a lot of rental shops don't yet know what new stuff they'll be getting in and quite a few of them won't even open until just before ski season starts. You'll have the best of luck making equipment reservations if you wait until mid-Octoberish (and yes, you'll still be able to get a good deal for the holidays if you reserve then).

COUNT


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## yetigonecrazy (May 23, 2005)

jennifer said:


> LOVELAND for sure!!!!! The best snow, great skiing above treeline if chair 9 is open, no crowds, nice people, more laid-back that the others, FREE CLOSE-IN parking, plus food and drinks WAY cheaper than the other places, and the non-skiing family have a short 30 second walk to the lodge where they have beautiful, close-up views of the slopes and can watch you and others ski down.



i would have to agree. loveland gets the most snow out of the Summit Co resorts, and is a giant playgroud of fun. cheap everything, free parking, and the hiking off chairs 9 & 1 kick ass


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## dasunluva (Oct 13, 2003)

Dude, Vail or Steamboat are my recommendations! I grew up in "The Boat" and it used to be my favorite until I finally hit Vail a few years ago and the mountain is sweet. Between being able to drop some decent stuff, great groomers for carving and the size of the hill I'd definitely rip that one or two days. The cool thing is that everything is so close that you can bounce around pretty easy.


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