r/Aspen

Trying to make an itinerary. Any foreseen issues with this?

Arrive late afternoon Sunday, June 14 to Snowmass. Dinner at Element 47. (Only day of our trip it will be open, apparently).

Monday June 15 Maroon Bells. We need to reserve a shuttle ride. Later, shop in Aspen and have lunch at White House Tavern. Yummy chicken sandwich, I hear? Then we wanted to do the gondola but it came to my attention that it may not be open that early in the summer. Is it a real bummer that we will miss that? What should we do instead? That evening we were probably going to go back to Snowmass and eat at Il Poggio.

Tuesday June 16 Cathedral Lake Trail. Lunch and possibly horseback ride at Pine Creek Cookhouse. Grottos, Independence Pass. Dinner, where?

Wednesday we are driving home, so it's not a huge trip. What are we missing?

I’ve been to every ski town through summer and winter and I love the walkability here with the town being a grid and feel the most comfortable here. I know people think it’s snooty, full of celebrities or whose who of designer duds but I don’t see it that way I see it as a real old town with modern things too, great choices of restaurants there and nearby towns and lots walkability if you don’t ski all the time and it’s nice to have guests and grandkids in the future. I love the fact you can drive from there to anywhere else and I like the walkability. How can I find the least expensive lot, condo or home even a foreclosure and buy that within the next years. I would like this to be my second home for generations to come and base. If I want to go Vail I can if I want to any other ski town I can but I would like this to be my base. I’m always with my dogs will always have dogs and we love the dog scene here everywhere. They love the dog park. It’s low enough I don’t feel altitude sickness in town and the downtown area is flat enough for both my and husbands crappy knees. Plus we love the bike trail alongside the rio grande it’s enough for us to go far past Woody. No im not delusional. The property value holds steady here and rentals have a good earning so it’s also a wise investment.

I guess when I first came here I just assumed there would be some great, eclectic used bookstore with like first editions of Blood Meridian and Mishima and esoteric literature from the 18th century. I was shocked to find out there’s not a decent used bookstore within like an hour.

Am I out of touch?

Hello my friends, me and my girlfriend are going on a trip to Colorado Next week and I really want to see the Maroon bells from the base, at the lake scenic area, just to go contemplate, take a few pictures and look around the lake.

I understand that the road is close until late may, how plausible would it be to hike up to the lake scenic area by following the closed road from winter gate somewhere around weekend of May 9th?

I see people recommend parking the car somewhere before the winter gate like the lazy T ranch near there and walk up the 6 is miles to the lake

I just want to know if I can make it with some simple but appropriate warm clothes and goretex boots, or if the road is going to be absolutely caked in knee high (or higher) snow.

TLDR: Is getting to the maroon bells lake from the winter gate in early May too dangerous or is it doable but complicated or just a flat out NO?

I greatly appreciate your help and comments.

Hey everyone, I just worked my third season in Jackson Hole. I was a first year ski instructor and my girlfriend was a lifty. I grew up skiing Aspen but the few people I’ve talked to said it’s nearly unattainable to live there. I’m curious about a few things, how much can a level 1 or 2 ski instructor expect to make? Where do people live to get a place to themselves? My girlfriend and I have gotten spoiled and would really need a one bedroom or studio with all the appliances and also that is dog friendly. Are there any employee housing units like that? Or is it all a multi bedroom shared type of thing? I figured Basalt is the best option for apartment rentals. We just stopped through Aspen on our way down to Florida for the summer. I talked to some locals working around town and I got the itch to try and make Aspen work. Anyway I appreciate the input. Bonus points if any ski instructors can give me some hope with stories of massive tippers and cool deals like dog sitting and baby sitting for billionaires.

I usually do my own tuning, but after this low-tide season, I have a board with a ton of minor dings that could easily be fixed by a quick stone grind.

I don’t want to pay $100 for a full tune, just looking for someone who’ll run the board through the grinder quickly and I’ll handle the rest. Just want someone who actually knows their way around the grinder.

Anyone attempted to hike/skin up aspen since closing day? Are they doing work up there or should it be clear for the crazy skier looking for a last lap

My wife and I visited Aspen this winter and had a great time. We went for 4 nights. Below is an unbiased opinion from a tourist for prospecting tourists coming from two people who travel all over.

Skiing/Activities: Elite. The skiing is second to none and this was on an off year. Enough said. We snowmobiled at T-Lazy Ranch and had a blast. The guides and staff were knowledgeable and pleasant. The Snow League put on by Shaun White was there that weekend and they put on a great event. Well organized, high energy, and the base level ticket allowed you to walk alongside the half pipe, too. Awesome experience. (10/10)

Nightlife/Apres: Elite. One of the highlights of Aspen for out of towners in my opinion. St Regis on Saturdays outdoors is a lot of fun and great vibes. Celebrities were hanging around if you’re into that and good music. The sound system at the Regis is very good. The Jade Room was really interesting to say the least. On mountain apres is great too. Can’t go wrong here. We walked by Belly Up and that sounded like it was popping with a bunch of people there too. Caveat for some, prices on everything is sky high. (9/10)

Shopping: Very good. Mostly the same flagship stores you’ll see anywhere. Gucci, Louis, Prada, Rolex, Hermes, etc. which is whatever. BUT, there are some really nice boutiques like Wylde for woman, Kemo Sabe was a fun experience the staff there is top tier, REVOLVE & FWD the wife liked a lot some cool pieces in there, and then the art from the outside looks very good too. The Boutique Ogier is ultra luxury and had really nice stuff. (8/10)

The People/Demographic: The people that live in Aspen, retail workers, servers, bartenders… these people are amazing. It’s the people that come to Aspen for vacation that ruined it for us. Walking on the street passing others while they endlessly look you up and down to see what you’re all about. Waiting for your table at a restaurant is the same. Full of people that think they’re way more important than they actually are. Great example was on an almost 70 degree day we passed this woman wearing a full fur coat top to bottom, fur head scarf, designer everything else, and of course a birkin… so insanely out of place for the weather and over the top. People all over just doing way too much. This really annoyed us the entire time because truly it was endless. (5/10)

Food: Pretty good for a Colorado ski town but nothing to hype about if you know good food. It is nothing close when ranking against NYC, Mexico City, Tokyo, majority of Europe, etc. The mindset we had going in was that the food here was going to up to that level based on what we heard, price, and exclusivity for reservations. Our favorite meals were actually the lunches we had at White House Tavern and Clark’s Oyster Bar (our favorite). For dinner, Wayan is overrated compared to what social media tells you but very cool ambiance. Matsuhisa was average compared to their other flagship sister restaurants they own. The other spots weren’t memorable enough to mention. (7/10)

Budget/Value: I would be prepared to spend. You can easily hit 15-20k if you’re not budget conscientious all things considered. Flights, Hotel/Airbnb, Ubers, 1k for lift tickets (2 days 2 people), go to top restaurants, core lunch spots, if you like fine wine/champagne, extra activities, etc. My wife and I vacation 3-5 times a year. For what we got from what we spent, we’ve gotten better for less elsewhere outside the skiing. (7/10)

Overall, we agreed we would go back if it was for a guys or girls trip. You cannot go wrong for something like that. As for other spots in the Midwest, we’ve been to Breck, Telluride, all of Utah, and Jackson Hole. We enjoyed Jackson Hole, Park City and its surrounding mountains much more and would recommend that instead.

EDIT 1: I was ignorant to the fact that Aspen and the other locations are not in the Midwest and stand corrected.

EDIT 2: If you’re a traveler looking for an honest review, this is one that I wish I had seen from someone before visiting. Make sure you read all the comments before you leave, they’re hilarious. Reddit is amazing.

Paywall, but you get the idea. Please call your local Republican representative and let them know how you feel.

Rep Hurd (his district) (202) 225-4676

Rep Boebert (her old district) (202) 225-4761

Rep Crank (piece of shit) (202) 225-4422

Rep Evans (trying hard to be piece of shit) (202) 225-5625

Just curious if in the summer/early fall season if going up silver queen gondola and holding a small toast and hanging out after a wedding ceremony (ceremony elsewhere) sounds like a feasible activity? Or does anyone have suggestions on an open space to do something like that in the area?

Not interested in renting out a whole space more just use of the outdoor area

Looking for a Spanish speaking driver to take 3 people and their belongings from Aspen to NYC. Van and return flight would be taken care of. Ideally leaving Wednesday 4/15.

Please DM if interested.

24m I have been living in the valley for almost two years now working in Aspen (ASC) and currently living in Carbondale. I have been on and off doing BMX and hitting crown park a lot when I was living at company housing in Willits. I’ve realized I’ve missed shredding with friends and seeing each other progress is a great feeling. Riding alone is not nearly as fun as with friends and I end up not having much fun at all. I am curious if there’s a good group or just people in my situation that would love to meet up and hit some jumps together. My local park is now the one in Carbondale but Crown is still my favorite and I really want to hit the Basalt park if they ever get cleaned up. I would also love to help them get cleaned up since I think the momentum of those jump lines would be sick. If there’s anyone else in the valley I would love to meet up and shred some gnar!

Hi all - I’m visiting Aspen on the 17th from Texas with some friends who live in Denver. I fear they are downplaying the cold. How cold it is now and do I need to get clothes like I was going on a ski trip ? I know it’s not snowing rn

Also recommendations for restaurants with flavorful food ?

selling ONE ticket GA for shakey thursday night the 16th at Belly up.

if anyone’s interested please let me know/ shoot me a dm.

Looking for a recording buddy at the slope today, we can film/shoot each other. Looking to get some shots before the season ends. Not gonna pay you but I can film you in exchange. DM me if interested.