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Parking Pinch

Parking Pinch

Scott Pressly   January 23, 2022  
Many ski areas in the west are seeing parking as one of the biggest operational challenges. Monarch can experience this...
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Beauty

Beauty

Scott Pressly   January 19, 2022  
The mountain is buffed out and looking good. We have some snow on the horizon for Friday/Saturday. Should be some...
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Steel City

Steel City

Scott Pressly   January 16, 2022  
Our terrain park on the Breezeway side has once again taken on a new name. This trail has seen changes...
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Bluebird Week

Bluebird Week

Scott Pressly   January 13, 2022  
After the 10-day tempest, we have now put together a string of brilliant, bluebird days of skiing. This break in...
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Cat Skiing Underway

Cat Skiing Underway

Scott Pressly   January 10, 2022  
Monarch Cat Skiing has started taking guests out beyond the boundary ropes for the 2021-22 winter season. We had our...
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Mirk is Open!

Mirk is Open!

Scott Pressly   January 7, 2022  
Enjoy!
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Working on Mirkwood

Working on Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   January 5, 2022  
With all of our lift-served terrain now open, Ski Patrol and the MCS guides have been honing in on Mirkwood....
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Sun-Day

Sun-Day

Scott Pressly   January 2, 2022  
What a storm cycle. We received 65" of snow over a 10-day stretch with over 4" of SWE. The mountain...
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Like a Lion

Like a Lion

Scott Pressly   December 30, 2021  
It seemed like winter would never show up in late November and early December. However, there is no doubt that...
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Storm Cycle

Storm Cycle

Scott Pressly   December 27, 2021  
This is good. We are getting snow every day right now. It came down steady all day and things look...
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All Lifts for Christmas

All Lifts for Christmas

Scott Pressly   December 25, 2021  
What a gift. We had all of our aerial lifts open for Christmas Day including the season opener on Breezeway....
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Christmas Present

Christmas Present

Scott Pressly   December 23, 2021  
Here is a look at snowfall totals by 4pm on Christmas Day. Looks like we are going to get what...
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Rolling Mirkwood

Rolling Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   December 19, 2021  
The disruption roller was out on Mirkwood Bowl and Orcs today. This unit disrupts shear plane layers within the snow...
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Tumbo

Tumbo

Scott Pressly   December 17, 2021  
The Tumbelina Lift (or Tumbo as we know it) opened today. As described in an earlier post, the Tumbelina Lift...
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Road to Mirkwood

Road to Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   December 16, 2021  
Our talented operators and guides have started the process of pushing out into our cat skiing terrain. They have established...
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Wind Storm

Wind Storm

Scott Pressly   December 15, 2021  
Closing for the day on Wednesday was definitely the right call. We experienced some crazy wind and weather up here....
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Pano

Pano

Scott Pressly   December 13, 2021  
The Mountain Ops team was quick to act on getting another lift and some more terrain open for day two....
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Open!

Open!

Scott Pressly   December 11, 2021  
The storm came through as hoped. Thanks to a heroic effort from the Mtn Ops team over the last 36...
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Storm Update

Storm Update

Scott Pressly   December 9, 2021  
We are watching things closely as the upcoming round of snow develops. So far we have only seen 4" of...
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Uphill Access Closed

Uphill Access Closed

Scott Pressly   December 6, 2021  
I know everyone is chomping at the bit and excited for winter. We are too! We're all hopeful that the...
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Prepping the Slopes

Prepping the Slopes

Scott Pressly   December 3, 2021  
The Slope Maintenance crew was able to get a few snowcats out to start track packing this week. This process...
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North & East

North & East

Scott Pressly   November 30, 2021  
As mentioned in an earlier post, the mountain continues to hold snow on certain aspects. As we approach the winter...
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Meanwhile…

Meanwhile…

Scott Pressly   November 28, 2021  
While we wait for winter to show up, there are still some skiing options available with your Monarch Season Pass....
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Thanksgiving Harvest

Thanksgiving Harvest

Scott Pressly   November 25, 2021  
With the recent snow this week, we were able to begin some of our harvesting techniques. Each year during the...
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The Barn

The Barn

Scott Pressly   November 22, 2021  
Our new cat barn is complete and has received its final inspection. We decided to call this structure the barn...
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A Little Restraint

A Little Restraint

Scott Pressly   November 18, 2021  
As part of our upgrade to the Tumbelina Lift, we have added restraint bars to all 58 of the lift...
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Next Storm

Next Storm

Scott Pressly   November 15, 2021  
We've been checking the horizon every day for our next storm. While we have seen around two feet of snow...
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First Tour

First Tour

Scott Pressly   November 12, 2021  
I finally was able to get out for a few ski tours this week. While the mountain is mostly covered,...
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Prescribed Burning

Prescribed Burning

Scott Pressly   November 9, 2021  
With recent timber projects at Monarch and elsewhere on the San Isabel National Forest, there have been several burn operations...
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Hints of Winter

Hints of Winter

Scott Pressly   November 6, 2021  
The upper mountain appeared to be fairly covered this week. Unfortunately, we are not there yet. It looks like there...
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Bit by Bit

Bit by Bit

Scott Pressly   November 3, 2021  
This last round of snow continued the journey to winter. The mountain is looking a bit better with each one...
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Halloween Tally

Halloween Tally

Scott Pressly   October 31, 2021  
It's the end of October. We saw a fair amount of snow fall over the course of the month with...
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Snow & Glades

Snow & Glades

Scott Pressly   October 27, 2021  
Another nice October storm rolled through over the last 24 hours. This one really helped to show the thinning work...
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Uphill Pass

Uphill Pass

Scott Pressly   October 25, 2021  
Over the last few seasons, we have seen a significant increase in uphill travel here at the ski area. For...
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More Heli Work

More Heli Work

Scott Pressly   October 21, 2021  
We had another small round of Helicopter work today up here on the mountain. Xcel Energy contracted with a crew...
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Morning Boys!

Morning Boys!

Scott Pressly   October 17, 2021  
These big fellas were on the move after Friday's snowstorm. It's good to know that we have this kind of...
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October Storm

October Storm

Scott Pressly   October 15, 2021  
We received a nice blanket of snow last night! It actually caught us a bit by surprise as this last...
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Taste of Winter

Taste of Winter

Scott Pressly   October 14, 2021  
This week has brought on a significant change in our weather. Cooler temps and a few inches of snow have...
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Flyby

Flyby

Scott Pressly   October 11, 2021  
I can almost see it down there! My flight home this weekend passed right over our favorite little ski mountain.
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Morning Commute

Morning Commute

Scott Pressly   October 8, 2021  
Always something impressive to take in on the way up the pass.
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Whole Lotta Lot

Whole Lotta Lot

Scott Pressly   October 5, 2021  
Here is a view from above looking over the expanded Paradise Lot. You can really see the scale of the...
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Welcome to October

Welcome to October

Scott Pressly   October 2, 2021  
While we only had a dusting on the board the other day, we now have a light blanket of snow...
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Ninety Three Days

Ninety Three Days

Scott Pressly   September 29, 2021  
That's how long it has been between snowfall on the pass. As mentioned in an earlier post, we picked up...
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Monarch Overview

Monarch Overview

Scott Pressly   September 28, 2021  
Take in this awesome view of the mountain. Enjoy!
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Tidying Up

Tidying Up

Scott Pressly   September 25, 2021  
It took a bit of effort, but the deck sites have now been tidied up. VM West finished hauling the...
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Colors on the Pass

Colors on the Pass

Scott Pressly   September 22, 2021  
The aspens on Syncline Hill just above the town of Garfield are popping! Each fall season, this slope is one...
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Super Paradise

Super Paradise

Scott Pressly   September 21, 2021  
The crew from Lowry Contracting has finished their work on the Paradise Lot expansion. A huge thanks goes out to...
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Powderline

Powderline

Scott Pressly   September 18, 2021  
In 2016, WAPA came through with a saw crew and cleared out their right-of-way underneath the 230kV powerline that crosses...
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Feeling a bit like..

Feeling a bit like..

Scott Pressly   September 17, 2021  
It's starting to feel like fall up here! We are starting to see some changes in the season. The tundra...
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RFID Gates Installed

RFID Gates Installed

Scott Pressly   September 15, 2021  
All of the RFID gates have been installed and tested. The new ticket kiosks will soon be placed adjacent to...
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Tiger Stripes

Tiger Stripes

Scott Pressly   September 12, 2021  
The timber work along Monarch Ridge now reaches from near the mine all the way up to the Crest. While...
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Cat Barn

Cat Barn

Scott Pressly   September 10, 2021  
The new snowcat storage building is taking shape. As described in an earlier post, this is going to be a...
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Thin to Win

Thin to Win

Scott Pressly   September 8, 2021  
Here is a look at the latest round of aerial thinning efforts to remove beetle killed trees from the Garfield...
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Deck Clean Up

Deck Clean Up

Scott Pressly   September 6, 2021  
The Heli crew has completed flying all of the felled timber to the deck sites. In addition to the main...
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Aerial Operations

Aerial Operations

Scott Pressly   September 3, 2021  
The crew is making good progress flying trees to the landing. During this phase of the project, we are focusing...
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Heli on Site

Heli on Site

Scott Pressly   August 31, 2021  
The helicopter and crew from R&R Conner has arrived. We will begin flying timber down to the deck sites tomorrow....
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Tumbelina Upgrade

Tumbelina Upgrade

Scott Pressly   August 28, 2021  
The Tumbelina Lift is receiving a major mechanical upgrade this summer. We are once again teaming up with the crew...
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Clear Skies

Clear Skies

Scott Pressly   August 24, 2021  
With the hazy summer, I almost forgot how blue the sky can be.
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Smart Gates

Smart Gates

Scott Pressly   August 21, 2021  
The new RFID gates are currently being installed at the base of our lifts. These units scan an RFID card...
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Trees, Lifts, Gates & More

Trees, Lifts, Gates & More

Scott Pressly   August 18, 2021  
In these photos, we can see changes underway on several projects. The Tumbelina mechanical upgrade is in full swing with...
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Traces of the Past

Traces of the Past

Scott Pressly   August 15, 2021  
Of the thirty-two ski areas that are still operating in Colorado, Monarch is one of the originals. With an eighty-two...
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Rock Blasting

Rock Blasting

Scott Pressly   August 12, 2021  
As the parking lot expansion project has unfolded, we have had to deal with a significant rock shelf in this...
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Mt Taylor

Mt Taylor

Scott Pressly   August 8, 2021  
Here is a look at Mt Taylor just down the road from Monarch. One of Colorado's six hundred and thirty...
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RFID Gantries

RFID Gantries

Scott Pressly   August 5, 2021  
The new RFID Gantries have arrived and await installation. These units have a mast that will stand vertical near the...
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Pit Stop

Pit Stop

Scott Pressly   August 3, 2021  
The new restrooms have been installed near the base of Panorama and adjacent to Shredders, our wintertime mid-mountain food service...
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Back on the Ridge

Back on the Ridge

Scott Pressly   July 30, 2021  
The logging work continues across the highway on Monarch Ridge. The crew from Miller Timber started up near the top...
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Snowcat Storage

Snowcat Storage

Scott Pressly   July 26, 2021  
Our new 3500 sq. ft. storage building has been delivered and is awaiting construction while foundation work is completed. The...
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Trench Warfare

Trench Warfare

Scott Pressly   July 22, 2021  
We are running a few thousand feet of trenches to our base lifts. We are installing fiber optic lines along...
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Lunar Landscape

Lunar Landscape

Scott Pressly   July 19, 2021  
The Paradise Lot looks like the surface of the moon. Or that a lot of insects have been hard at...
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Can you Dig It?

Can you Dig It?

Scott Pressly   July 15, 2021  
There is a lot of digging going on. Our initial foundation work has begun for the new Axess RFID gates...
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CDNST/CT OPEN

CDNST/CT OPEN

Scott Pressly   July 12, 2021  
Our timber cutting operations were completed this weekend.  The detour and closure has been removed and the normal CDNST/CT route...
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Green Trees

Green Trees

Scott Pressly   July 9, 2021  
Here is a look at our recently thinned tree stands located in the southwest portion of the ski area. These...
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Out with the Dead

Out with the Dead

Scott Pressly   July 8, 2021  
Our logging crew has started hauling away the beetle killed trees. This portion of the timber sale is being taken...
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Summer Vista

Summer Vista

Scott Pressly   July 6, 2021  
While I love the mountain in winter, the summer views are not too bad.
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Thinning Underway

Thinning Underway

Scott Pressly   July 3, 2021  
The crew from Miller Timber has started clearing out dead standing timber from our slopes that have been impacted by...
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Last Little Bit

Last Little Bit

Scott Pressly   July 1, 2021  
We still have a little snow hanging on in a few places. The Mirkwood cornice is one of them.
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CDNST/CT Detour

CDNST/CT Detour

Scott Pressly   June 30, 2021  
As users utilize the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDNST) and the Colorado Trail (CT) it is easy to see...
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Logging Work

Logging Work

Scott Pressly   June 28, 2021  
We plan to begin commercial logging work with Miller Timber Services on July 1st. This is the same crew that...
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Dusting

Dusting

Scott Pressly   June 27, 2021  
Looks like we picked up a few flakes on the Divide. Pano Ridge-Sunday Evening Mt Aetna and Mt Taylor-Monday Morning
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Paradise

Paradise

Scott Pressly   June 24, 2021  
We are underway with the expansion of our upper parking lot...aka the Paradise Lot. We plan to add approximately 200...
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Shavano

Shavano

Scott Pressly   June 21, 2021  
It was nice to get a cool and cloudy morning after a week of record heat. Pretty amazing spot we...
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Hooligans

Hooligans

Scott Pressly   June 19, 2021  
It was great to see Salida's premier event back at our town's signature event. FIBArk returned this weekend in (almost)...
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H.O.K.

H.O.K.

Scott Pressly   June 16, 2021  
We have been working for several years to create better access to a portion of our permitted cat skiing terrain....
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From Doc’s

From Doc’s

Scott Pressly   June 13, 2021  
Here is another look at how little snow is left on the mountain.
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Summer Recon

Summer Recon

Scott Pressly   June 9, 2021  
We still have some drifts on our maintenance roads to clear out but things are opening up. It was great...
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Trail Change

Trail Change

Scott Pressly   June 6, 2021  
It's that time of year to swap out ski trails for single-track trails. I really love both...I'm glad I don't...
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Hanging On

Hanging On

Scott Pressly   June 3, 2021  
We still have a few snowfields on the mountain that are hanging on. After a cool couple of weeks, things...
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Looking for Summer

Looking for Summer

Scott Pressly   May 31, 2021  
Just the summit of Pano was peeking through on the last day of May. There are some flakes flying today...
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Last Chair

Last Chair

Scott Pressly   May 29, 2021  
I made it up to A-Basin the other day for one final day of accessing the slopes via a ski...
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American Paint

American Paint

Scott Pressly   May 26, 2021  
The mountains during this time of year remind me of an American Paint.
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Going Fast

Going Fast

Scott Pressly   May 23, 2021  
Our snowpack is continuing to disappear despite several snowstorms this spring. We have had some rain which seems to expedite...
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Mud Season

Mud Season

Scott Pressly   May 18, 2021  
We are still seeing a mix of weather conditions. Hot days, snow squalls and thundersnow. Yes, it's a thing.
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No Name

No Name

Scott Pressly   May 14, 2021  
I recently found this beautiful James Niehues illustration of No Name Bowl that was commissioned in the early 2000's. This...
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Still Snowing

Still Snowing

Scott Pressly   May 11, 2021  
The mountain picked up a few more inches over the last couple of days. As long as it keeps snowing,...
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Pikes

Pikes

Scott Pressly   May 8, 2021  
We get a great view of Pikes Peak from the top of the Garfield Lift. It looks like some type...
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May the 4th

May the 4th

Scott Pressly   May 4, 2021  
Be with you! We ended up on the receiving end of a nice little storm for early May. The total...
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Loveland Cat Skiing

Loveland Cat Skiing

Scott Pressly   April 30, 2021  
I had an opportunity to visit our friends at Loveland Ski Area and check out their recently approved cat skiing...
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Spring Showers

Spring Showers

Scott Pressly   April 27, 2021  
A bit of everything in a day. That is what we are seeing right now. It looks like we could...
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Mountain View

Mountain View

Scott Pressly   April 22, 2021  
Here is a nice look at the mountain from over on Monarch Ridge.
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Timber Lines

Timber Lines

Scott Pressly   April 19, 2021  
As I had hoped for in another post earlier this season, I really wanted to get over on Monarch Ridge...
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Valley Fog

Valley Fog

Scott Pressly   April 16, 2021  
The pass has been covered in a mix of fog and snow this week. On a morning tour the other...
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Empty Chairs

Empty Chairs

Scott Pressly   April 13, 2021  
The first day after closing always seems eerily silent without the lifts spinning and guests milling about. Several of the...
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Last Chance!

Last Chance!

Scott Pressly   April 10, 2021  
Closing day is Sunday-April 11th. Come on up and help celebrate the last day of the Monarch ski season. The...
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Our Playground

Our Playground

Scott Pressly   April 7, 2021  
How amazing was it to be able to get out and ski/ride this winter? Going into the season, I don't...
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Warm Days!

Warm Days!

Scott Pressly   April 3, 2021  
Spring has sprung! We are experiencing some really warm days up here this weekend. High temps are going to be...
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Monarch Marathon

Monarch Marathon

Scott Pressly   April 1, 2021  
A few of our patrollers started a tradition several years ago. They would pick a nice spring day during the...
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New Day

New Day

Scott Pressly   March 30, 2021  
Savor each one you get on the mountain!
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Home Stretch

Home Stretch

Scott Pressly   March 27, 2021  
Each season writes it's own story, and this season certainly has! However, each one always shares a few of the...
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Buried

Buried

Scott Pressly   March 24, 2021  
What a night! The storm came in with a vengeance and was a big-time upslope storm. These types of storms...
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MSP

MSP

Scott Pressly   March 22, 2021  
I am fortunate to work with some very talented and incredible people in the Mountain Operations division at Monarch. While...
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Spring Days

Spring Days

Scott Pressly   March 20, 2021  
After last weekend's powder storm, we have seen a few beautiful and sunny days here on the mountain. Things are...
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Snowpack Update

Snowpack Update

Scott Pressly   March 18, 2021  
Here is a look at what the most recent March storm was able to accomplish. Quite an improvement to Colorado's...
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Game Changer

Game Changer

Scott Pressly   March 16, 2021  
What a storm! There was a lot of hype leading into this snow event for Colorado and it delivered in...
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Brace for Impact

Brace for Impact

Scott Pressly   March 13, 2021  
Ok Colorado...we are about ready to get hammered by an historic winter storm Xylia. The northern Front Range looks to...
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Change is Coming

Change is Coming

Scott Pressly   March 11, 2021  
There were some really amazing Cirrus Clouds rolling in today ahead of the weekend storm. A change is coming!
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Socially Distant

Socially Distant

Scott Pressly   March 9, 2021  
We recently conducted some drone footage of our glade skiing on Pano. Definitely gives a different perspective to our socially...
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Feeling like Spring

Feeling like Spring

Scott Pressly   March 6, 2021  
It's been a warm weekend. There are still some soft powder turns on the north aspects, but the south facing...
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Wild Weather

Wild Weather

Scott Pressly   March 4, 2021  
It's been quite a week. Subzero temps last weekend with 60 mph winds. Warm, springlike weather earlier this week. Today...
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Big Views

Big Views

Scott Pressly   March 2, 2021  
Being perched on the Continental Divide provides a 360º look at the world around us. The view to the west...
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February Finale

February Finale

Scott Pressly   February 28, 2021  
We made it through the month! February helped to turn the page on the drier conditions we had seen earlier...
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Lil’ Rippers

Lil’ Rippers

Scott Pressly   February 26, 2021  
Monarch held our annual IFSA Junior Mountain Comp on Thursday-Feb 25th. This is the fourth season that we have held...
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Another Ski Away

Another Ski Away

Scott Pressly   February 24, 2021  
I always find myself at this time of the season needing a few days skiing at our partner resorts. When...
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Monarch Ridge Sunrise

Monarch Ridge Sunrise

Scott Pressly   February 22, 2021  
The recently logged Monarch Ridge looked extra impressive during a morning sunrise the other day. I was hoping to tour...
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Pano, Breeze & Mirk

Pano, Breeze & Mirk

Scott Pressly   February 20, 2021  
There is a lot of good skiing & riding between here and there. While Monarch does not boast thousands of...
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Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland

Scott Pressly   February 18, 2021  
The last month has transformed the mountain. We have received measurable snow on 22 of the last 31 days and...
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The goods keep coming

The goods keep coming

Scott Pressly   February 15, 2021  
We had some incredible conditions over the holiday weekend. We are knocking on a 50" base and have had reportable...
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Stormy Weekend

Stormy Weekend

Scott Pressly   February 13, 2021  
They keep rolling in. Friday delivered a very nice 3-4" of high density snow that carved like a dream. There...
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Mirkwood Ridge

Mirkwood Ridge

Scott Pressly   February 12, 2021  
After a 10-20 minute hike up to the top of Mirkwood, most approach the bowl and peer over the drop....
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Partner Resorts

Partner Resorts

Scott Pressly   February 11, 2021  
I had a chance this week to get up to one of my favorite partner resorts that you can visit...
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Mirkwood & More

Mirkwood & More

Scott Pressly   February 8, 2021  
There are still plenty of soft turns to be found in Mirkwood Basin. Take a hike and find yours.
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Groomed Out

Groomed Out

Scott Pressly   February 7, 2021  
With the most recent snowfall and a break in the action on Saturday night, our Slope Maintenance team was able...
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Double Digit Day

Double Digit Day

Scott Pressly   February 6, 2021  
Amazing day. Anyone who was here today knows what I'm talking about. We reported 10" new today with 7" falling...
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In the Groove

In the Groove

Scott Pressly   February 5, 2021  
The storms keep rolling in. Today was a sweet and stormy day on the mountain. We picked up another 3-4"...
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Snow Time

Snow Time

Scott Pressly   February 3, 2021  
Looks like we are headed into our next storm cycle. We should have some good conditions on the mountain as...
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Mirkwood View

Mirkwood View

Scott Pressly   February 2, 2021  
Here is a look at Mirkwood Bowl, Orcs and Mirkwood Trees from below. This was taken from below as I...
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Solid Weekend

Solid Weekend

Scott Pressly   January 31, 2021  
We had great conditions on the mountain after receiving measurable snow on seven out of the last nine days. Even...
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Much Better

Much Better

Scott Pressly   January 28, 2021  
The storm snow over the last ten days has really helped to improve conditions. Thin areas have more cover and...
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MCS Status

MCS Status

Scott Pressly   January 24, 2021  
I had a chance to get out with the guides into the Monarch Cat Skiing terrain the other day. It...
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Historically Slow Start

Historically Slow Start

Scott Pressly   January 22, 2021  
Well, we finally hit 100" of YTD snowfall for the 2020-21 winter season today. It took us 137 days to...
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Looking Better

Looking Better

Scott Pressly   January 21, 2021  
The new snow this week definitely helped to improve the conditions and the mountain is skiing nicely. Patrol was able...
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From the Egress

From the Egress

Scott Pressly   January 18, 2021  
Here are a few looks as you return back to the ski area from Mirkwood along the Egress Trail. After...
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Lift Wars

Lift Wars

Scott Pressly   January 17, 2021  
Our Lift Operations crew at the bottom of Pano has been making the most with what snow we have and...
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Crescent Monarch

Crescent Monarch

Scott Pressly   January 15, 2021  
Here are a few looks at January's waning and waxing moon over Monarch.
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Pano Afternoon

Pano Afternoon

Scott Pressly   January 12, 2021  
Just another beautiful afternoon on top of the Divide.
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Clouds Roll In

Clouds Roll In

Scott Pressly   January 10, 2021  
Here is a stunning image of the weekend storm clouds rolling in just before sunrise and lit from below by...
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Westside Drop

Westside Drop

Scott Pressly   January 9, 2021  
Our MCS operators have been branching our snow roads out. They have built the over the snow road from the...
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Troll’s Nose

Troll’s Nose

Scott Pressly   January 7, 2021  
Classic view of Mirkwood and Orcs from the top of Elation. Troll's Nose is the sunlit rib in the middle...
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Down the Hollow

Down the Hollow

Scott Pressly   January 6, 2021  
Here is a look down Sleepy Hollow and out to the Sawatch Range.
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Beas

Beas

Scott Pressly   January 5, 2021  
Miss you buddy! Rest in peace Brett.
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Night Shift

Night Shift

Scott Pressly   January 4, 2021  
While we sleep in our warm beds, dreaming of tomorrow's turns, our Slope Maintenance team is hard at work prepping...
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Freestyle Moon

Freestyle Moon

Scott Pressly   January 2, 2021  
Park Crew wraps up their morning work on the Never Summer Freestyle Terrain under the glow of a full moon.
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2021

2021

Scott Pressly   January 1, 2021  
Hoping the New Year brings health and happiness to all.
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Staircase

Staircase

Scott Pressly   December 30, 2020  
This last round of snow enabled our Ski Patrol crew to open another piece of terrain in Mirkwood. The Cat...
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Winter Rolls In

Winter Rolls In

Scott Pressly   December 28, 2020  
After a couple of nights with a dusting, we are hoping that these next few rounds will deliver a bit...
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Boot-pack

Boot-pack

Scott Pressly   December 27, 2020  
While waiting for the next round of snow, we have had some amazing bluebird days around the Christmas holiday. Warm...
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Monarch Christmas

Monarch Christmas

Scott Pressly   December 25, 2020  
After a long and difficult year, we hope that Santa leaves some new skis under the tree! Happy holidays to...
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2020 Tubing

2020 Tubing

Scott Pressly   December 22, 2020  
The tubing park is now open for the 2020-21 season. People seem extra happy this year just to be outdoors...
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Outback & Shag

Outback & Shag

Scott Pressly   December 20, 2020  
Patrol opened up some more bowl skiing yesterday! Outback and Shagnasty are now open. These wind loaded zones provide some...
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Mirkwood is Open!

Mirkwood is Open!

Scott Pressly   December 18, 2020  
We now have some terrain open in Mirkwood! Our Cat Skiing Guides, the Cat Skiing operators, the ski packing crew...
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Next Round

Next Round

Scott Pressly   December 15, 2020  
Here are a few pics from yesterday as the next round of snow moved in.
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Garfield

Garfield

Scott Pressly   December 13, 2020  
People were loving the 2020-21 opening of the Garfield lift on a beautiful Colorado day. Several of the "Uppers" trails...
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Finally

Finally

Scott Pressly   December 13, 2020  
After opening on Thanksgiving weekend and only receiving 1" of snow since then, the last few days have been amazing....
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Mitigation Work

Mitigation Work

Scott Pressly   December 9, 2020  
Our cat skiing guides and snowcat operators have spent the last week conducting avalanche mitigation work in Mirkwood and out...
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Moonrise

Moonrise

Scott Pressly   December 6, 2020  
Here is a photo of moonlight hitting the top of Panorama. This image from our Prism Cam was taken a...
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Breezeway Opening

Breezeway Opening

Scott Pressly   December 4, 2020  
We are opening the Breezeway Lift today. Little Mo, Ramble On and Geno's Meadow will be open. The coverage on...
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Return to Mirkwood

Return to Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   December 3, 2020  
After a long and difficult off-season, the guides and patrollers of Monarch have returned to Mirkwood. As always, there is...
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Monarch Ridge

Monarch Ridge

Scott Pressly   December 2, 2020  
The logging conducted on Monarch Ridge this fall now has a blanket of snow on it. It looks so different...
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On To Mirkwood

On To Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   December 1, 2020  
Our Cat Skiing team ventured up to Mirkwood on Monday. The MCS operators were able to use snow caught by...
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Pano Ridge Terrain

Pano Ridge Terrain

Scott Pressly   November 29, 2020  
Our Ski Patrol and Slope Maintenance Teams worked extremely hard these last few days to open up some more terrain....
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20-21 Opening Day

20-21 Opening Day

Scott Pressly   November 27, 2020  
It was great to get a few lifts spinning and all of us out enjoying the mountains on a beautiful,...
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Opening Friday

Opening Friday

Scott Pressly   November 26, 2020  
It's been 257 days since we have had lifts spinning at Monarch. We are finally ready to do it and...
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Gone Blue

Gone Blue

Scott Pressly   November 25, 2020  
After a few days of stormy weather, the skies went bluebird today. The mountain is looking pretty solid after this...
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Productive Storm

Productive Storm

Scott Pressly   November 25, 2020  
Tuesday's storm came in nicely and things are looking better out there. Our Slope Maintenance crew will be out the...
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Inching Closer

Inching Closer

Scott Pressly   November 23, 2020  
We had a few more inches of snow over the weekend into the start of the work week. There is...
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Good, Bad & Ugly

Good, Bad & Ugly

Scott Pressly   November 21, 2020  
It's a mixed bag of conditions based on aspect and elevation. Some of our north and east facing slopes look...
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Good from Afar

Good from Afar

Scott Pressly   November 17, 2020  
I was hoping that the weekend storm would deliver more than was originally forecast. Instead, it was spot on with...
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Sunset Tour

Sunset Tour

Scott Pressly   November 14, 2020  
I got out at the end of the day after work to tour around the mountain. As suspected, our track-packing...
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Good Start

Good Start

Scott Pressly   November 11, 2020  
We are off to a good start after the weekend storm. Our Slope Maintenance crew has made progress track-packing several...
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Prep Work

Prep Work

Scott Pressly   November 9, 2020  
With the latest round of snow, we now start turning our efforts towards doing the things we need to do...
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Tracked & Ready

Tracked & Ready

Scott Pressly   November 5, 2020  
Our Vehicle Maintenance crew has all our snowcats tracked up and ready to go. This incredible team of guys work...
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Climate Prediction Center

Climate Prediction Center

Scott Pressly   November 2, 2020  
It looks like we may have some weather moving in this weekend and into early next week. I love looking...
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Sleepy Hollow-een

Sleepy Hollow-een

Scott Pressly   October 31, 2020  
Here is a look at Sleepy Hollow under a nearly full-moon last night. Happy Halloween.
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More Oct Views

More Oct Views

Scott Pressly   October 29, 2020  
Here are a few more images from the storm earlier this week. The forecast calls for a quiet weather week...
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October Tour

October Tour

Scott Pressly   October 27, 2020  
It wasn't a lot of snow, but I saw it as the only chance to put skis on snow in...
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Snow on the Way

Snow on the Way

Scott Pressly   October 24, 2020  
The State of Colorado will receive some much needed snow on Sunday and Monday. A sizable storm is moving in...
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Monarch Park

Monarch Park

Scott Pressly   October 21, 2020  
Monarch Park is located just east of the ski area below the highway. In the summertime, it is a beautiful...
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Monarch Morning

Monarch Morning

Scott Pressly   October 17, 2020  
Our prism cam is back. Here is a look at the sunrise this morning.
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Sun and Wind

Sun and Wind

Scott Pressly   October 14, 2020  
We have had plenty of both lately. This fall continues to deliver dry and windy conditions. A change to winter...
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Muscle Bus

Muscle Bus

Scott Pressly   October 11, 2020  
One of our shuttle buses is flexing its muscles! Kudos to Ben James from our Vehicle Maintenance crew for putting...
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Lawn Care

Lawn Care

Scott Pressly   October 8, 2020  
Each fall we conduct a bit of mowing on some of our easier trails. This knocks down the taller vegetation...
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Re-Veg

Re-Veg

Scott Pressly   October 5, 2020  
The Slope Maintenance Crew recently reseeded areas that were disturbed with the construction of the tubing hill a few summers...
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Hanging Chairs

Hanging Chairs

Scott Pressly   October 2, 2020  
The Lift Maintenance Crew has finished getting all the chairs back on all five of our aerial lift lines. Each...
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Ridge Visit

Ridge Visit

Scott Pressly   September 28, 2020  
I recently had an opportunity to check out the timber operations across the highway on Monarch Ridge. The work is...
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Cabin Relocation

Cabin Relocation

Scott Pressly   September 25, 2020  
As described in an earlier post, one of our planned summer projects was to relocate an historic cabin. Today, we...
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Cooper

Cooper

Scott Pressly   September 22, 2020  
A few of us went up to Ski Cooper today to visit our friends there. Earlier this summer, they stopped...
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Dynamic Testing

Dynamic Testing

Scott Pressly   September 19, 2020  
The Lift Maintenance Department conducts a lot of work behind the scenes each off-season getting our lifts ready for winter....
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Wind Event

Wind Event

Scott Pressly   September 16, 2020  
Last week's storm brought a lot of snow, but it also unleashed some serious wind on the mountain. The storm...
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Thin Ridge

Thin Ridge

Scott Pressly   September 13, 2020  
With the first snow of the year, we got a sneak peak at what Monarch Ridge will look like across...
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Sept?

Sept?

Scott Pressly   September 10, 2020  
It looks more like November or December. The mountain was still covered in a blanket of snow this morning. It...
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, ,
September Snow

September Snow

Scott Pressly   September 9, 2020  
It was a full day. Shoveling, plowing and skiing! We had between 6" and 18" of snow depending on slope...
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Then Winter Showed Up

Then Winter Showed Up

Scott Pressly   September 8, 2020  
Hot temps, smoky skies and then snow. It's been quite a 24 hour swing! Things were just starting to pick...
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Smoke Storm

Smoke Storm

Scott Pressly   September 7, 2020  
It is downright awful today. The imminent cold front is pushing smoke from the western wildfires through Chaffee County. The...
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Hints of Fall

Hints of Fall

Scott Pressly   September 6, 2020  
We are starting to see some change in the seasons up at Monarch. The days have been warm but the...
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Monarch Ridge Logging

Monarch Ridge Logging

Scott Pressly   September 3, 2020  
The timber work on Monarch Ridge has begun. The USFS is leading this project on the ridgeline across from the...
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Cabin Project

Cabin Project

Scott Pressly   August 31, 2020  
One of our summer projects involves relocating an historic cabin. The cabin was one of the original structures at Monarch....
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Planting Trees

Planting Trees

Scott Pressly   August 27, 2020  
Our summer crew spent the day planting seedlings on the mountain. Alex Rudney from the Salida Ranger District was able...
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Hazy Skies

Hazy Skies

Scott Pressly   August 24, 2020  
It has been smoky on the mountain with all of the forest fires burning in the west. From the valley...
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Fences

Fences

Scott Pressly   August 20, 2020  
We are building more snow fences on the mountain this summer. We use these to help protect certain slopes from wind...
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Crest Trail

Crest Trail

Scott Pressly   August 16, 2020  
The CDNST/CT segment south of Monarch Pass is known as the "Crest Trail". It encompasses 10 miles of primarily singletrack...
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Snags

Snags

Scott Pressly   August 12, 2020  
I found a few old snags while hiking out in Mirkwood Basin a few weeks ago. Obviously the forest is...
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Trail Maps

Trail Maps

Scott Pressly   August 8, 2020  
The Monarch trail maps have evolved over the eight (and counting) decades of operation. I don't know about you, but...
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Home Sweet Home

Home Sweet Home

Scott Pressly   August 4, 2020  
What a nice spot we have to call home. Here is a photo we took last summer ahead of the...
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August Views

August Views

Scott Pressly   August 1, 2020  
Here are a few looks at the mountain as we roll into August. Last weekend's rain helped to green up...
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Beetle Kill

Scott Pressly   July 28, 2020  
The Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project (MPVMP) has been underway for a few years now. This timber project aims to...
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RMOC

Scott Pressly   July 26, 2020  
A few of us visited our friends at Rocky Mountain Outdoor Center this week. They offer just about every type...
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Mirk Summer

Scott Pressly   July 23, 2020  
I took a walk up the Egress Road at the end of the day to check out Mirkwood Basin. The...
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Ouray

Scott Pressly   July 19, 2020  
Mt Ouray rises just to the southeast of Monarch Pass. At 13,961' it falls just shy of "fourteener" status. The...
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Pano Projects

Scott Pressly   July 16, 2020  
Here is a nice morning view at the top of Pano. We had several projects going on up there this...
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Summer Snapshot

Scott Pressly   July 13, 2020  
This look from the top of Ticaboo shows off a few items. First is the stark contrast between the tree...
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Last Cornice

Scott Pressly   July 10, 2020  
The last few bits of snow are hanging on. In 2019 there was still enough snow to make turns in...
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Summer Lifts

Scott Pressly   July 7, 2020  
While they are not spinning for all of us to use right now, our lifts are still making some trips...
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July Butterfly

Scott Pressly   July 5, 2020  
While not a Monarch Butterfly, we still have visits from others during the summer. I'm not an entomologist, but these...
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Cleaning Up Lines

Scott Pressly   July 2, 2020  
The Patrol Summer Crew has been working hard. They have been out on the mountain every day hiking the tree...
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Officially Summer

Scott Pressly   June 29, 2020  
With the summer solstice behind us, it is official. Things are greening up and the projects continue. Our chainsaw crew...
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Original Garfield

Original Garfield

Scott Pressly   June 25, 2020  
Prior to the 1960-61 ski season, Monarch operated solely with surface rope tow lifts and a used T-Bar lift acquired...
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We Wear Masks

Scott Pressly   June 22, 2020  
Our Slope Maintenance and Ski Patrol crews teamed up last week to hang a new banner in Poncha Springs along...
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Signs of Summer

Signs of Summer

Scott Pressly   June 18, 2020  
Things are turning green and the flowers are starting to pop. Signs of things to come. We enjoy all the...
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Crest Recon

Scott Pressly   June 15, 2020  
I ventured up to the Crest Trail for a quick out & back after work last week. Things are coming...
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No Name On Hold

Scott Pressly   June 12, 2020  
As described in a March post, we were all systems go on starting the review process for the No Name...
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June Snow

Scott Pressly   June 9, 2020  
You gotta love Colorado! Anything can happen at any time of the year. We received 3-4" of snow last night...
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Mirkwood Lake

Scott Pressly   June 6, 2020  
During runoff, a small lake forms in a natural depression in Mirkwood Basin. Located directly below the East Trees terrain,...
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New Skiing Protocols

New Skiing Protocols

Scott Pressly   June 3, 2020  
I got a chance to see how A-Basin has approached reopening under the new COVID-19 health protocols. Skier visits have...
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Historic Avalanches

Scott Pressly   May 31, 2020  
I spent some time over the last few weekends in the northern Sawatch Range. There is some major evidence of...
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Getting Patchy

Scott Pressly   May 27, 2020  
As expected, things are drying out quickly.  Once the bare ground starts to show, the snow seems to melt that...
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A-Basin Reopening

A-Basin Reopening

Scott Pressly   May 24, 2020  
One of our partner areas, A-Basin will be reopening for lift served skiing/riding this week. A few other ski areas...
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Monarch Flyby

Scott Pressly   May 21, 2020  
This flyby gives us a great aerial view of Monarch Mountain.   This photo was taken during the 2018-19 winter season.  We can see...
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Gazflex Review

Gazflex Review

Scott Pressly   May 18, 2020  
The new Gazflex Avalanche Mitigation System was utilized three times over the 2019-20 winter. The system was installed last summer...
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Springtime Mountains

Scott Pressly   May 15, 2020  
With a dry month of weather, things are continuing to melt out at a rapid rate. Not only are we...
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Tenderfoot Butterfly

Scott Pressly   May 12, 2020  
Mountain Operations staff removed the lighted butterfly from Tenderfoot (AKA "S Mountain") today.  Monarch worked with the City of Salida to...
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Monarch in May

Scott Pressly   May 9, 2020  
Although we have seen a big warm up and shrinking snow depths, the Mountain still has a fair amount of...
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Hot Spots

Scott Pressly   May 6, 2020  
The southern aspects are starting to melt out and there is some bare ground poking through on some of these...
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Snowpack Update

Scott Pressly   May 3, 2020  
The seasonal snowpack is on the way down with the warming temps. Statewide, it is clear to see that the...
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Decker Ride

Decker Ride

Scott Pressly   April 30, 2020  
Although the ski area has been closed for six weeks now, the conditions have been ideal for mountain biking for...
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Feels like Spring

Feels like Spring

Scott Pressly   April 27, 2020  
It's the crossroads of the season. Winter is hanging on, but warmer days have arrived. The melting snow is just...
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Monarch Aerial

Monarch Aerial

Scott Pressly   April 24, 2020  
Here is a photo showing it all. This was obviously taken a few years back as the timber work had...
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Spring Skies

Spring Skies

Scott Pressly   April 21, 2020  
It was that kind of day where you can see it all. Threatening storms, bluebird, snow squalls and everything in...
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Silverton is Back

Silverton is Back

Scott Pressly   April 18, 2020  
The Monarch Mountain season pass offers some amazing ski away opportunities. I try to take advantage of this perk and...
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Isolation

Scott Pressly   April 15, 2020  
The mountain sits waiting.  We had some colder temps this week and a small round of snow. Looks like we...
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Turn the Page

Scott Pressly   April 12, 2020  
Well, we finally reached what would have been our official (although extended) closing date of April 12th. With the early...
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Goggles for Docs

Scott Pressly   April 11, 2020  
This is a very cool program providing protective eye-wear to medical professionals working in COVID-19 environments. I know most of...
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Mirkwood Can Wait

Scott Pressly   April 9, 2020  
Here is a pic of our Mirkwood "Log Mahal" entrance under some bluebird winter conditions. We have posted a closed...
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What It Is

Scott Pressly   April 6, 2020  
In what should be our last week of operations for the 2019-20 Winter Season, the lodge and mountain sit idle....
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Tomichi Dome

Scott Pressly   April 3, 2020  
Tomichi Dome is a prominent feature seen from many vantage points along the Continental Divide at Monarch Mountain. The Dome...
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Bluebird Day

Scott Pressly   March 31, 2020  
A few new inches of snow under a blue Colorado sky. The last day of March went out like a...
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Cat Terrain

Scott Pressly   March 28, 2020  
Our Snowcat Manager put this map together a few years back...actually I think it was over a decade ago! For...
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Quiet Mountain

Scott Pressly   March 25, 2020  
Things have been unusually quiet up on the mountain. Essential personnel have kept critical infrastructure running while other year-round staff...
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Skin & Ski

Skin & Ski

Scott Pressly   March 22, 2020  
With the ski lifts closed for the season, avid skiers/riders switch to earning their turns. In light of the current...
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Expedited Break Down

Expedited Break Down

Scott Pressly   March 19, 2020  
It's been quite a week. Hard to believe that five days ago we were still open with the plan to...
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A Positive Turn

Scott Pressly   March 16, 2020  
One of our favorite lift operators and his family stopped by Monarch today. Despite the fact that the lifts are...
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Monarch Closing Effective Sunday 3-15-20

Scott Pressly   March 14, 2020  
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak and under the direction of the Executive Order signed by the Colorado Governor late on...
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Fun Conditions

Scott Pressly   March 13, 2020  
I got out for some laps today and it was pretty good out there. The base layer is still carving...
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COVID-19

Scott Pressly   March 12, 2020  
As of this afternoon (Thursday 3/12), the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment was reporting 44 presumptive positive cases of COVID-19...
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Steady Snow

Scott Pressly   March 10, 2020  
The 2019/20 Winter Season has been a consistent one.  While we haven't seen many double digit days, the maintenance type...
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Spring Turns

Scott Pressly   March 7, 2020  
The last few days have been sunny and warm and it definitely feels like March up here.  There has even...
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Grooming

Scott Pressly   March 4, 2020  
As most of you have hopefully recognized over the last few seasons, we have been putting in a significant effort...
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No Name

No Name

Scott Pressly   March 2, 2020  
For the last decade, there have been three big questions that everyone asks about. The topics of these questions involve...beetle...
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Extended

Scott Pressly   February 29, 2020  
We have announced that we are extending our season by one week with a scheduled closing day on April 12th. ...
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Crisp

Crisp

Scott Pressly   February 26, 2020  
The weather this week has been that. We have seen some below zero temps in the morning and the days...
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Freestyle Comp

Freestyle Comp

Scott Pressly   February 23, 2020  
Monarch hosted a two-day IFSA Junior Regional this weekend. This competition was an official event for skiers and snowboarders under...
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A Few More Cat Days

A Few More Cat Days

Scott Pressly   February 21, 2020  
I spent some more time out in the Monarch Cat Skiing Terrain this week. The Marketing crew had a Cat...
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Surprise Storm

Scott Pressly   February 18, 2020  
Tuesday morning brought 4" of low density snow that skied amazingly well on top of the weekend's snowfall. The sun...
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President’s

President’s

Scott Pressly   February 15, 2020  
We are in the last big holiday weekend of the year. While spring break is still marked on the calendar,...
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Sun & Pow

Sun & Pow

Scott Pressly   February 12, 2020  
Tuesday was a perfect day. Great snow, sunny skies, light wind and just a few people out on the mountain....
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Busy Uphill/Downhill Day

Busy Uphill/Downhill Day

Scott Pressly   February 9, 2020  
Saturday was the full meal deal. We had a morning full of shoveling, bobcat work and snowcat grooming after the...
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Get Ready

Get Ready

Scott Pressly   February 6, 2020  
Our storm is arriving. After some bitter cold temps this week and slow but steady snowfall today, things are ramping...
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Squeaky Cold

Squeaky Cold

Scott Pressly   February 4, 2020  
We had some cold temps today after the cold front moved in last night.  Upslope winds contributed to a chilly...
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Already February

Already February

Scott Pressly   February 1, 2020  
While it was a very busy month, January still seemed to fly by. The month brought a lot of smaller,...
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Cat Skiing Day

Cat Skiing Day

Scott Pressly   January 29, 2020  
I was out on the cat today along with some MCS guests, our local USFS representatives and several Monarch employees. ...
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Monarch Sunset

Monarch Sunset

Scott Pressly   January 26, 2020  
The newly revived Prism Cam near the top of the Breezeway Lift continues to amaze.  Here is a beauty of...
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Maintenance Snow

Maintenance Snow

Scott Pressly   January 23, 2020  
The storms are adding up. While we haven't seen one singular large snow event lately, we have been getting consistent...
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Busy Weekend & Great Conditions

Busy Weekend & Great Conditions

Scott Pressly   January 20, 2020  
The MLK weekend has had it all. Wild weather on Friday, powder skiing on Saturday and two beautiful warm days...
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MLK Weekend

MLK Weekend

Scott Pressly   January 18, 2020  
After a wild ride yesterday with great skiing, big winds, lift closures and an early shutdown, we are heading into...
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Bluebird

Bluebird

Scott Pressly   January 15, 2020  
After several days of storms, we had a beautiful day on the Divide. January has been active with measurable snow...
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Mirkmoon

Mirkmoon

Scott Pressly   January 13, 2020  
I grabbed this photo of an almost full moon peeking through the butterfly on a quick tour after work last...
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Snowy Forecast

Snowy Forecast

Scott Pressly   January 9, 2020  
It started snowing steadily today and at looks like we have more in the forecast. The weekend looks great and...
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Pushing Out

Pushing Out

Scott Pressly   January 6, 2020  
The cat skiing crew is making strides into additional terrain this week. The operators are putting the final touches on...
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Mt. Aetna

Mt. Aetna

Scott Pressly   January 4, 2020  
Mt Aetna is the classic looking peak seen from many locations at Monarch Mountain. As the most dramatic sentinel in...
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Holiday Parking

Holiday Parking

Scott Pressly   January 2, 2020  
It's the most wonderful time of the year. With everyone having an extended break from school & work at the...
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New Year’s

Scott Pressly   December 31, 2019  
Another year has come and gone. What a year it has been for Monarch. With above average snowfall, we were...
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Prime Conditions

Prime Conditions

Scott Pressly   December 27, 2019  
The holidays are upon us and the mountain is in perfect shape with great coverage on all of our trails....
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Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays

Scott Pressly   December 24, 2019  
I feel like we opened our presents early. It's been an amazing start to winter already. Monarch Mountain has been...
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Snowcats & Grooming

Snowcats & Grooming

Scott Pressly   December 21, 2019  
Monarch is well recognized for our amazing all natural snow conditions. While powder skiing down an open bowl or through...
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Cat Roads

Cat Roads

Scott Pressly   December 18, 2019  
The Monarch Cat Skiing Operators continue to make substantial progress. We now have over the snow roads from the top...
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Great Snow

Great Snow

Scott Pressly   December 16, 2019  
As promised, the latest storm delivered.  Thirty five inches of snow with 3.65" of water content.  We now have received over...
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Mountain Storm

Mountain Storm

Scott Pressly   December 13, 2019  
We are in the zone. Monarch has received two feet of snow in the last week and around 10 feet...
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Hiking & Skiing

Hiking & Skiing

Scott Pressly   December 12, 2019  
Two of my favorite things. Mirkwood opened today. It was a mellow opening on a Thursday with just a few...
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Mirkwood is Open!

Mirkwood is Open!

Scott Pressly   December 11, 2019  
Yes, you heard it right.  Mirkwood will open on Thursday-December 12th.  This is the earliest opening of Mirkwood Basin ever!...
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It’s Good

It’s Good

Scott Pressly   December 10, 2019  
The mountain is skiing unbelievably good for early December. The 19" storm total over the last three days really helped...
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Mirkwood Update

Mirkwood Update

Scott Pressly   December 8, 2019  
MCS Guides, Ski Patrol and our ski packers continue to make progress in Mirkwood Basin. The north and east facing...
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Tubing Time

Tubing Time

Scott Pressly   December 6, 2019  
The Tubing Park is ready to go. Our groomers put the final touches on the starting ramp and tubing lanes...
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Rollin’

Rollin’

Scott Pressly   December 5, 2019  
The disruption roller has been out on the Divide. The MCS crew took advantage of the break in the weather...
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Mirkwood Prep

Mirkwood Prep

Scott Pressly   December 2, 2019  
With 100% of our lift served terrain open, we are now working towards prepping our hike-to and cat skiing terrain...
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Breezeway, Outback & More

Breezeway, Outback & More

Scott Pressly   November 29, 2019  
What a start! This initial month of winter has been astounding for Monarch. We are quickly approaching 100" of snowfall...
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Official, Amazing Opening

Official, Amazing Opening

Scott Pressly   November 26, 2019  
After four weekends of operations in November, we are opening tomorrow, Wednesday-November 27th and we will be staying open every...
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Best One Yet

Best One Yet

Scott Pressly   November 24, 2019  
Our fourth weekend of operations dished out the best skiing of this young winter season with some incredible conditions. We...
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It’s Back!

It’s Back!

Scott Pressly   November 21, 2019  
Winter has returned!  After a great start in late October, things kind of dried out for the first three weeks...
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Exploders in Action

Exploders in Action

Scott Pressly   November 18, 2019  
Here are a few more pics of the exploders in action this winter. These photos were taken during the testing...
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Keep it Simple

Keep it Simple

Scott Pressly   November 15, 2019  
As we head into our third weekend of operations, we are keeping it simple. Two days, two lifts and thirteen...
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Exploder Testing

Exploder Testing

Scott Pressly   November 12, 2019  
CDOT recently conducted their final testing of the three Gazflex Exploders that were installed in September above US Highway 50....
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Pano

Pano

Scott Pressly   November 8, 2019  
We will be opening the Panorama Lift tomorrow (Sat-Nov 9th). The Slope Maintenance crew has buffed out a few trails...
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Burnin’ & Lootin’

Burnin’ & Lootin’

Scott Pressly   November 6, 2019  
We are busy wrapping up the summer projects while pushing into winter. With the early opening of the ski area,...
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Great Weekend

Great Weekend

Scott Pressly   November 3, 2019  
It was a great start to the season with fresh snow, blue skies and spinning lifts during the first three...
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2019-20 Opening Day

2019-20 Opening Day

Scott Pressly   November 1, 2019  
We are off and running!  Bluebird skies and pretty darn good conditions for November 1st.  We have the most terrain...
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Opening Details

Opening Details

Scott Pressly   October 31, 2019  
We are putting the final touches on our prep to open tomorrow on November 1st...our earliest opening day in 50...
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Opening on Nov 1st

Opening on Nov 1st

Scott Pressly   October 29, 2019  
What a month it has been.  Today we announced the date for our earliest opening in 50 years!  The mountain...
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Fall Storms

Fall Storms

Scott Pressly   October 28, 2019  
We had another good sized storm move through last night dropping 7" at our snow study with about 1/2" of...
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Shot of Winter

Shot of Winter

Scott Pressly   October 24, 2019  
Last night delivered a fast moving storm that dropped upwards of a foot or more on certain aspects. It was...
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More Snow

More Snow

Scott Pressly   October 21, 2019  
We received a few more inches up on the mountain today.  It snowed steadily for most of the day and...
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Fence Day

Fence Day

Scott Pressly   October 18, 2019  
Several Monarch Cat Skiing and Ski Patrol members along with some volunteers got out into our permitted terrain to put...
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Forecasts

Forecasts

Scott Pressly   October 14, 2019  
This is the time of year that we all start checking both short-term and long-term weather models on a regular basis. ...
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First Snow

First Snow

Scott Pressly   October 10, 2019  
We saw our first snow of the 2019-20 season.  It was a quick moving storm but had some intense snowfall...
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Gunbarrel Trees

Gunbarrel Trees

Scott Pressly   October 9, 2019  
As part of the vegetation management project this fall, we also thinned out the Gunbarrel Trees.  This is the tree island...
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Fall Colors

Fall Colors

Scott Pressly   October 7, 2019  
Fall is in the air and the colors are out.  We are seeing some below freezing temps at nighttime up here...
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Decker Fire

Decker Fire

Scott Pressly   October 4, 2019  
Our community is facing a challenge with the Decker Fire burning above the town of Salida. Many of our Monarch...
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Truckin’

Truckin’

Scott Pressly   October 1, 2019  
We have been cleaning out the log decks that were created by the timber removal in September. We should have...
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More Fences

More Fences

Scott Pressly   September 28, 2019  
We have added more permanent snow fences around the mountain this fall. These fences protect areas and help collect snow...
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Heli Ops Complete

Heli Ops Complete

Scott Pressly   September 25, 2019  
We have completed this summer's helicopter operations for our timber removal project. We still have timber processing occurring in three...
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Exploders in Place

Exploders in Place

Scott Pressly   September 23, 2019  
CDOT flew all three exploders and the control shelter out to the top of the Big Slide path. The concrete...
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Tree Runs

Tree Runs

Scott Pressly   September 19, 2019  
With the timber continuing to be removed by the helicopter, we are really starting to see how good the skiing/riding...
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Stacked

Stacked

Scott Pressly   September 15, 2019  
The beetle killed spruce trees that have been flown to the landing sites are starting to stack up. We are...
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Pano Thinning

Pano Thinning

Scott Pressly   September 12, 2019  
Here is a look at the Panorama ridgeline after cutting down the dead standing trees. We are still flying the...
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CDOT Concrete

CDOT Concrete

Scott Pressly   September 9, 2019  
The concrete for the CDOT Gazflex Exploder foundations was flown out to the construction site located at the top of the...
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Flying Timber

Flying Timber

Scott Pressly   September 7, 2019  
Timber removal operations are underway.  We have been utilizing the helicopter to remove beetle killed trees from the Panorama ridgeline. ...
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Heli

Heli

Scott Pressly   September 5, 2019  
The helicopter showed up and is ready to roll.  We will soon begin flying timber down to the deck sites...
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Already Different

Already Different

Scott Pressly   September 2, 2019  
With just a few days of timber work on the Panorama ridge, things are already looking different. Trees that have...
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Cutters

Cutters

Scott Pressly   August 30, 2019  
The next round of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management project is underway. The cutting crew has started working on the...
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Exploders

Exploders

Scott Pressly   August 26, 2019  
Three Gazflex Exploders were delivered to the Monarch Mountain parking lot today.  CDOT had been storing them on the west...
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Old, Old Monarch Pass

Old, Old Monarch Pass

Scott Pressly   August 22, 2019  
As described in my previous post, during the MPVMP we will be utilizing a detour for the CDNST/CT that involves a portion of...
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CDNST/CT Detour

CDNST/CT Detour

Scott Pressly   August 18, 2019  
With the second phase of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project (MPVMP) soon to begin, public safety on the trails...
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Panorama

Panorama

Scott Pressly   August 16, 2019  
Here are a few more looks at Panorama Ridge prior to starting timber removal work next week. Once again, we...
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CDOT Project

CDOT Project

Scott Pressly   August 12, 2019  
The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) project is underway. As discussed in an earlier post, preparation work is now taking...
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Pano Ridge

Pano Ridge

Scott Pressly   August 10, 2019  
The next significant round of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project will begin this month. The efforts last summer involved...
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Hauling Timber

Hauling Timber

Scott Pressly   August 9, 2019  
The timber decks from our cutting operations in May were finally hauled away this week. Since we conducted the harvesting...
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A-Basin

A-Basin

Scott Pressly   August 8, 2019  
We are happy to announce that Monarch Mountain and Arapahoe Basin will partner up on our season pass exchange for the 2019-20...
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Summer Views

Summer Views

Scott Pressly   August 6, 2019  
Summer is flying by up here and projects are moving along. Temperatures have been relatively cool and we've been getting...
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S&R School Building

S&R School Building

Scott Pressly   August 3, 2019  
Construction is underway for the new Ski & Ride School Building.  Our Property Maintenance crew is building an 1,137 square foot facility...
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Good Morning

Good Morning

Scott Pressly   August 1, 2019  
There was a nice rainbow over Monarch with some morning rain showers.  Looks like we may get some more rain today. ...
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Serendipity

Serendipity

Scott Pressly   July 31, 2019  
Serendipity- "the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way". This is exactly what occurred...
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Boulder Project

Boulder Project

Scott Pressly   July 27, 2019  
The Slope Maintenance Department is continuing on with trail clean-up as part of the MPVMP. As the tree islands are...
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Summertime

Summertime

Scott Pressly   July 24, 2019  
It's finally summertime at Monarch Mountain. The place is greening up and the flowers are in bloom. Projects are underway...
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Lift Maintenance

Lift Maintenance

Scott Pressly   July 21, 2019  
The crew is hard at work conducting line work on our towers and sheaves, resetting chairs on the line, and...
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San Isabel

San Isabel

Scott Pressly   July 18, 2019  
Monarch Mountain is located within the San Isabel National Forest in central Colorado.  The San Isabel National Forest is co-managed...
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MCS Projects

MCS Projects

Scott Pressly   July 14, 2019  
Earlier this week, several members of the USFS Salida Ranger District and Monarch Mountain staff hiked out to the MCS...
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Monarch Country

Monarch Country

Scott Pressly   July 11, 2019  
What is Monarch Country? There is something about Monarch Country that’s special. It’s hard to put a finger on exactly...
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Maintenance Work

Maintenance Work

Scott Pressly   July 10, 2019  
All of the maintenance crews are hard at work this summer. The slope maintenance crew has been plowing roads and...
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Ski Independent

Ski Independent

Scott Pressly   July 4, 2019  
Happy Independence Day! For the holiday, I set off on a solo ski mission to Mirkwood. On the morning commute...
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Creeks

Creeks

Scott Pressly   July 2, 2019  
Our creeks are flowing as the snowpack melts off. With the recent warm temps, we are now seeing most of...
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Drifts

Drifts

Scott Pressly   June 27, 2019  
As we head towards July, we still have quite a bit of snow on many of our slopes and particularly...
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Snowfields

Snowfields

Scott Pressly   June 25, 2019  
We have begun to see some significant melting of our snowpack over the last few weeks.  There have been a few cooler...
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Summer Snow

Summer Snow

Scott Pressly   June 23, 2019  
Looks like winter is still upon us. Even with the recent occurrence of the Summer Solstice a few days ago,...
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Big Slide Project

Big Slide Project

Scott Pressly   June 18, 2019  
CDOT plans to install avalanche mitigation infrastructure along the US Highway 50 corridor during the summer and fall months. As...
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FIBArk

FIBArk

Scott Pressly   June 15, 2019  
This weekend is the signature summer event in the town of Salida. FIBArk (First in Boating on the Arkansas) is...
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Now & Then

Now & Then

Scott Pressly   June 12, 2019  
I took this idea from Alan over at A-Basin. Here is a snapshot of this years' conditions in June compared...
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Runoff

Runoff

Scott Pressly   June 11, 2019  
The snow is starting to melt and the creeks and rivers are on the rise. We are starting to see...
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Ski Country

Ski Country

Scott Pressly   June 8, 2019  
Several of us from Monarch attended the Colorado Ski Country USA Annual Meeting in Denver this week. This conference covers...
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Wait for It

Wait for It

Scott Pressly   June 3, 2019  
With the cool and stormy weather in May, the State's snowpack is still sitting on the peaks in the high...
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Opening Lines

Opening Lines

Scott Pressly   June 2, 2019  
The Ski Patrol trail crew spent the month of May out on the slopes limbing trees. They have been focusing...
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Still Deep

Still Deep

Scott Pressly   May 29, 2019  
As we approach the month of June, we still have a ton of snow on the ground. At this point...
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Decks

Decks

Scott Pressly   May 25, 2019  
We are starting to accumulate our log decks as beetle killed trees are removed. We are using a combination of...
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Still Stormin’

Still Stormin’

Scott Pressly   May 21, 2019  
It just keeps going. We have about a half a foot of new snow on the ground and it continues...
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Winter Marches On

Winter Marches On

Scott Pressly   May 19, 2019  
It's the third week of May and winter marches on. After a few inches of snow on Fri/Sat this weekend,...
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Conference Season

Conference Season

Scott Pressly   May 17, 2019  
Every spring, we send some of our crew to the two ski area conferences in Grand Junction, CO. Last week,...
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Road Clearing

Road Clearing

Scott Pressly   May 14, 2019  
Slope Maintenance has been clearing roads around the base lodge and bottom lift terminals. Clearing these areas provides access for...
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Snowpack

Snowpack

Scott Pressly   May 12, 2019  
The recent storms in May have really helped to bump up our alpine snowpack. On the large map below, you...
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May Storm

May Storm

Scott Pressly   May 9, 2019  
Winter continues. We picked up 15" of surprisingly low density snow from last night's storm. Temps cooled off overnight leaving...
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Still Snowing

Still Snowing

Scott Pressly   May 8, 2019  
Looks like its going to be a short summer up here. We are in store for FEET of snow this...
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Timber Ops

Timber Ops

Scott Pressly   May 6, 2019  
We are already underway with phase II of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project. There was some terrain that we...
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May Powder Skiing

May Powder Skiing

Scott Pressly   May 1, 2019  
Is it really May? It sure skied like it was February today. We received around a foot of snow in...
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Sound of Silence

Sound of Silence

Scott Pressly   April 29, 2019  
All things have slowed down significantly up here at the ski area since closing day. The lifts are not spinning...
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Ski Away

Ski Away

Scott Pressly   April 26, 2019  
Just because we are closed for the season, doesn't mean that you can't go skiing! With your 2018-19 Monarch Mountain...
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Tear Down

Tear Down

Scott Pressly   April 24, 2019  
Mountain Ops have been busy wrapping up the 2018-19 winter season. Patrol has spent the last few days removing miles...
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Closing Day

Closing Day

Scott Pressly   April 21, 2019  
All good things come to an end. Sunday will be our final day for the 2018-19 winter season https://salud-hombres.com/. We...
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Kayaks on Snow

Scott Pressly   April 20, 2019  
Today is our one of a kind event...Kayaks on Snow. Boaters race head to head 4 at a time down...
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Final Weekend

Final Weekend

Scott Pressly   April 19, 2019  
We have reopened for our final weekend of operations. We will be open Fri-Sun with all kinds of activities going...
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Kayak Course

Kayak Course

Scott Pressly   April 17, 2019  
Work began today on the course for the Kayaks on Snow event. Our Slope Maintenance crew will be moving and...
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One Down

One Down

Scott Pressly   April 14, 2019  
The first bonus weekend dished out some great skiing conditions. We had powder turns, carvable groomers and wind buffed slopes....
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April Pow

April Pow

Scott Pressly   April 13, 2019  
The skiing and riding is outstanding for mid-April. With the 7" storm on Thursday and the cooler conditions, we are...
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Tight & Right

Tight & Right

Scott Pressly   April 11, 2019  
Mountain Operations spent the day getting everything ready to reopen for the weekend. Patrol checked all boundary lines, reset bamboo...
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Quiet Week

Quiet Week

Scott Pressly   April 8, 2019  
We have now finished up with 7-day operations for the season. We will reopen on Friday-Sunday over the next two...
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Garfield Update

Garfield Update

Scott Pressly   April 6, 2019  
As described in an earlier post, our lift maintenance crew conducts extensive maintenance projects during the summer months on our...
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Air Med Training

Air Med Training

Scott Pressly   April 4, 2019  
We had another flight training this week. This time Reach Air Medical Services landed on top of Mirkwood. The flight...
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Tree Work

Tree Work

Scott Pressly   April 2, 2019  
With this great aerial shot taken from an airplane, it's easy to see where thinning was conducted last summer. You...
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Kids on Cats

Kids on Cats

Scott Pressly   April 1, 2019  
To celebrate April 1st, we have a cat full of our best little rippers out in the backcountry on our...
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Pick a Peak

Pick a Peak

Scott Pressly   March 31, 2019  
On top of the Continental Divide and down from the top of the Panorama Lift, you can find our Peak...
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Changes

Changes

Scott Pressly   March 29, 2019  
After a solid week of classic Colorado spring skiing, it looks like winter will make a return this weekend πηγή...
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Heli Training

Heli Training

Scott Pressly   March 27, 2019  
Flight for Life landed on top of Mirkwood today for a Heli training with Monarch Ski Patrol and our Base...
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Spring Skiing

Spring Skiing

Scott Pressly   March 26, 2019  
It's Spring Skiing season. The north facing trails still have soft, carvable snow. The south slopes are serving up delicious...
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Ski Conservation Fund

Scott Pressly   March 24, 2019  
As described in an earlier post, the National Forest Foundation - Ski Conservation Fund provides funding for projects that improve...
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A Few New

A Few New

Scott Pressly   March 22, 2019  
We received 4" new today. It whitened up the place and softened up the turns. It's snowing again this afternoon...
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Sunset

Sunset

Scott Pressly   March 21, 2019  
The calm before the storm. Beautiful sunset tonight over the mountain. Snow begins tonight and continues into the day tomorrow...
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MCS Recon

MCS Recon

Scott Pressly   March 21, 2019  
I got out earlier this week into the Monarch Cat Skiing terrain with our guides and staff members of our...
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Spring Equinox

Spring Equinox

Scott Pressly   March 20, 2019  
Today is the Spring Equinox. The word equinox comes from the Latin words for “equal night”—aequus (equal) and nox (night)....
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Garfield Express

Garfield Express

Scott Pressly   March 19, 2019  
During the big snow storms and heavy loading of the snowpack in early March, Colorado experienced an historic avalanche cycle....
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Beautiful Weekend

Beautiful Weekend

Scott Pressly   March 17, 2019  
We have a very nice weekend of sunshine and great coverage on the mountain. Enjoy it!
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GDG

GDG

Scott Pressly   March 16, 2019  
Monarch Mountain will host the 4th edition of the Great Divide Grinder fat bike race today. The Race covers 7...
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Weather Stations

Weather Stations

Scott Pressly   March 15, 2019  
We utilize several weather stations at Monarch Mountain. Most guests see the weather report on our website or see the...
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Consistent Snowfall

Consistent Snowfall

Scott Pressly   March 14, 2019  
The 2018-19 Winter Season has been a good one. While our YTD snowfall is just 257" thus far, the water...
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Bomb Cyclone

Bomb Cyclone

Scott Pressly   March 13, 2019  
We are in store for what is described as Bombogenesis or a Bomb Cyclone. This weather system occurs at mid-latitude...
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Moving Snow

Moving Snow

Scott Pressly   March 12, 2019  
With the numerous storms and heavy snow this winter, one of our key tools that we use is the Larue...
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Bonus Days

Bonus Days

Scott Pressly   March 11, 2019  
Due to the deep snow and stellar conditions, Monarch Mountain is happy to announce that we will be extending the...
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Deep Snow-Blue Skies

Deep Snow-Blue Skies

Scott Pressly   March 9, 2019  
We have some incredible conditions right now. Our base is over 100" deep. We have had almost four feet of...
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Nuclear Option

Nuclear Option

Scott Pressly   March 8, 2019  
It was absolutely nuking when I left the mountain. More powder skiing (and shoveling) await!
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Highway Mitigation

Highway Mitigation

Scott Pressly   March 7, 2019  
It's been a busy week for avalanche activity along Colorado's highways. Check out some articles on this here. Monarch Mountain...
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Here We Go Again

Here We Go Again

Scott Pressly   March 6, 2019  
We have another storm moving in. 7-17" by Friday night. Anyone up for more powder skiing?
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NFF

NFF

Scott Pressly   March 5, 2019  
Monarch Mountain supports the National Forest Foundation through an opt in donation on lift ticket and season pass sales. The...
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All Time

All Time

Scott Pressly   March 4, 2019  
Talk about good fortune. As timing had it, I was scheduled on a marketing cat today. With the recent storm,...
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Quite a Day

Quite a Day

Scott Pressly   March 3, 2019  
This early March storm continues to deliver. It was a big storm day with feet of snow out there and...
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Storm Time

Storm Time

Scott Pressly   March 2, 2019  
The next round of the storm arrived today adding to an already soft skiing surface. We started off with high...
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Blizzard of MAAHHHrch

Blizzard of MAAHHHrch

Scott Pressly   March 1, 2019  
Ok, maybe I'm dating myself here, but one of the greatest ski movies ever made was Greg Stump's Blizzard of...
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Magellan

Magellan

Scott Pressly   February 28, 2019  
I got in an end of the day hike to Mirkwood. The bowl was smooth, buffed out, carvable, chalky white...
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Winter Returns

Winter Returns

Scott Pressly   February 27, 2019  
After a few days off, it looks like we have more fun coming our way. Snow is forecasted through the...
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Glades

Glades

Scott Pressly   February 26, 2019  
Staff from the USFS Salida Ranger District visited Monarch today. We explored the gladed tree islands that were treated last...
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Blue Light

Blue Light

Scott Pressly   February 25, 2019  
When Monarch has a Powder Day on tap, look to the top of Tenderfoot Mountain in Salida for the Blue...
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IFSA

IFSA

Scott Pressly   February 23, 2019  
Monarch Mountain will host its third International Freeskiing Association (IFSA) event on Sunday. The event will include participants ranging in...
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Slopestyle

Slopestyle

Scott Pressly   February 22, 2019  
Monarch Mountain is hosting a Slopestyle event in the Never Summer Terrain Park on Saturday. This will be a judged...
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Sneak Peek

Sneak Peek

Scott Pressly   February 21, 2019  
Heading up the pass just west of the town of Garfield, you can grab a few looks at Mirkwood. The...
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Bundle Up

Bundle Up

Scott Pressly   February 20, 2019  
Even the Butterfly looks cold! Temps are below zero and the wind is on the move. Soft snow awaits for...
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In the Zone

In the Zone

Scott Pressly   February 19, 2019  
Winter continues to deliver! Another cold and snowy week is in the forecast. NWS Forecast
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Hike & Ski

Hike & Ski

Scott Pressly   February 18, 2019  
Blue skies and about two feet of fresh snow made for a great reason to get in a few hikes...
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Fresh Snow, Cold Temps

Fresh Snow, Cold Temps

Scott Pressly   February 17, 2019  
We received some intense bands of snowfall yesterday. Anyone who was up here knows exactly what I'm talking about. We...
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Race the Divide

Race the Divide

Scott Pressly   February 16, 2019  
Today is our COSMIC Race the Divide. This is a Ski Mountaineering Race or "SkiMo". SkiMo (short for “ski mountaineering”),...
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Hwy 50 Avalanche Mitigation

Hwy 50 Avalanche Mitigation

Scott Pressly   February 15, 2019  
CDOT is conducting avalanche mitigation work along the Highway 50 corridor this morning. There are some temporary closures in place...
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Wild Ride

Wild Ride

Scott Pressly   February 13, 2019  
Hang on to your hats. We are in for a wild ride this week. Anytime they mention atmospheric river or...
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Cat Day

Cat Day

Scott Pressly   February 12, 2019  
I got out today with our awesome Monarch Cat Skiing staff and some friends from Loveland Ski Area. We had...
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Inherent Risk

Inherent Risk

Scott Pressly   February 11, 2019  
As discussed in previous posts, Monarch and the ski industry in general, put forth a great amount of resources in...
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TeleFestivus

TeleFestivus

Scott Pressly   February 9, 2019  
Saturday was Telefestivus, a festivus for the rest of us, (telemarkers that is)...Disclaimer - I'm a recovering Tele Skier. Actvities...
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Leftovers

Leftovers

Scott Pressly   February 8, 2019  
With a 9" storm total over the last few days and a lot more than that in certain areas that...
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Another Powder Day

Another Powder Day

Scott Pressly   February 7, 2019  
The 2018-19 winter season continues to deliver. We are on tap for another powder day today after a great storm...
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Winter Storm Warning

Winter Storm Warning

Scott Pressly   February 6, 2019  
A winter storm warning is in effect. Looks like we are getting back into the goods schau dir das jetzt...
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Half & Half

Half & Half

Scott Pressly   February 4, 2019  
The Slope Maintenance department grooms several of our trails with a split between groomed and ungroomed. This allows those that...
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Mirk Hike-To

Mirk Hike-To

Scott Pressly   February 2, 2019  
There is something about ski terrain that requires a little more effort to access. Usually its the better snow conditions...
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The Monolith

The Monolith

Scott Pressly   January 31, 2019  
The Monolith is located on the Waterdog Ridge near upper Waterdog Lake. This is on the east side of the...
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Gunbarrel

Gunbarrel

Scott Pressly   January 29, 2019  
Gunbarrel was the first ski trail cut at Monarch back in the 1930s. Today it is still a classic north-facing...
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Still Good

Still Good

Scott Pressly   January 27, 2019  
The skiing is still really fun out there. Soft turns can be found on the designated trails and the north...
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Park Smart

Park Smart

Scott Pressly   January 26, 2019  
Today is our last event as part of NSAA Safety Month. Our messaging is covering Park Smart and Freestyle Terrain...
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Monarch Cloud

Monarch Cloud

Scott Pressly   January 24, 2019  
It was another Monarch Cloud day! This is what we refer to when storms deliver quite a bit more snow...
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Morning Gold

Morning Gold

Scott Pressly   January 23, 2019  
Mirkwood and the Cat Skiing Terrain were lit up this morning by the sunrise and fresh snow. Both have excellent...
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Deep

Deep

Scott Pressly   January 22, 2019  
Skiing was deep today!
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Deja Vu

Deja Vu

Scott Pressly   January 22, 2019  
The Butterfly is getting buried once again. 11" Overnight and 32" in the last seven days. We did have upslope...
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Routes

Routes

Scott Pressly   January 21, 2019  
After this weeks' snowfall, Ski Patrol has been busy conducting explosive avalanche mitigation routes. These have taken place in our...
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Bury the Butterfly!

Bury the Butterfly!

Scott Pressly   January 19, 2019  
This storm cycle has been good to Monarch. We buried the butterfly at our Storm Cam. This image shows what...
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Storm a Comin’

Storm a Comin’

Scott Pressly   January 17, 2019  
Forecast calls for some intense snowfall tonight and into tomorrow. Friday looks like a good day!
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MCS

MCS

Scott Pressly   January 17, 2019  
Monarch Cat Skiing conditions are great right now and only getting better. We had the crew from Head Skis/Tyrolia Bindings...
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The Big Picture

The Big Picture

Scott Pressly   January 15, 2019  
I love this view of Monarch! It is taken from across the highway at the site of our All Mountain...
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One Hundred

One Hundred

Scott Pressly   January 13, 2019  
This weekend's storm has brought our seasonal snowfall total above the 100" mark. This benchmark usually means pretty good coverage...
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Backcountry Day

Backcountry Day

Scott Pressly   January 12, 2019  
Today is our Backcountry Day event at Monarch Mountain! Join us and the CO AVITalks as part of NSAA National...
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Pow Day!

Pow Day!

Scott Pressly   January 11, 2019  
Great skiing at Monarch today! It snowed all day and the turns got better with each lap. With the snow...
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Bustang

Bustang

Scott Pressly   January 11, 2019  
Monarch has collaborated with Bustang, a public bus service operated by CDOT that travels daily from Gunnison to Denver and...
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Wall to Wall

Wall to Wall

Scott Pressly   January 10, 2019  
Ski Patrol opened East Trees yesterday bringing our trail openings to 100%. East Trees is a steep run in Mirkwood...
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Beacon Basin

Beacon Basin

Scott Pressly   January 7, 2019  
The Beacon Basin Training Park is located near the base of the Panorama Lift in the runout of B's Bash...
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NSAA Safety Month

NSAA Safety Month

Scott Pressly   January 5, 2019  
January is the National Ski Area Association's National Safety Month. In support of this effort, Monarch Mountain features weekly safety...
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Sawatch Range

Sawatch Range

Scott Pressly   January 3, 2019  
Monarch Mountain is located within the Sawatch Range, which is a subset of Colorado's Central Rocky Mountains. The name Sawatch...
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Happy New Year

Happy New Year

Scott Pressly   January 1, 2019  
Hope your New Year resolutions include more ski days in 2019.
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New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve

Scott Pressly   December 31, 2018  
Tonight is our New Year's Eve torchlight parade and fireworks show. We have 140 spots open for the public to...
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Nice Day

Nice Day

Scott Pressly   December 30, 2018  
Looks like we are going to have a pretty nice day up here today. Temps should be a bit warmer...
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Monarch Cat Skiing

Monarch Cat Skiing

Scott Pressly   December 28, 2018  
Monarch Cat Skiing first began in 1990. This program operates under a separate outfitter and guide permit from the ski...
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First Mirk Day

First Mirk Day

Scott Pressly   December 27, 2018  
It was a beautiful day with blue skies, no wind, and soft turns to be found in the bowl and...
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Mirkwood Opening!

Mirkwood Opening!

Scott Pressly   December 26, 2018  
Mirkwood will open today! With the snow that fell over the last week combined with the upcoming forecast, we should...
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Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays

Scott Pressly   December 25, 2018  
Happy holidays from all of us here at Monarch Mountain this website.
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All I Want for Christmas

All I Want for Christmas

Scott Pressly   December 24, 2018  
Looks like we'll be enjoying the holidays! Snow is in the forecast.
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Stormin’

Stormin’

Scott Pressly   December 22, 2018  
It's dumping up at Monarch. Each lap on the mountain today was better than the last andorramed.com.
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Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice

Scott Pressly   December 21, 2018  
Today marks the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. This is the shortest day (and the longest night) of the...
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Groomers

Groomers

Scott Pressly   December 19, 2018  
During these times in between storms, the freshly groomed trails provide some really fun morning turns. The Slope Maintenance Department...
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Curecanti

Curecanti

Scott Pressly   December 17, 2018  
We now have all of our lift-served ski trails open after adding Curecanti to the list this weekend. This trail...
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Demo Days

Demo Days

Scott Pressly   December 16, 2018  
Demo Days are here again! Dec 15/16. Stop by for FREE demo gear. Vendors include Cold Smoke Splitboards, Deviation Ski...
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Tubing in Progress

Tubing in Progress

Scott Pressly   December 15, 2018  
The Tubing Park is in full swing. Tubing operations will now be open 7 days per week through the holiday...
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Avi Dog Drills

Scott Pressly   December 13, 2018  
New and returning Monarch staff members are not the only ones that are training as the season gets underway. The...
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Ski Packing

Ski Packing

Scott Pressly   December 11, 2018  
The Monarch Cat Skiing Guides had a full weekend of mitigation work with our ski packers. We loaded up one...
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Pro 1 Avi

Pro 1 Avi

Scott Pressly   December 9, 2018  
We recently held a two-day Pro 1 Avalanche Bridge Exam for several of our guides and patrollers with instructors from...
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Good Stuff

Good Stuff

Scott Pressly   December 7, 2018  
The mountain has some great conditions right now. For early December, we are looking really good. I got out for...
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Mirkwood Recon

Mirkwood Recon

Scott Pressly   December 6, 2018  
I got out to Mirkwood this week to check out how things were filling in after our initial avalanche mitigation...
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Freestyle Terrain

Freestyle Terrain

Scott Pressly   December 5, 2018  
The Park Crew opened the Never Summer Terrain Park today. We have had the guys working on a several other...
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Mirkwood

Mirkwood

Scott Pressly   December 4, 2018  
As I mentioned in an earlier post about the Breezeway Lift, we are now shifting our efforts towards Mirkwood Basin...
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New Grooming Cat

New Grooming Cat

Scott Pressly   December 2, 2018  
We just added another work cat to our fleet. We now have three work cats, two winch cats, and two...
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Open Bowls

Open Bowls

Scott Pressly   November 30, 2018  
Outback and Shagnasty opened today. They are skiing great and dishing out some sweet pow turns. We now have all...
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Storm Cam

Storm Cam

Scott Pressly   November 30, 2018  
The POW Cam is back! This cam utilizes a 12" tall Butterfly to indicate storms in progress. It does not...
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Breezeway

Scott Pressly   November 28, 2018  
With the early snowfall and the Thanksgiving weekend storm, we were able to open the Breezeway Lift on Sunday. It's...
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Tubing Park Update

Tubing Park Update

Scott Pressly   November 26, 2018  
Tubing Park operations will begin on Thursday 11-29-18. A separate ticket is needed for tubing and they may be reserved...
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Storm Day!

Storm Day!

Scott Pressly   November 25, 2018  
It was a storm day on Saturday. The snow piled up, the wind was blowing, and it was a great...
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MCS Road Building

MCS Road Building

Scott Pressly   November 24, 2018  
The Monarch Cat Skiing snowcat operators started the process of building the over the snow roads into our permitted area....
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Snow Reporting

Snow Reporting

Scott Pressly   November 23, 2018  
Many of you may be curious about how we report snow at Monarch Mountain. There are written guidelines on how...
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Give Thanks

Give Thanks

Scott Pressly   November 22, 2018  
Today is a day to be thankful for good friends, family, health, skiing in November, Colorado blue skies, more snow...
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Disruption Roller

Disruption Roller

Scott Pressly   November 20, 2018  
We officially began our Mirkwood avalanche mitigation work this week by deploying the disruption roller. This unit disrupts shear plane...
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Lift Ops Training

Lift Ops Training

Scott Pressly   November 19, 2018  
The Lift Operations crew wrapped up their pre-season training just in time for opening day. We have several returning staff...
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Opening Day

Opening Day

Scott Pressly   November 16, 2018  
The 2018-19 winter season is underway. It was a beautiful day with bluebird skies and turns to be found on...
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What’s going to be open?

What’s going to be open?

Scott Pressly   November 15, 2018  
The stoke is high and we are fielding numerous calls on this question. There are some final grooming projects to...
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Mountain Update

Mountain Update

Scott Pressly   November 14, 2018  
We are working on prepping the mountain for Friday's opening. Snowcats continue to track pack and groom trails. Lift Ops...
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Winch Cat

Winch Cat

Scott Pressly   November 13, 2018  
The winch cat has been out on the mountain helping to set up the snow base on several intermediate and...
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Nov 16th-Opening Day!

Nov 16th-Opening Day!

Scott Pressly   November 12, 2018  
Monarch Mountain will be opening for the 2018-19 winter season on Friday-November 16th. We plan to open several lifts and...
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Snow & Cold

Snow & Cold

Scott Pressly   November 11, 2018  
Looks like we are in for some cold temps and snow today. Sometimes when it's this cold, it can be...
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Ski Patrol Training

Ski Patrol Training

Scott Pressly   November 10, 2018  
Ski Patrol is back on the mountain! The department just conducted their annual week-long refresher training up at the ski...
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When will Monarch open?

When will Monarch open?

Scott Pressly   November 9, 2018  
This is the question that everyone has this time of year. The answer is...it depends. As all of you Monarch...
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Snow Harvest

Snow Harvest

Scott Pressly   November 8, 2018  
As many of you know, we were considering the implementation of a small snowmaking system for this season. The system...
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Post Storm Update

Post Storm Update

Scott Pressly   November 6, 2018  
We received 10" of high-density snow from the storm on Sunday night into Monday morning. As of Monday morning, we...
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Track Packing

Track Packing

Scott Pressly   November 2, 2018  
With the latest snowfall this week, the Slope Maintenance Department officially began their snow grooming operations for the 2018-19 winter...
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Fresh Snow

Fresh Snow

Scott Pressly   November 1, 2018  
The mountain received 6" of fresh snow over the last few days. It looks like some cooler and unsettled weather...
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Trick or Treat

Trick or Treat

Scott Pressly   October 31, 2018  
Happy Halloween. I will choose a treat. Winter is back. I checked the webcams last night and saw this snow...
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Fence Party

Fence Party

Scott Pressly   October 30, 2018  
Monarch Cat Skiing utilizes temporary snow-fences to capture snow that is used for building over-the-snow roads in the MCS permitted area.  These...
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Salida Ski Training

Salida Ski Training

Scott Pressly   October 28, 2018  
While the peaks have been getting snow, the trails are riding sweet in Salida.  Climb, descend, and repeat as needed until the lifts...
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Prescribed Burn

Prescribed Burn

Scott Pressly   October 26, 2018  
Our Slope Maintenance and Ski Patrol crews are wrapping up the initial efforts of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project.  They have...
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Uphill Access

Uphill Access

Scott Pressly   October 21, 2018  
Along with the first snow of the season comes the first round of winter enthusiasts.  Monarch Mountain does have a...
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Kickoff

Kickoff

Scott Pressly   October 17, 2018  
Monarch Mountain just took a big step towards getting the 2018-19 winter season underway.  We held our annual Manager's Kickoff...
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Grinder

Grinder

Scott Pressly   October 14, 2018  
The Slope Maintenance Department is utilizing a tub grinder to chip the slash piles that were created during the first phase...
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First Real Snow

First Real Snow

Scott Pressly   October 11, 2018  
We received our first significant snowfall of the season this week with around 6-8" of snow on Tuesday and Wednesday (and...
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Winter Driving

Winter Driving

Scott Pressly   October 10, 2018  
It's full on winter conditions out there and the pass is a mess.  I think people forget how to drive...
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Mountain Snow, Valley Fog

Mountain Snow, Valley Fog

Scott Pressly   October 9, 2018  
The ski area received a dusting of snow with more falling on the high peaks.  More snow is in the...
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Snow & Avalanche

Snow & Avalanche

Scott Pressly   October 7, 2018  
Monarch Mountain recently sent a crew of Ski Patrollers and Cat Skiing Guides to the annual Colorado Snow and Avalanche Workshop. ...
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Haulin’

Haulin’

Scott Pressly   October 4, 2018  
The mountain is abuzz with the removal of trees from the vegetation management project.  Logging trucks are busy making their...
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Tube Tow

Tube Tow

Scott Pressly   October 1, 2018  
The concrete is in and the bottom lift terminal is being installed by our Lift Maintenance Department.
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Revegetation

Revegetation

Scott Pressly   September 28, 2018  
The Slope Maintenance Department uses a hydro-seeder to revegetate soils that are disturbed during our summer mountain projects.  We utilize a weed-free, USFS approved mix of...
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Charlie

Charlie

Scott Pressly   September 27, 2018  
Due to our high elevation, we only have one aspen tree on the mountain.  Its leaves are turning gold with...
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Different

Different

Scott Pressly   September 26, 2018  
A few areas that have been treated can be seen in these photos.  The photo above is looking across towards...
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Wind Turbine Work

Wind Turbine Work

Scott Pressly   September 25, 2018  
The wind turbine at our internet relay site on top of Monarch Ridge received some work this fall.  The engineers that...
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Decked

Decked

Scott Pressly   September 24, 2018  
The contractors working on the vegetation management project are processing and decking trees in preparation for removal from the ski area.  A...
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Tubes

Tubes

Scott Pressly   September 23, 2018  
 The new tubes for the tubing park arrived this week andrikofarmakeio.com!
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Sign of the Times

Sign of the Times

Scott Pressly   September 22, 2018  
Slope Maintenance and Ski Patrol have been working to install new mountain signage.  We are still planning to fabricate a metal...
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Priority Polygons

Priority Polygons

Scott Pressly   September 20, 2018  
The first phase of the 5-year Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project aims to treat the yellow priority polygons shown below.  While...
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Before & After

Before & After

Scott Pressly   September 18, 2018  
Here are two photos showing how the efforts put forth in the vegetation management project are changing the look of our...
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Tubing Lift Installation

Tubing Lift Installation

Scott Pressly   September 16, 2018  
The forms for the new tubing lift are in with the concrete scheduled for next week.  The lift that is being...
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Thinning

Thinning

Scott Pressly   September 13, 2018  
Tree thinning continues on the Garfield and Pioneer side of the mountain as the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project unfolds. ...
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Aspens

Scott Pressly   September 10, 2018  
The drive down the pass is pretty nice this time of year!  Be sure to stop and take in the...
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Gladed Skiing & Riding

Scott Pressly   September 9, 2018  
Thinning along the top tree islands of Gunbarrel Ridge can be seen in the photo below.  In just a few...
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Vegetation Management

Scott Pressly   September 7, 2018  
Two feller buncher machines and a processor showed up this week to begin work on the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project.  These...
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Misty Mountain Hop

Scott Pressly   September 5, 2018  
Cool, wet weather has moved in this week and it feels like fall out there.  It seems like we hit...
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Top of Mirk

Scott Pressly   September 4, 2018  
The view never gets old up here.  Although, I do like it better with snow!  The air is starting to...
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CDT

Scott Pressly   September 1, 2018  
The Continental Divide Trail passes right through the Monarch Mountain Ski Area.  The Colorado Trail that goes from Denver to...
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Tubular

Scott Pressly   August 29, 2018  
The tubing park grading work is complete and the lift installation will soon be underway.  Huge thanks goes out to...
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A View From Above

Scott Pressly   August 26, 2018  
As part of our operating plan with the USFS, we follow established protocols that enable us to utilize unmanned aerial  systems (drones)...
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Signs, Signs

Scott Pressly   August 23, 2018  
We are continuing to upgrade our on mountain signage with 6" x 6" rough sawn timbers and sharp graphics.  The ski patrol...
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Fall colors in August?

Scott Pressly   August 21, 2018  
Already seeing some hints of changes in the high country on Monarch Pass.  
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Snow Fences

Snow Fences

Scott Pressly   August 20, 2018  
Another project we are working on this summer is the addition of new snow fences.  We have utilized snow fences...
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High Altitude Internet

High Altitude Internet

Scott Pressly   August 17, 2018  
Monarch Mountain is an isolated ski area located high on the Continental Divide.  We have no condos, base area development,...
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Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains

Scott Pressly   August 14, 2018  
Rocks...there is no shortage of them up here and our mountain range looks to be aptly named.  We have been cleaning...
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Are you ready for some Cat Skiing?

Are you ready for some Cat Skiing?

Scott Pressly   August 11, 2018  
Tour cats are ready...are you?  The vehicle maintenance staff has completed their summer work on both tour cats.  The calendar...
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Alpine Tundra

Alpine Tundra

Scott Pressly   August 8, 2018  
The alpine tundra has been appreciative of the change in the weather. After a hot and dry start to summer,...
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Vehicle Maintenance-Track Work

Vehicle Maintenance-Track Work

Scott Pressly   August 5, 2018  
The Vehicle Maintenance crew is going though our fleet of snowcats.  Each snowcat has many moving parts.  One of the...
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Tubing Park Grading

Tubing Park Grading

Scott Pressly   August 3, 2018  
The grading work for the tubing park is moving along.  The slope includes steeper grades in the acceleration zone and then levels out...
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Lift Maintenance-Line Work

Lift Maintenance-Line Work

Scott Pressly   August 1, 2018  
The Lift Maintenance crew has methodically been going over each of our lifts during the summer months.  A significant part of their...
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Mirkwood in July

Mirkwood in July

Scott Pressly   July 29, 2018  
In what we are more familiar with as a winter wonderland full of deep powder, Mirkwood Basin in the summertime turns...
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All Natural

All Natural

Scott Pressly   July 25, 2018  
Monarch Mountain is one of the last ski areas in Colorado to rely entirely upon all natural snowfall.  We have...
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Pano Hydraulic Tensioning

Pano Hydraulic Tensioning

Scott Pressly   July 22, 2018  
The Panorama Hydraulic Tensioning System ground installation is complete.  The foundation is set and the tower has been installed along with the...
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Tubing Park Progress

Tubing Park Progress

Scott Pressly   July 19, 2018  
After timber removal and survey work, the tubing park grading work has begun this week.  The engineered plans involve tubing lanes designed...
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Summer Beauty

Summer Beauty

Scott Pressly   July 17, 2018  
During the summer months, our favorite ski lines reveal what's hiding underneath all that snow.  Here's a few pics from...
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Monarch Pass Veg Mgmt Project

Monarch Pass Veg Mgmt Project

Scott Pressly   July 16, 2018  
The Monarch Pass area is experiencing what a significant portion of the southwest mountains have been seeing over the last...
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Panorama Tensioning System

Panorama Tensioning System

Scott Pressly   July 13, 2018  
A haul rope on a ski lift stretches over time or even hour to hour based on the number of...
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Vehicle Maintenance Lift

Vehicle Maintenance Lift

Scott Pressly   July 11, 2018  
Monarch Mountain is continuing to update one of the nicest maintenance facilities in Colorado Ski Country.  We recently installed a...
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Panorama Rope Splice

Panorama Rope Splice

Scott Pressly   July 9, 2018  
We recently conducted a rope splice on the Panorama lift cable. This takes place during the installation of a new haul...
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Panorama Lift Project

Panorama Lift Project

Scott Pressly   July 7, 2018  
Last summer, we replaced the drive and braking systems in addition to new controls on Panorama.  This summer, we will complete...
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Tubing Park Site Prep

Tubing Park Site Prep

Scott Pressly   July 4, 2018  
The USFS timber staff marked the trees to be cut to make way for the Tubing Park.  Our Mountain Crew...
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Monarch Mountain Tubing Park

Monarch Mountain Tubing Park

Scott Pressly   July 2, 2018  
The USFS recently approved the Monarch Mountain proposal to install a tubing park this summer with operations scheduled to begin during the...
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Summertime

Summertime

Scott Pressly   June 29, 2018  
People always ask, "What do you do up there in the summer?".  While we do not currently offer summer activities...
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Welcome to our new blog

Welcome to our new blog

Scott Pressly   June 28, 2018  
Welcome to our new blog. With this platform, we aim to provide a behind the scenes look at operations here...
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