Crested Butte...can we handle it??
 

My brother and I do a week long ski trip every year. We've been to Vail, Jackson Hole, Whistler, Mammoth, Tahoe, Steamboat, Big Sky, etc....One of our favorites was JAckson Hole. We ski all green and blue, most black and an occasional double back as long as there aren't chutes or rock faces, or anything that will likely cause my death if I have to fall :) So we are considering Crested Butte this year...
Question: will there be enough terrain to challenge us without having to kill ourselves on a double black?? I've read that there isn't a lot of terrain for intermediates and I am not sure if there will just be too many slopes over our heads... Thoughts?

Crested Butte is only 1167 acres, with 23% beginner, 57% intermediate, 20% advanced. We go on ski weeks two to three times a year, and find that we need at least 2800 acres not to get bored.

You will be fine. The town absolutely rocks! Have fun! (from a skier of almost 29 years and skied many of the places you've listed several times including CB).

a non-local, local here and you should be fine in Crested Butte. As a person who only infrequently skies blacks, I have even skiied one or two of the double blacks at CB. I suggest you get a ski instructor one day and get someone to show you around all the back bowls and the locations you would feel comfortable skiing. I find that there are lots of runs at CB that people who are just visiting don't take the time to explore or to find. They tend to stick to the Paradise Bowl when you can find lots of other runs where there are no people. Plus there are very rarely lift lines which gives you lots of skiing time.

Crested Butte is a charming town and you should enjoy it.

I think you will have a great time. Plenty of blue/black and some double black runs for us. Our son had an instructor take him on the double blacks and bowls and he really enjoyed it. I opted out and we had a great time on the blacks and blues.

The town still has a small-town charm to it that many of the ski resorts have lost. Also, the shuttle is very convenient as well especially if you're staying on Mt. Crested Butte.

I think CB has a lot to offer.

Thanks for the input...we are a little torn right now b/w Crested Butte and Telluride. We have to decide soon though b/c we want to go in Feb. I feel a little better about the Butte though - I think it may work for us. Any advice b/w Telluride and Cb is also appreciated. Thanks again and happy new year.

DH skis Telluride regularly as we live in area. Lots of challenging terrain and beautiful runs and trees too.

Telluride's biggest drawback in it is hard to get to if you don't fly in to either Montrose or Telluride and that is expensive to do. Can fly into Albuquerque too [and Denver] but that will take some driving to get to/from.

A great little town, with a lots of excellent restaurants and younger scene. Mountain Village is right on the ski mountain and has lots of ski in- out places to stay. VRBO.com should help you find a condo. There are places in town too [town means the village of Tellride.] A free gondola takes you from town to mountain to Mountain Village.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35097773

http://tellurideskiresort.com/TellSki/index.winter.aspx

http://visittelluride.com/telluride/index.php

Hope this helps...
Deb

I'm not fan of Telluride but obviously I'm biased and I've only visited Telluride during the summer and haven't ever skiied there.

CB is a little bit easier to get to than Telluride, being a short 30 minute drive from the Gunnison airport. (maybe 10 minutes longer to get all the way to the ski mountain.) You should check out the rsn.com cam for pictures everyday from Crested Butte. CB has fantastic resturants and a charming main street. Also, on your way up to the mountain be sure you stop at the City Market in Gunnison on your way out of town, the grocery store in CB is tiny and often sells out of everything on holiday weekends.

We can't make the call for you, you should have a great time in either place. But I love CB, and the possibilities of skiing with virtualy no lift lines makes it wonderful

thanks again for all the advice guys...seeing my brother this weekend so I am going to let him choose :) I really appreciate everyone's input. Happy skiing :)
Kelly