Colorado – Skiing Breckenridge as an Intermediate Skier
Breckenfridge. I was warming myself at the Overlook on-mountain ski lodge on Peak 9, when I met John. John, an official Breckenridge volunteer, was also taking a break from snow flurry conditions. He gave this California skier the lay of the land for the following day and also let me in on what locals call Breckenridge on days like this: Breckenfridge. You see, the thing is, you can’t have perfect ski conditions and hero snow without some snowy days. Over two days, we had drastically different weather, but two things stayed constant – world-class skiing and Swiss-like resort efficiency. With bluebird conditions and John’s recommendations in our pocket on our second day, we explored the mountain with breathless ferocity. Skiing Breckenridge was an absolute delight, so let me tell you about it.
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Breck, An Orientation
At over 10,000 ft of elevation, the Breckenridge ski area has breathtaking views. With low visibility on the first day, it was like discovering Atlantis on our sunny second day. Every lift we took, I verbally announced how stunning the mountain tops and views were. On our first run, I had to stop and take it in the view, which went from nearly the top of the run down into the town below.
And that’s one thing that struck me about Breckenridge, while looking down the run – the ski area’s connection with the town. You can pick up a gondola from the middle of town and rent your skis right on the main street. You’re not driving to a remote area to ski, which makes skiing Breckenridge more approachable, in my opinion. All or parts of the ski area are visible from just about anywhere in town, so it’s easy to see conditions and also irresistible when there are favorable conditions. Not to mention, the town is adorable, but more on that later.
The Breck ski area spreads itself over one side of the mountains – covering 5 peaks, with 5 different sets of conditions. The Breck website boats that the mountain has 187 ski runs, which seems crazy. As an intermediate skier, I felt comfortable on Blue Square and Single Black Diamonds, while skiing Breckenridge. What I noticed about the mountain in general is that is an increasing slope as you make your way up the mountain. So, the steepest, most challenging runs were generally way at the top and all of the runs tend to flatten out at the bottom. This was good to keep in mind if I was nervous at the top of a run. Let’s get into skiing Breckenridge!
At a Glance:
- Rating: 4 (out of 4) stars, it was a fantastic ski area
- Intensity: Ski clothes, buff, helmet, warm gloves, hand warmers, ski/snowboard equipment
- Location: Breckenridge, Colorado
- Cost: $152 – $168 per day lift ticket (time of year and how far in advance you are purchasing will affect the price of the ticket)
- Restrooms: In each of the on-mountain lodges, at the Peak 9 village lodge
- Timing: Lifts open at 8:30 am and close at 4 pm – ski for as long as you can!
Highlights:
- Skiing Breckenridge’s 5 peaks with different terrain and conditions to explore
- High altitude means cooooold weather and good snow
- Stunning views of the mountain, town, and surrounding mountains
- Well-organized resort with many chairlifts and helpful workers & volunteers
Skiing Breckenridge’s 5 Peaks
On our very first lift, we pulled down the safety bar (with footrest for snowboarders) to discover one of my favorite things about skiing at well-maintained ski areas: a map! Yes! A map is clearly shown on a wide handrail of the safety bar. With 5 peaks, it’s a bit daunting to try to understand where to begin skiing Breckenrige and how to get from one peak to another. But with the map on each lift, we could reorient ourselves and memorize the next runs and which lift to get back on. From what we explored, it was never too challenging to get from one peak to the next. On our snow day, we stuck to Peak 9, but on our sunny day, we made our way over from Peak 9 to 8 and 7 and found delightful runs on each.
But I’m getting ahead of myself, to get onto the mountain via 5 different express lifts and possibly more smaller lifts for beginners that we didn’t venture to. There is a gondola, that you can get on in the middle of town that will lead you to the bottom of Peaks 7 and 8. We started at the bottom of Peak 9 each day and took the Beaver Run SuperChair. While I’m talking about the peaks and runs, here is a link to the Breck Ski Map for reference. Let’s dig in a little bit to the peaks we explored:
Peak 9
Getting off Beaver Run SuperChair on Peak 9, you can go in pretty much any direction. We often went to the right and found our two favorite runs of Peak 9:
- Colombia (Blue Square)
- American (Black Diamond)
Both runs were wide and well-groomed. American tended to be less crowded and completely empty at 9:00 am on our second day. It has one or two steeper sections but then turns blue, then green as it combines at the bottom with other runs. There is a flat section at the bottom between the Peak 8 Connector Chair and the Beaver Run Chair – warning all snowboarders. John the Volunteer also recommended the runs: Volunteer, and Gold-King into Lower American/Sundown Access for intermediates. Beginners should stick to the runs Bonanza or to the bottom of the mountain on the Quicksilver Superchair.
The Overlook is the on-mountain lodge of Peak 9. This is where I had a delicious hot drink in what felt like blizzard-conditions on our first day and warmed up while my partner (Mike) skied a few runs without me. I got a warm drink called Hot Apple Pie, which was warm and strong. Whew! Very strong, but good and fun with the whipped cream. This is also where I met John the Volunteer who’s notes I included throughout this post.
Peak 8
We made our way to Peak 8 via the Peak 8 SuperConnect. There is a Mid-Load Station, where you are not able to get off, but possibly get on the lift. This mid-load station felt like a roller coaster as you made your way around a slow turn. As for the actual skiing on Peak 8, we liked:
- Spruce (Black Diamond – Mike’s Favorite)
- Duke’s Run (Blue Square – My Favorite)
Although I also thought Spruce was nice, I didn’t love how it is right under the chairlift. There are some fun steep sections, then gets very mellow green at the bottom. However, Mike loved it and was able to do a mixture of aggressive or fun snowboard moves. I did love Duke’s Run though. Duke’s run is a little easier to reach from the Rocky Mountain SuperChair and feels more-or-less secluded. There is a steep drop at first but settles into a solid blue for the rest of the way down.
If you’re looking for a fun adventure when skiing Breckenridge, John the Volunteer recommended taking 6-Chair to the Imperial Express SuperChair to upper-peak. When he first showed me, I exclaimed, “No way!” But he let me in on the fact that the Imperial Ridge is often groomed, then you take Upper 4 O’Clock along the lower ridge back down to Vista Haus. Knowing there might be groomed runs above treeline and having done some black diamonds at Breck, I wish we had one more sunny, non-windy day to try this out. How cool is to access the high mountain terrain above tree-line without having to be a super pro?? Fun fact, the Imperial Express SuperChair is the highest elevation chair lift in North America.
The Vista Haus is the on-mountain Lodge of Peak 8. We stopped here twice to grab water. It has spectacular views from the upper decks. I also enjoyed watching the chair lift overhead from the upper level, when I was ready for a break and Mike went for another run.
Peak 7
From Peak 8, we made our way over to Peak 6 using the Columbine run. It gets pretty flat and narrow right before the T-Bar section, so I recommend getting some speed going into it and being on high alert. Once you get over to Peak 7, all the runs are Blue Squares. We only did about three runs on 7, but our favorite with Wirepatch. Watch for the signs for Wirepatch, because it’s easy to overshoot and land on Angel’s Rest. We liked Wirepatch for its grab-bag variety in one run. You get a few steep sections, some tree patches you easily maneuver around, rolling hills, and a decently long finish before getting back on the Independence SuperChair.
John the Volunteer also recommends Wirepatch for the variety and because people cannot find it for whatever reason. He warned us to stay away from Pioneer because EVERYone goes down Pioneer. He also says not to get dropped off at Peak 7 because there are a series of steep stairs that are difficult in ski boots. Instead, take the Gondola or get dropped at Peaks 8 or 9.
Extra Thoughts on Peak 7
There were a couple interesting things about Peak 7. First, because it is all Blue runs, it seemed like everyone skiing here had at least a bit of experience. We didn’t see many wipe-outs and the pace was quick. The downfall of Peak 7 is that there is only one chairlift. Even though its a 6-person SuperChair, all the other Peaks we visited had at least two chairs to divert people. During our sunny day, this is the only spot we waited in line at the chairs, which was luckily only about 5 minutes. Perhaps the runs were narrower that cast more tree shadows, but it also seemed like the runs on Peaks 8 and 9 more sunny.
Pioneer Crossing is the on-mountain lodge of Peak 7. This was a stunning “Mountain Modern” building with the entire front wall of large windows facing down the mountain. This the most handsome lodge – inside and outside – that we visited, despite only stopping in for a bathroom/water break.
Peak 6 & 10
Unfortunately, we didn’t make our way over to Peak 6 or 10, but I can share John the Volunteer’s recommendations. First, to get to Peak 6, you must go up Peak 7, take the Zendo Chair over to the Kensho Superchair. Alternatively, you can take the run Wanderlust, which honestly looks pretty fun, despite being a Black Diamond. This Peak is a mix of groomed and ungroomed runs, with the top part of all the runs being above the treeline. John said Reverie is nice. We were also told that the views from Peak 6 are stunning.
Peak 10 is completely black or double black diamonds, which makes it one of the sparsely populated peaks. To get there, you’ve got to go up one of the Peak 9 chairs and make your way over to the Falcon SuperChair. During our sunny day, when we were waiting in line at Peak 7, a friend of ours said that he often went up the Falcon SuperChair on 9 run solo. How about them apples?
TenMile Station is the on-mountain lodge between Peaks 10 and 9. We didn’t get to visit this one, but it looks lovely. A large barn shape, this is where Breckenridge hosts weddings during the summers. Our friends kept asking if we visited, but we never made it back over that far.
On-Mountain Lodges
There are 4 on-mountain lodges, each of which has different architecture and views… but more importantly, they each have bathrooms and water available! I’ve already spoken about them in each of the Peaks sections, but in general, it was shocking at how spacious they each were. There seemed to be specialty items at each of them. Pioneer Crossing had tacos, The Overlook had Ramen bowls, etc. If you’re going to eat, bring twice the amount of cash/card that is normal. It’s pricey, but also convenient. There is plenty of seating in all of them if you bring food with you. Especially on the first blustery day, when visibility was low, it was crazy to walk into a large warm building complete with expansive cafeteria and bar. A whole thriving ecosystem on the top of a mountain.
Organization of the Breckenridge Ski Area
With ski runs covering 5 peaks, Breckenridge is efficiently organized. We got our lift tickets at the bottom of Peak 9. The purchasing process was pretty straightforward and there are additional kind workers in red Breckenridge jackets around to answer additional questions. Practically all of the chairlifts we went on were SuperChairs, which got us up the mountain speedily. Out of the five chairlifts we regularly visited, three of them were 6-seater and the other two were 4-seaters. The capacity of these chairs made the lines go quickly and before we knew it, we were skiing Breckenridge. At Peak 7, where we actually encountered a line, we noticed staff appear to help people organize into groups of 6 before getting close to the chair.
Let’s talk about John the Volunteer’s position. First, he looked the part of an official Breckenridge staff member. He had on the red branded jacket, pants, and even had a walkie-talkie strapped to his chest. We asked his position and he had two roles. One role was of a guide, where he would show guests around the mountain to introduce them to Breckenridge and how to traverse from Peak to Peak.
That snowing morning, he didn’t have anyone show up to guide, so he takes on another role of “patrolling” the mountain. I’m not sure the right word, but he, with other volunteers, would ski the mountain looking for people needing assistance. They would help people get back on their feet, offer directions, or call Ski Patrol if there is a serious injury. Like non-emergency help. It made me feel better that there were more eyes on the mountain watching conditions and people. Very cool position for people who like to ski and help people, which has the effect of making the entire mountain safer. Hey Breck, will ya let me volunteer when I’m retired??
Effects of Elevation
The town of Breckenridge is at 9,600 feet of elevation. This means you’re skiing above 10,00 feet. But if your a sea-level dweller, like myself, it can take your breath away. If you have some flexibility with timing, I recommend taking a day to acclimate. We ended up trying out Nordic Skiing for the first time (spoiler: we LOVED it), which ended up being a full-body workout and an excellent way to get everything moving, while still being gentle. I noticed the elevation the most when we were going on an incline while Nordic Skiing.
The other effect of elevation is the cold. And whew, it was cold. On our snowy day, I don’t think it got over 20 or 25 degrees. And the wind is fierce on the top of the mountain. The last two or so minutes of the Peak 9 Chairlift was intense with piercing winds. On that day, I would be warm at the end of a run, but slowly get chilled on every lift back to the top. With this in mind, layer up with wool layers. A buff or balaclava is a necessity with up to 95% of people wearing them while skiing Breckenridge on the snow day. I also added hand warmers to my gloves, which helped fight off the cold. Prepare yourself, if you’re like me and used to fair-weather skiing in California!
However, this snowy day and cold weather made for delightful snow on our sunny day. You can’t have a rainbow without rain, and you can’t have fresh pow without snow.
Getting and Staying in Breck
Breckenridge is located about 2 hours from the Denver Airport and 1.5 hours from Denver. There are a number of shuttles that will take you directly from the airport to Breckenridge or reverse. We had a personal ride to Breckenridge, but ended up taking a shuttle back to the airport on our final day. The shuttles are comfortable and direct. It was great to be able to simply get in and relax all the way to the airport. The shuttles are roughly $50/per person each way (depending on which company you take), so be sure to check rental car prices compared to the shuttle.
As I mentioned earlier, there is a proper town of Breckenridge, so there are a variety of accommodation options. While driving around, we saw a lot of empty cabins, so check out Airbnb and VRBO as well hotel prices. There is a free shuttle bus that goes around town and the neighborhoods to drop you off at the different peaks.
Even if you’re not skiing Breckenridge, there is much to do in this high elevation mountain town. The town itself is darling with a mountain vibe mixed with some victorian homes. The main street is full of shopping and eateries. Beyond skiing, you can also try ice skating, Nordic Skiing, or about 20/30 minutes away, you can check out the Frisco Adventure Park and the Dillon Ice Castles.
Full Transparency
I received complimentary lift tickets and a discounted rate for Mike for two days of skiing and I wanted to talk for a moment about how that would affect my experience. One of the biggest impacts this had (beyond on my wallet) was that I felt a huge weight lifted knowing I wouldn’t feel the pressure to ski the entire day. This was my first ski of the season, so not only was I a bit nervous, but I am not completely in skiing shape. However, if we bought lift tickets I know I would push myself to ski for as long as possible. Without this pressure, I felt free to prioritize runs and take breaks at the various on-mountain lodges, which ended up allowing me to meet and chat with John the Volunteer.
Another impact was that without this discount, I probably would have only skied one day, instead of two. The first day, was a great “warm”-up, even though it was so cold. It got us used to how the lift tickets work (they stay in your jacket pockets!) and start to get our bearings. After I got my lift ticket, there was no way that anyone else on the mountain knew about my discount, so no special treatment there. Overall, I think the discount allowed me to slow down and enjoy skiing Breckenridge, with the result of me learning more about the location and being able to write a more informative post.
Overall Thoughts: Skiing Breckenridge
Though it may seem particularly large, the additional maps on the chairlifts, helpful staff, available warming lodges, and efficiently organized setup made skiing Breckenridge approachable and enjoyable. Not only that, but the snow was fantastic and the runs were exciting to discover. With five peaks, we had a glut of choices. The hardest part was deciding where to go and when. On each lift, we ended up chatting with people from all over – Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, New Hampshire, and Texas. Although I didn’t expect it to be such a destination, I can now see why it is – it’s a great place to ski.
Next time I’m back on a not-too windy day, I’d want to try going above the treeline on Peak 6 and work up the nerve to try out Imperial Express Chair to Imperial Ridge on Peak 8. I also want to check out TenMile Station Lodge and possibly even the black diamonds on Peak 10. So much to look forward to! While in Breckenridge, we also had fun exploring other winter activities. Read those posts here:
Each year I don’t have the urge to ski until I do it. Now, it’s all I can think about. Where should I try skiing next? Let me know in the comments below!
Happy Travels,
Hanna
