Storm slams Colorado, snarls roads, coats ski resorts with fresh snow

All hell broke loose on Colorado roads Tuesday morning, which is great news for snow riders if they can get to their favorite ski mountains, with Vail reporting 2 inches new and Beaver Creek coming in at 5 inches new as of 5:30 a.m. And snow was still falling steadily as of 9:30 a.m.

Vail on its Facebook page Monday announced a few more chairlifts opening for the season: “Terrain Announcement! We have a storm on the way and we are excited to announce that beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, November 26th the following will be open: Chair 8 (Born Free Express), Chair 2 (Avanti Express) & Chair 3 (Wildwood Express) with access to select trails.”

Beaver Creek opened Saturday, four days earlier than scheduled, after more than a foot of new snow fell late last week.

The Colorado Department of Transportation put out a rather dire statewide alert Tuesday morning: “Winter Storm Warning Blizzard/Storm warning through Tuesday for Northeast Colorado. I-70 and I-76 closed to the east of Denver. I-70 west is closed at Beaver Brook due to major rock slide at Georgetown.” Find updates at https://co.c-tr.us/?type=alert&id=35

And the Colorado State Patrol Eagle tweeted that I-70 was closed between Dowd Junction and Post Boulevard in Avon “due to fatal crash, HAZMAT and multiple other crashes.”

After this blast of snow rolls out Tuesday night, another one is headed in for later in the Thanksgiving holiday week.

“Tuesday morning snow totals range from 1 inch to over 18 inches with an average of 2-6 inches. We should see an additional 1-10 inches through the day on Tuesday so snow conditions should stay soft and get deeper,” Opensnow.com meteorologist Joel Gratz wrote Tuesday morning.

“Tuesday night through Wednesday will be a break, then the next storm will bring snow from Wednesday night through Saturday,” Gratz added. “The deepest accumulations of 2+ feet will be in the southern mountains, other mountains should grab 5-10 inches, and Friday and Saturday will likely be the best powder days.”

Vail Resorts has extended its deadline for Epic Pass sales. Here’s their press release on that:

Following the snowiest October on record for Breckenridge and Keystone and to celebrate the amazing conditions forecast across the country, Vail Resorts is extending the deadline to Dec. 2 to give pass holders more time to lock in their Epic Pass, new Epic Day Pass or any products in the Epic Pass portfolio. With Beaver Creek opening this past weekend and Crested Butte scheduled to open on Nov. 27, the 2019-20 season is officially off to a very strong start in Colorado.

New for the 2019-20 season, Vail Resorts launched the Epic Day Pass allowing guests to ski world-class resorts for up to 50 percent off of lift ticket window prices. For as little as $95 per day of skiing at any of Vail Resorts’ North American resorts, the Epic Day Pass is perfect for those skiers and riders who may not need the unlimited skiing offered by traditional season passes but want the same flexibility. Guests can also lower their cost per day by adding more days.

For guests looking to ski more days in a season, the Epic Pass continues to offer the best access at the best price with unlimited, unrestricted access to all of the Company’s owned resorts for only $989, with additional partner access at Telluride, Hakuba Valley, Verbier, Courchevel, and the Resorts of the Canadian Rockies. New for the 2019-20 season, the Epic Pass also includes partner access to Sun Valley in Idaho, Snowbasin in Utah and Rusutsu Resort in Japan. For skiers and riders willing to navigate around a few peak dates, the Epic Local Pass offers an incredible value with access to many of the same destinations for only $739, including unlimited, unrestricted access to Breckenridge, Keystone and more, plus ten combined days at Vail, Whistler Blackcomb, and Beaver Creek, with holiday restrictions, and two days each at Snowbasin and Sun Valley. Guests can purchase season passes and start planning their next winter vacation today at www.epicpass.com.