What's the elevation?
While higher elevations make it more likely that a mountain will have snow on it, higher elevations can also pose health risks for snowboarders. From simple shortness of breath to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE), altitude sickness and altitude-related illnesses can be serious, and even life-threatening. Always check with your physician before you go to the mountains.
You may also wish to take the altitude of a resort into consideration as you make your travel plans. In particular, pay attention to the base elevation--that is, where you will sleep. Here we offer information about selected resorts.
Let's start with the highest elevations, which are concentrated in or near Summit County, Colorado. Higher elevations means long seasons, but they also increase the likelihood of elevation sickness.
Mountain
|
State
| Base (ft) |
A-Basin
|
CO |
10,789
|
Loveland
|
CO |
10,600
|
Copper
|
CO |
9,712
|
Breckenridge
|
CO |
9,600 |
Crested Butte
|
CO |
9,375
|
Keystone
|
CO |
9,280
|
Winter Park
|
CO |
9,000
|
|
|
|
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Let's move on to the rest.
Mountain
|
State
| Base (ft) |
Durango
|
CO |
8,793
|
Telluride
|
CO |
8,735
|
Solitude
|
UT |
8,175
|
Vail
|
CO |
8,120
|
Snowmass
|
CO |
8,104
|
Beaver Creek
|
CO |
8,100
|
Mammoth
|
CA |
7,953
|
Aspen
|
CO |
7,945
|
Snowbird
|
UT |
7,760
|
Big Sky
|
MT |
7,500
|
Heavenly
|
CA |
7,200
|
Moonlight Basin
|
MT |
7,000
|
Steamboat
|
CO |
6,900
|
Park City
|
UT |
6,900
|
The Canyons
|
UT |
6,800
|
Sierra at Tahoe
|
CA |
6,640
|
Jackson Hole
|
WY |
6,311
|
Mt. Bachelor
|
OR |
6,300
|
Squaw Valley
|
CA |
6,200
|
Bridger Bowl
|
MT |
6,100
|
Snowbasin
|
UT |
5,850
|
Sun Valley
|
ID |
5,750
|
|
|
|
|
And if you would like a resort with a base elevation that's not quite one-mile high, you still have choices.
Mountain
|
State
| Base (ft) |
Whitefish
|
MT |
4,464
|
Schweitzer
|
ID |
4,000
|
Crystal
|
WA |
4,000
|
Stevens Pass
|
WA |
4,000
|
Sunday River
|
ME |
3,140
|
Whistler
|
BC |
2,214
|
Stowe
|
VT |
1,280
|
Whiteface
|
NY |
1,220
|
Killington
|
VT |
1,165
|
|
|
|
|
Return to the resorts main page.
Discussion
To talk about ski resorts and other topics related to snowboarding, check out the Grays on Trays
discussion board.
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