The most dramatic setting of any resort in the United States. A preserved mining town sits at the closed end of a box canyon with the ski area rising directly behind it, and a free gondola connects the town to the purpose built Mountain Village on the other side. It runs late into the evening.

The skiing is steeper than most of Colorado, with hike to peaks, serious bowls and sustained bump runs above town. Intermediates get long groomed cruising on the Mountain Village side, and beginners are catered for without much room to roam.

Historic hotels and rentals fill the town, condos fill Mountain Village, and the restaurants punch far above the population, so reserve them. Getting there is the obstacle, with Montrose airport an hour and a quarter away, and that difficulty is exactly why the slopes stay quiet.