Touring Colorado's Newest Ski Area: NO CHAIRLIFTS!

[@russclewley6945]

What a great concept. I met a guy at Powdermountain in Utah who skinned every run and never road a single chair. He was 64 years old. I was blown away.

[@ISOwren]

RIP Bluebird it was so fun!

[@stevenutepass7671]

Nice video, I'm familiar with bluebird living near & helping set up prior. Everyone of staff seemed extra friendly, motivated, helpful and certainly not doing for money but to promote the backcountry. Wishing all there a great season!

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Definitely agree!

[@youcancallmeana]

That's a great idea, as someone who's getting older, that would be a great place to fulfill my skiing wants!

[@williamsavage6301]

Awsome concept, good luck with it. I have cross country skied on Rabit Ears Pass many times. Most of the forest service trails, Walden Peak, etc. I'll be in Steamboat in Jan. and Feb. 2023. I might try to check you guys out.

[@futuresmart2505]

Went last year for a few days and the concept is cool but, most of the good terrain gets skied out quick. The rest is pretty flat and also the really good stuff you have to go guided. If you have no friends and want to start BC this is a good place, but its remote location makes this rough for a day trip and at the end of the day you could find better terrain all over Colorado closer to where most people live regardless of where you come from. Did have a season pass, wont be getting another one, likely wont come back unless im staying in the boat and not skiing rabbit ears area.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

This was our experience as well.

[@LillivvyP]

But like if it was your first time touring, would you reccomend? Im getting into it this season when Im back in Breck.

[@danbob1650]

Go to Mt Bohemia in the U.P. check that place out.

[@edkrassenstein5534]

Looks amazing! I'm a lifelong boarder who is looking to venture into the backcountry next season. How little snow we had this year has made me look at it more seriously. I'll definitely make a few trips out here next season just to see if it's actually something I enjoy before buying myself gear. Thanks for the video. Information on this resort is sparse.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

It's worth checking out for sure!

[@jasonfrench1971]

Great idea

[@at1970]

This looks like most of the terrain at steamboat ski area and the surrounding NF. Nice snow, but basically flat.

[@bb5242]

Probably a good place to go to avoid dentists from TX.

[@ticklefritz5406]

I have a friend from Texas who is a dentist, but he is a snowboarder so I'm reconsidering our friendship

[@TexasDoctor7]

Texans own more Colorado land than y’all...and we avoid the local mongoloids except when absolutely necessary. We’re tolerant, but do not suffer fools gladly. Be very careful !

[@bkl8804]

Word

[@drwho5437]

Only to find their kids littering on the mountain. Truth is these places cater towards spoiled adolescents.

[@ticklefritz5406]

@@drwho5437 What are you talking about? "These places"? This is the only place of its kind in Colorado at the moment. Rarely will you ever find an adolescent skinning up a mountain, and especially rare would be an adolescent from Texas skinning up a mountain. But if you did actually see this anomaly skinning up a trail I highly doubt that kid would be a litterbug

[@edwardlobb931]

Nothing better than X Country, but you can clearly see that search and rescue will be one of the major piggy back industries as it expands.

[@DiaEule]

Great review

[@spencerjones7903]

This is amazing

[@oogabooga4047]

This is a really cool way to promote your goggles 10/10 if you guys keep making good content I’ll buy the gogs just to support the content

[@whitebeltforlife5271]

This is Genius ! Just beaking into the sport... in Denver for the winter , gonna check it out...

[@oxpack]

Be cool if stagecoach did this and opened. I like the low (ish) entry costs to open a venue like this.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Totally agree.

[@Craigeek]

Sad news, Bluebird closed their doors permanently this summer.

[@nathanmark2579]

it's a cost floor, not ceiling. There almost no ceiling to speak of

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Haha, woops. This is correct.

[@boardrfolif3]

Are you able to bring a snowmobile and do laps with that?

[@breathe.move.perform.health]

So great❤

[@ry4n.bg6]

i met one of the owners of this place on a lift at copper once

[@matthewcozart7684]

Is this on private property then? Or on forest that someone permitted? And also controlled makes it sound like you control for snow safety.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

It is private land that they are leasing from the owner. They do avalanche mitigation work, but no bombing.

[@zachcrennen2342]

Why would you pay for backcountry

[@mtadams2009]

I think they explained it early in the video. It’s mostly for people new to the backcountry. This is a more controlled way to get into the backcountry.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Yep, exactly.

[@grammerpolicedeputy6913]

To have a ski patrol safety net basically

[@codybitterman9387]

Imagine hiking to still ski through someone elses tracks 🤣

[@cvn6555]

No thanks. Too much work. But you all enjoy the hell out of it.

[@atvkilla200]

So I can go here, pay money to hike and sweat my ass off to get a run or two? You guys can sell ice to Eskimos!

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Ha - no stress if it isn't your cup of tea. It can be a killer - and most importantly, safer - way to dip your toes into backcountry skiing though!

[@thatmarcusallen]

Too bad they had to close down.

[@rustyshackle917]

So... pay $40 to bc ski? Sucker born every minute I suppose.

[@kig2055]

Sweet. Now I just need to not live in……nj

[@trah_dawg]

Backcountry skiing should be hard to find. That’s the whole point. Keeps the kooks out.

[@jkruehmann]

Break down that poem. It means something

[@mountainflyhigh]

No good terrain near Steamboat? Guy has obviously never heard of Buffalo Pass.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

We have sled skied all over buff pass, that comment was in the context of having steep terrain. Which, relative to Summit, it does not.

[@ST19859]

Looks like fun terrain but a terrible business plan, no way I m paying for something I can do for free on USFS land.

[@roblo5558]

Ok so an interesting idea for sure, no shade intended but let me play devil's advocate here for a sec... Since there isn't much options for decent somewhat steeper out of bounds riding around Steamboat, doesn't this just create another money barrier to access as well as remove what used to be free backcountry access to the average person? I like the idea of working yourself safely into the backcountry setting but as if skiing/boarding wasn't an elitist thing already, now I have ppl trying to charge me to walk out into the what used to be free backcountry? And ppl wonder why the industry is in a bad place

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

There was no backcountry access here prior to Bluebird. It is private land that they are leasing. So, if anything, you now have access to more BC terrain than you did before Bluebird existed.

[@Below_Average_Nerd]

This place will be out of business in 5 years or less.

[@sebassroet817]

Unless it's free who cares. Many free mountains to skin up for free

[@dl6225]

skinning up Free mountains for free, wow genius!

[@Loganayee]

Definitely not for beginners 😂

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

Totally for backcountry beginners! That was the main idea behind the creation of Bluebird.

[@j0ndav1s]

So its like backcountry but you pay someone money? Neat... NOT!

[@dmitryshusterman9494]

It's a well known and well used place to go skinning, but now we have to pay to access the terrain? The main attraction of going Backcountry is free access. I can see the day when we'll have to pay for any convenient access to our national Forrest. Disgusting.

[@GladeOpticsTipsUp]

No. There was actually zero skinning here done before Bluebird, as it was entirely private land before Bluebird leased it and opened it to the public.