The world is a different place than it was 40 years ago, and so is skiing. The small mountain town with snow as its lifeblood has, in so many places, mutated into a real estate opportunity, or a shopping mall, or an amusement park. Or it’s simply a resort. One that looks like a functioning town, but it so stratospherically expensive, it’s effectively a gated community, with the gate being made from money. So, is that the ski town of today – unaffordable, slick and packaged and marketed? Can town be all of these things and still feel like the place that puts skiing and snowboarding above all else, that still feels authentic? And if so, where are they?
Ski towns have been selling out for decades. This time it was for beer
There definitely are, and I know exactly where they’re at… But guess what? I’m not disclosing. It’s absolutely ridiculous that lift ticket prices have reached $200+ at CO and Cali resorts. This is not only price gauging, but also completely unethical business practice… What goes around, comes around, and the $ hungry schlubs that have have pathetically raised lift ticket prices to ab unaffordable cost (to an average American) will get there’s in the end.
Still some ski towns but no cheap ones anymore.
Nelson, British Columbia is less than 10 miles from Whitewater. The area is great skiing with lots of snow and Nelson is a real town
Nelson “was” a great original but has tragically been infiltrated by douchy trust fund hipsters. Gone for good.
Lived 10 years in Nelson area in the 1980s. At the time there was a recession. In Nelson I met a newbie fella, just retreated from Toronto area. He cashed out of Toronto, settled in Nelson (sure can’t blame him) and he bought 5 homes. Proceeded to reno and rent them.
True, Nelson has changed a lot, and not just in the past decade.
See, he smartly ‘delayed gratifcation’ for ten years before making his move, which enabled him to live largely a stress-free life (well, as stress-free as being a landlord in highly tenant-friendly BC can be). Hope he’s had a great run over there!
Authentic or not, they are always striving for a buck…they have to
No worries, it’s just three days.
A few years from now there won’t be any snow so those towns will need to reinvent themselves. Good luck with that.
Haha what?
Half a million dollars is real money…. but bud light sucks.
Lol. What a hoot. Complaining about how ski towns have sold out to money, and where are the authentic ones…if you pay for a subscription!!
Best subscription you can buy. The sub might feel expensive but just like asking if you would like to be living in a ski town, the only answer is “Shut up and take my money!”
Time for a reset, that’s for sure.
depends on your definition of “real”
Crystal Mountain, WA 😉
Also owned by Boyne 🙂
http://www.boyneresorts.com/crystal-mountain
Crystal mountains lifts are owned by alterra the village facilities are owned by Crystal mountain hotels Crystal mountain that is owned by Boyne is in Michigan morons. I see you’re all serious skiers here.
Hey Al, Boyne doesn’t even own the Crystal Mountain back east. Serious skier, Huh?
Ay mister al tahoe. Before you start being a douche, look at when that comment was posted. 2014. Before Crystal was bought. So take it easy. Its just skiing.
Amen sister enjoy the turn and live for the day
Best laugh I’ve had all day!
How is Crystal Mountain a ski town? They have 1 bar, the snorting elk, and 1 hotel at the base.
Ohh Crystal… Boyne, destroying skiing one mountain at a time.
Unfortunately not, even my ski town of Big Sky, MT is owned by Boyne. Become stewards of the land and get into the backcountry (safely and responsibly).
I should actually thank Ms. Kircher for being the last straw in getting out to the backcountry almost exclusively. No more of my $ is going to boyne
Chris, I started to plan a trip to Big Sky in 2020(Feb). When I discovered that the rooms started at $300/ night and lift tickets were about $200/day I said NO. Mind you I could afford these #’s but refuse to be taken advantage of.
PS I also no that fixed overhead must be expensive………………but maybe they invested toooooo much?
Sell out ski towns are for sell out skiers. The real spots will always be kept somewhat secret .
PNW….
Lulz – sarcasm, amiright?
Ski colorado its the best!!!
Bud light – can it really be called beer?
Let’s hope so!
They’re out there somewhere.
Revelstoke, Nelson, Rossy, Fernie, Golden……even a place like Whistler still has heart.
Whistler?! Ha ha ha ha ha.. Revelstoke has got almost as far up it’s own ass.. the others hanging in there but doubt much longer – I can only pray for WW..
They still exist, but nobody is speaking.
A half million “donation” is pretty nice for a town like that though, I get why they did it.
Bud light?
hmmm…. 500K goes a long way….
Like all the best single track, the best surf sets, and best fishing holes, we never tell them everything. Let the pompous East Coast blowhards think they’ve discovered Nirvana when all they have is an overpriced simulacrum of their corporatized souls.
Nope
hmmmmm
i like skiing!
Whatevs. I just like to ski with friends and not wait in lift lines too long.
and your whatev’s will mean that you’ll wait in line longer with the rest of the plebs while the primo fast-pass holders cut in line, lap the chair then cut in again..
Maybe in the summer, but not in the winter…..
I love Crested Butte and would like to stay the way it is. Hopefully this isn’t a trend that will continue.
This didn’t age well…
Very poorly.
There are lots of great ski towns left they are just not near major resorts, they’re near the two chair local hills or the co-op owned bigger places. Bridger, Baker, Whitewater, Mt. Cain, etc.
My favorite part of skiing is the mountains + snow.
Who needs a ski “town”?
just need to know where to look.
well… if someone gave me 500k to change my name for 3 days, i might do it. so i try not to judge.
How much integrity do they really lose by doing this? $500,000 worth? I don’t think so.
I can hate on Bud Light as much as the next guy, but if that cool half-mil goes to helping the community in some way, then – whatever – take the money and run.
The people who are gonna bitch about this being a ‘sell-out’? I wouldn’t wanna ski with them anyways.
Sure, there’s real ski towns left – but it’s not about the town – it’s about finding that core community in ANY ski town.
Lots of little ski towns left in BC.
How about temporary ski towns comprised of camper vans and trucks dirtbaggin it around all winter?
There is more to Crested Butte than Elk Ave. Filling the town mall with Bud Lite and “spring breakers” for a weekend won’t change the town.
My friend was in Gunnison this weekend, thought maybe dinner in CB would be nice. Got there saw the mess, turned around and drove back to Gunny to spend his money.
Of course! But since we don’t want beer companies invading, they’ll stay a secret.
I would let my town do that if it was Heineken or something that isn’t Bud Light
They exist, you just have to find them.
The 1200 people flown in for the ad are having trouble getting out due to the small sized regional airport… I feel for them.
there’s a few around depending on the month.
Since the 70’s, the great lost ski town has been a myth created and perpetuated by marketing and movies.
Not in Colorado…*
But that’s nothing new.
*Silverton? Maybe, but they ran Montanya out of town to: Crested Butte.
At least it was for an American beer company…oh wait
Any town near a big hill should qualify as “real”. It is was you make it
Bud Light…When you want a beer real bad, they have a really bad beer.
Whether you’re a ski town or not only matters to the people that live there. If they “sell out” to fund what they consider to be important to their community then so be it. It all skis the same to me. I come, I ski, I leave.
Real ski towns have become secret ski towns to keep the media and public eye away. You have to know where they are in order to visit. Not a place to just stumble upon.
maybe
Perhaps…
its a shame but its all about the benjamins here in the US
there are TONS of real ski/ride towns around the world.
They just don’t waste their money on stuff like hi speed lifts, grooming, or (fer facks sake!) marketing. The people in these towns go about their life without worrying if you know about how great the skiing is there, and definitely not needing your tourist/real-estate dollars to continue on living the way they want.
Any town linked to a resort with a marketing budget, or that needs skier-day-visit growth year over year to survive, is definitely NOT a Real Ski Town ™.
True.
Tupper Lake, NY
I love Bridger Mountain!
Maybe, But Bozeman has become a soal-less hipster haven. Bozeman has totally lost it mojo. .
Sure there are. Try telling all the dirtbags out there skiing every day, sharing a bedroom with 4 other guys, and living on Ramen that their town isn’t a ski town.
Bud Light?
Hardly in the Stated, yes in other places
Taos, New Mexico
I just want to ski and not be surrounded by douche bags.
Totally agree with you there. Seems what is happening here in Whitefish.
B-town homeslices
You have to go to British Columba, and not whistler…
I think that Russian place that held the last Olympics will make a pretty good ski town now that everyone has left. Might be some sweet squats though you’ll have to bribe the guards. All joking aside, welcome to Fernie, Rossland, Revy, Golden, Nelson, heck, there’s even a good ski scene in those Okanagan cities, too. Let’s not get hung up on semantics and all love each other, eh?
wherever the best local bar is where locals gather.
where people say things like “left of the trees”
and never say things like “double black diamond”
still searching
If it has $100+ dollar lift tickets, its ruined… but I guess it depends on what youre looking for
Yeeeesh….
Head to British Columbia.
Yes, and it is the mountain I go to. The town is a sleepy lumber town and almost depressing. The mountain is great and the people that do live there are about as authentic as you can get. The unfortunate part is there really are few jobs and it’s mostly logging which has it’s own problems. This is the age old dilemma of these towns. There is another town close by which does have a “destination” mountain and the town around it has tried to be more “Hip” but you can see by all the businesses that come and go it’s really not making a very good go of it either. We’re probably too far from a major population center and that suits me just fine.
Seems like a steal!
And maybe Europe
who knows…
They still exist in small little isolated towns
Revelstoke bc
Ha ha ha ha ha.. Revy is just Whistler Lite now
I know of a couple with no resorts, no lifts. They just have the straight goods- lots of powder and good beer at the bottom.
Get out and play, commerialized town or not the freedom of the hills is awaiting us all.
Lots of ski towns in Illinois.
Crested Butte sells out out Bud Light…how funny. What a cheap date she was.
This is depressing on many levels.
They are out there, but are under the radar.
Ski bums who become Realtors are the people who ruin ski towns.
Bud light sucks hence the need for never ending marketing. A town with a ski area minus the glitz and fritz equals awesome.
I assume they exist. On remote and mediocre hills.
Im just commenting to win the glasses
yes … I have to believe that it’s a ‘yes’ still
for 500k i would have sex with a man, and he could call me whatever he wanted for 3 days. “ski towns” are for the movies. its the people that make the town, the ones that live and work there year round.
Moving to Canada…
They’re out there. Few and far between.
I only wish there were more!
Luv skiing
not that I’ve found…
Any town is what you make it. Deal with the BS as you can and get on the slopes. But, Bud Light does suck.
It has been a while since I’ve seen a real ski town. Maybe Canada still has a few.
As long as the focus is Nordic not downhill, there are lots of them. Once you need to shell out hundreds for a day of skiing, the big money follows and it’s over.
Look beyond what gets written in the ski rags….even the “hidden gems” listings are places on the real estate-resort-corporate maps.
I live across the border from Lake Placid, store front there is selling for 1.5 million. Seems like everywhere things are less about the mountains and more about the money.
I’ve only been to a couple of US and Canadian ski villages, and I always wondered why the overall feeling is so different compared to the villages in Europe, where you can still smell the sheeps and cows every morning.
A village like Crested Butte just sold it’s heart out. Unbelievable what a company can do these days!
What about ski towns on a Res?
I just show up for the white stuff.
Excuse me, Bartender, can I have a glass with ice for my Bud Light? Need to water it down a little bit. Thaaaaanks
A few, but if your not living in your van it doesn’t count.
Stay true guys
Must increase profits!! But yes, there are plenty of ‘real ski towns’ out there. You’ll probably have to drive 4-6 hours from any major airport tho.
Plenty of real ski towns out there, you just won’t find any ski resorts within a hundred miles. Just mountains, snow, and good people………..
Even Retallack was sold out. CB the town used to be separate from CB the ski area. After Whatever I don’t think that is the case anymore.
Budweiser gives CB $500k, then turns around and spends MILLIONS of dollars on horrible ads for Whatever, USA. Whomever was negotiating for CB needs to be fired.
@David B, maybe Tupper Lake as it stands today. I wouldn’t call the planned resort at Tupper a real ski town though…
New England Backcountry. “Real”, hard, and elusive.
Seems like they could have gotten at least a million. Have to admit, it was a good promotion.
Being a resident of Crested Butte, this town did not sell its’ soul. That’s freakin ridiculous. This was a temporary event, that everyone had a fun time at. I can almost guarantee you will not see a single bud light tap at any bar in town nor will you see any advocating for bud light past this weekend. If Coors or PBR came in and did a similar event would there be all this backlash? Probably not. Just because Bud Light carries a negative stigma that is not consistent with skiing/mountain culture does not mean we sold out. In a small community such as CB 500k can go a long way. There are still no chain stores, restaurants, nor stop lights. The sense of community is unlike anywhere I’ve ever been. It’s when we have a McDonalds, Starbucks, Wal-Mart will the town sell its’ soul.
I doubt it.
As the saying goes: the only ones who could afford to stay in those great old ski towns were the same ones everyone else hoped would leave – realtors, slumlords, and trustafarians. Go find a place where the lifts turned to rust (or better yet, never went in) and set a track to the summit. I’ll be right behind til the end 😉
Not really. Maybe a town in colorado that also has a mtb museum. Shhh…. If you don’t know don’t go.
P.S. Bud Light sucks!
Well I know KSL is killing Squaw Valley, thats for sure.
Alleghe!
had a former boss from Crested Butte, don’t know if he’s rolling over in his grave though…he always took the cash
I think, there are still “undiscovered” gems of ski towns out there, but once they are discovered they will likely lose that soul they once had. I don’t know if that’s avoidable though? Do we change our ideas about what an authentic ski town is, or just remember the good ol’ days?
I think a ski town is whatever you think it should be and you’ll find it somewhere- and they will have bud light.
Carrabbasett Valley, Maine! (Sugarloaf).
Yes. Rossland BC. SSH.
Sure, up in NH’s White Mountains
A. Stop with the beer elitism. Just because a beer you like is brewed in smaller batches doesn’t mean it’s better beer. Such a tired cliche. What’s next, 26 inch mountain bikes suck? Please.
B. Can’t have it both ways, kids. Ski towns are responding to the marketplace. Guess what? You’re not the only folks who enjoy time in the mountains in winter. Hate lifts? Convenience? Nearby restaurants? Well, older folks who ski don’t. Try telling a 65-year-old guy who’s been skiing for 50 years he has to “earn his turns” to be considered legitimate. Do what makes you happy, but don’t think you’re not part of the corporate machine.
I don’t know if there are any ski towns left or not, but I know the ones I go to every winter with a bunch of friends always make for a damn good time. If there’s powder to be had, who cares what’s at the bottom?
Would there be such an outcry if PBR had paid the town?
We still have some here in MT. Big Sky not included, which has great terrain but no soul and is full of east coasters. But, it’s cold enough in the winter and remote enough that most people from the urban areas just can’t take it. That leaves the low key operations and at times amazing skiing to the rest of us.
yes, and they’re in the middle of Montana
There are authentic ski towns still around, but they are not necessarily connected to resorts or lifts. Authentic skiing/boarding as a lifestyle and culture are counter to the disneylandification of most resort towns. The authenticity is found in the peripheral towns and in the backcountry.
Ski towns have become mt bike and paddling and climbing and trail running towns – no?
An unexpected midweek powder day in the most marketed, overcrowded ski town still feels authentic when you open the mountain with like minded enthusiasts.
Where there’s snow, there’s skiing.
I truly feel there are still Real Ski Towns, but they are only located up here in the Big Sky State (mt)!…Bud Light don’t come throwing your money around, we’re not interested! Cheers!
McCall, Idaho. Brundage is a nice chill mountain, good snow, and affordable day passes.
shhhhh
Clyde Park, MT: CHECK IT OUT
Wyoming! But not many people agree.
I live in one. Left the Wasatch for it. I can spend a whole day in the backcountry and never cross another track. It is in the US of A but not near any major airport. 500+ inches a year of super dry stuff. Anyone who lives here is here for a reason, and none of us are expecting to get rich. There are dudes that buck hay in the mornin then hit the hill before most people are even awake.
Is skiing the same as it was in the 70’s? Ski culture? Is anything? Things change. And thanks to capitalism etc most of the ski towns have lost their magnetism (for true spirited outdoorsman, skiers, bums, etc). But some have managed to keep it, albeit changed. And then you have the towns no one thought much of 30 years ago,now they have a magnetism. With global warming, Canada was looking like a better choice anyway…
they’re best kept secret
No secrets left, blame the internet
The Powder Highway is the place and towns full of character and characters…like Fernie, Rossland, Golden and Nelson to name a few
as long as there are dirtbags there will be ski towns. The good ones/authentic ones, are not the hyped up real estate, $50 steak, rich and famous type scenarios, but the salt of earth, let’s go for a rip type places, which usually don’t lend themselves to big resort money. That being said the big resort scene has its own rewards unfortunately the bill is steep.
any place there is snow can be a ski town
yes,
But theyre all in new england
If there are, may they have the good sense to not talk about it.
#nothingtoseehere
Being a dirt bag ski bum is no different now than it was before, sleep on couches, buy a pass, work night/summers.
I think the glamour is gone as prices have gone up and everything gentrified.
There are other sports where being a dirt bag is easier, like hiking, biking, and kayaking.
Skiing has always been a boutique sport if you based out of a resort
In NE Oregon there is a little historic ski hill for sale “Spout Springs” hasnt been open for 5 years…someone has a million $ its theirs…please someone
Davis, West Virginia. Gateway to Canaan Valley, Timberline, and the world class XC White Grass. Keeping it real in the mountain state…
Davis is definitely trying it’s best, but there is a lot of money moving in these days trying to change it!
Everyone knows it doesn’t snow in Davis anymore…
Haven’t skied there, but Davis is a dream in the fall.
If you know of one don’t say a word… or it too will be gone!
What town is pictured?
Also, I like Park City Utah.
I’ve a sense it’s Crested Butte, though I’ve only been there twice, many years ago.
Driggs, Dreggs, Drugs — pretty good back in the 1970s.
Cheap rent, chill life. Fresh milk by the gallon at the neighbouring farm.
Nearby Grand Targhee had a cheap pass, no line-ups, high-quality snow. So much snow that the ski hill closed in May.
Hey — and a bar in the neighbouring town of Tetonia.
Overall, Driggs had what I was looking for.
Gotta say, in my 30s, I had damn good taste back in the day.
I agree, Nelson’s a fun town with good-to-great skiing nearby (Whitewater, Red Mtn, and many back-county opportunities).
I was at The Ghee in 1975 for a week and none of us could ski it! We wanted PACKED (as in ‘groomed’) runs. It was the last week of operation and we were the only people staying there, from what I recall. Three of us moving west, having just graduated out of Waterloo; and two headed back east, having completed work terms in Calgary. God, I miss the 70s. Though weirdly, I thought the future would be better than it has been.
right Steven.
Lots of people stayed away from the Ghee because they couldn’t handle the deep pow. Many mainstream tourist skiers had not heard of the Ghee. That was part of the -no lift line- advantage.
Late 70s, the Ghee banned tele skiers,,, indeed most were shaggy hippies, might scare the city tourists.
At that time, not many tele skiers were highly skilled, so some tourists might get knocked down in the fun.
Some lifties were local ranchers, getting winter work. They wore bovine-person boots with those pointy rubbers on the soles. They weren’t overly impressed with hippy ski aficionados.
Sometimes we’d go slummin – over the Teton Pass to the Stagecoach Bar in Wilson.
Skied the Teton Pass some of my first (awkward) tele turns. 3 cars in the Teton Pass parking lot.
The problem with being a ski bum is that you’re focused on living life in the present, and everyone else is looking to the future. 20 years later, you’re left wondering ‘what the hell happened?’ “It’s OK to live the dream but make sure you know when it’s time to wake up.”
I like this response. Makes me ponder the ‘Do What You Love’ crowd of trust-a-farians who preach how all of ‘us’ should live (while they ask for endless handouts). Best blend of ski-bum stoke? Move somewhere you can have a career AND volunteer or ‘work’ part-time on the mountain.
Steven, I considered myself a traveller, though I skied each winter. Maybe 30 days downhill and a dozen days in the backcountry.
I’m glad I took off 15 years during my 30s and 40s.
Ya ya, later I settled returned to school, became a Forester, and fell into some middle-class habits. I’ve paid my dues. In retirement for 10 years, I continue to volunteer my expertise with a focus on biodiversity conservation.
Similar to small cozy ski towns in Switzerland – look for a town far from an airport/major highways, without chain hotels, or high-rise hotels, and a ski area that lacks high speed quads or gondolas.
Those were a lot of comments! Maybe Sipapu in New Mexico qualifies, tiny but a little like skiing in the 60s. For that matter Red River north of there, it still has that feel too.
Smuggler’s Notch in Jeffersonville, VT. It is still independently owned. Though it does have a family-centered resort, the town of Jeffersonville has local artist shops, distilleries, wineries, breweries, and restaurants. The housing is affordable (homes less than $300k with acreage), and is a 45 minute drive to Burlington. Though Stowe is massively commercialized (which is on the flip side of the mountain), Smuggs remains quaint with lots of local events like bonfires and fireworks. It is AMAZING!!!
i miss home…villamarksauna and the 80″s…doc dempseys was the top of the game
also the Brewster River Yacht Club!!!
This comment should start a fire. Whistler is the only ski town. Every other “ski town” started as town and then built a ski area. Whistler started as a ski area and built a town.
Ken: GOOD ONE! Yes… and not quite. The Resort Muni of Whistler (and Whistler Village) was purpose built ‘for’ VISITING skiers, primarily. (Of course, locals benefited greatly from the enormous choice of restaurants, shopping, services). Though few visitors would notice, the ‘town’ is far more scattered across Creekside, Village North, Nester’s etc. Here’s my yardstick and I think it’s a good one: the Pique Newsmagazine has the best letters to the editor section I’ve seen anywhere. Impassioned long time locals and wide-eyed newcomers thankful that their dog was found (to use an example) are given the perfect forum for debating ideas and policies. And it’s more than a ski town (which is a good thing) – that Audain Gallery and the SLCC knock my socks off. If I had the dough, I’d have a condo in one of those places overlooking the main plaza, which is always buzzing with activity, and you can pop out the door and catch a lift up either great mountain. Chalk one up for Whistler, Ken!
Uh, it was a logging village, before it was a ski village.
The first runs were logged with no thought of fall-line skiing. Well, heck they had Jim McConkey to build excitement.
When Blackcomb was developed, it hired AspenCorp experts to lay out runs and lifts with the fall lines (and skiers) in mind.
At that point Whistler Mountain had to up its game and improve their runs, altering runs from (numerous) side-hill runs to fall line ski runs.
Yes, there are….
But, ummm- there won’t be If we tell.
We aren’t telling.
* silence*
Is Golden.
If there are (and there are), we certainly shouldn’t be blasting them out here. As Gandalf once said: “Keep it secret; keep it safe.”
Drinking coffee in Leadville Colorado. Historic main Street snd little elsewhere!
The stoke is high, will brush off the new snow on the car and hit one of many resorts. But it’s only November 4, so limited until Vail and others open the 12th. $40/night newly remodeled airbnb.
YES, to Leadville.
If you’re gonna ski back-country, there are lots of towns that aren’t on this list.
Ever been to New Denver or Ymir, BC?
Don’t miss the Ymir Hotel. Winter or summer. Google Ymir Hotel British Columbia
Europe has retained the real ski town, and while that does have its own affordability gate around it, that gate is far lower than anything in the United States.
Count Sun Valley out for sure