Monarch Mountain

Monarch Mountain is a ski area on Monarch Pass at the Continental Divide in central Colorado, west of Salida on U.S. Highway 50. It grew from local effort in the 1930s, when James Kane and the Salida Winter Sports Club built a 500-foot rope tow that opened officially in 1939. The original machinery cabin and pulley still survive from those beginnings. Its early expert run, Gunbarrel, gained a formidable reputation as Bloody Ridge. During its first full season, federal funding and a U.S. Forest Service permit supported added trails, a lodge, and another tow. The resort has since expanded to dozens of trails, terrain parks, cat skiing, and approved growth into No Name Basin.

Colorado · United States