I read somewhere that the Forest Service originally planned to tear it down, but a group of locals got involved. Unless someone gets lifts running again, it's now a zone for backcountry exploring. Any day outside with my husband is a good day, yanno? Not for beginners. } It was early on a Saturday and the two of us were on the side of Georgetowns Guanella Pass somewhere between Highway 285 and the 11,670-foot summit. I joined the Ski Team when I was a freshman at Platte Canyon High school. Laden down with packs full of backcountry skiing gear and calorie-dense snacks, we focused on our singular objective: find Geneva Basin. "Forest Service Promoting More Ski Areas", "Aspen ski complex leads state in visits last winter", "Colorado's 'lost ski areas' offer skiers the best beginner backcountry", "This is Colorado's most famous abandoned ski area", Geneva Basin Ski Area - Colorado Ski History, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Geneva_Basin_Ski_Area&oldid=1117202773, Buildings and structures in Clear Creek County, Colorado, Buildings and structures in Park County, Colorado, Defunct ski areas and resorts in Colorado, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 20 October 2022, at 13:02. This is where you will begin touring. Eventually, Will and I noticed the sun dipping lower on the horizon and knew we needed to get back. Users can sleep in it if they want, but it is kinda dirty. CDL Drivers $25-$27 per, Seeking a full-time Computer Support Technician to join our IT Department! The location, topography, and nearby roads & trails around Geneva Basin Ski Area (Locale) can be seen in the map layers above. And when I told my mom about it, she asked me if it was worth it, all that work for a single downhill run. The investors had financial troubles and were not able to pay for the completion of the chairlift, so neither the lift's drive unit nor chairs were installed. [7] The ski area was sold to an investment group based in Kansas in 1972 and the T-bar was replaced with a Heron Poma double chair in 1974.[8]. At its opening, it had a double chair and a T-bar with two Poma lifts installed soon after.. This route takes the road the whole way for . Instead of scrapping the trip, however, we opted to wake up SUPER early on Sunday to skin into the base, run a lap, and ski back out. Knowing []. Geneva Basin Ski Area - AnyPlaceAmerica.com The group ran in to financial trouble and was not able topay Borvig for the completion the of chairlift. ASK US ABOUT OUR ALTERNATIVE LICENSURE PROGRAM! Danny and Rachel skied back down to begin tearing down their camp while Will and I pulled a couple chairs out on the deck and basked in the sunshine {maybe a bit too much. We ended up skinning/skiing 11 miles with a couple thousand feet of gain, which was definitely a big day. I had hot spots and blisters all over the place, and Geneva Basin was nowhere in sight. The results of that election were widely against the tax basedreopening the ski area by a margin of over 2:1. The town sits at the headwaters of Geneva Creek within the Geneva Basin area of the Pike National Forest. Quite the process. My chest heaved with exertion as I slid one ski in front of the other. Cant wait to read it thank you so much for writing a guide! Hazardous terrain. Located around 12,000 feet above sea level in Colorado, near Guanella Pass, is a small ghost town only accessible by a rugged road called Geneva City. Geneva Basin Ski Area Map - Colorado, United States - Mapcarta From Grant, look for signs on the right-hand side that indicate Guanella Pass. Kiszla: Avs embarrass themselves with silence about Valeri Nichushkin's mysterious absence following reported 9-1-1 call. The abandoned ski area is strictly off-limits to the public, but you can take a fascinating look at what it looks like today below: However, another abandoned ski resort in our great state has a far different story. Once we passed the snowplow in my old 44 truck but eventually got stuck just over the pass and had to wait for the plow. Open: 23, New (24 hr): N/A" | Base: 85" Gallery Credit: Nate Wilde Google Maps Location As you can see, the resort was situated just south of Georgetown, Colorado. Open: 1, New (24 hr): N/A" | Base: 32" Originally dubbed Indianhead Ski Area, Geneva Basin is easily Colorado's most famous abandoned ski resort. After all, we still had the four miles of road. Description. Originally dubbed Indianhead Ski Area, Geneva Basin is easily Colorado's most famous abandoned ski resort. Geneva Basin failed to open that year due to money reasons. The skiing was always good, no crowds, OK food and left tickets not expensive. I just wanted to let you know you made me smile with the amazing memories I have about the best ski area that existed! The skiarea went into foreclosure in 1965 and the Burke family and former Colorado governorRoy Romer purchased the area at an auction. Now 73, Im a little disinclined to brave the bumps and turn my ski-tips straight down. This is Colorado's most famous abandoned ski area -552.43 m Descent, 1.1 mi Eventually, the road had a light covering of the white stuff, so we decided it was time to skin up. [13] It was defeated by a margin of 2:1. This group had grandplans of reviving the ski area. 10 Most Haunted Hotels in Ski Country, Mapped, The Real-Life Shining Hotel is Getting a Real-Life Hedge Maze, Crested Butte: The Most Haunted Ski Town in America. applink.href = 'https://apps.apple.com/us/app/craig-press/id1071364241'; The main chair lift at Geneva was diesel powered and if someone fell getting on the lift, a stop button killed the engine so the lift operator had to climb up a ladder, go inside a top enclosure and restart the engine. Kevin Durant moped. Learn how your comment data is processed. Few obstacles. Geneva Basin, Colorado In the 1960s, a man named Ed Guanella was decapitated while building a chairlift at Colorado's now-defunct Geneva Basin Ski Area. We logged roughly 11 miles round-trip. Geneva Basin Ski Resort Colorado - Bing Maps What Happened to Colorado's Ghost Resorts? - Ski Federation