Monarch - best season ever

Monarch Mountain, which closed for the season Sunday, has benefited nicely from the poor snow at Colorado’s Front Range resorts this winter. The ski area says 2009-10 was its best ever.

From the AP:

Monarch Mountain expects to end its ski season Sunday with a record for skier visits.

Spokesman Eric Ramsey said Friday that the resort should finish with around 183,000 skier visits, which would top the high of 176,000 from two seasons ago.

Eldora Mountain Resort also ends the season Sunday and expects visits to be up from last year, but it’s not releasing exact numbers.

Both resorts bill themselves as smaller, more affordable areas not far from large cities. During the poor economy last season, those resorts tended to fare better nationally. Eldora is near Boulder and Monarch is west of Colorado Springs.

The season is still going for several Colorado resorts. Arapahoe Basin is trying to stay open until June.

For more of the best stuff ever, visit the Gazette's Out There blog