WHY OUR LITTLE TOWN IS A VILLAGE...

There’s a certain hustle and bustle that a lot of tourists from the big cities bring to Aspen, but that is not the pace at which Aspen operates. Aspen has a slower, more relaxed pace. As someone fortunate enough to live in Aspen year round, I enjoy seeing visitors adjust their attitudes upon arrival. It may take a day or two, but almost everyone adjusts to the understanding that there is more to life than an iPhone and a conference call. Almost without fail people begin to take note of their surroundings: The great outdoors. Art & culture. Life itself. In order to appreciate this, it requires a slower pace and more human connection. If “please” and “thank you” makes the world go around, the Earth orbits Aspen. There’s something special about Aspen. It takes a minute to pick up on it, but once you realize what it is, it’s hard to forget. It’s the size of a small town, and has the population of a small town, but Aspen is so much more than that. Aspen is the place where people duck into the grocery store to grab one item and instead spend 20 minutes catching up with their neighbor. Aspen is the place where people thank the bus driver as they alight. Aspen is the place where people wave at each other from across the street rather than walk on by. Aspen is the place where people from all walks of life volunteer for all causes. Aspen is a small yet strong community, within the larger community encompassing the Roaring Fork Valley. Aspen is special. People are more aware of their surroundings and more considerate of others here. People genuinely care about each other. There is a common sense of purpose – we all know, understand and respect why each of us have chosen to make Aspen our home, or at least a regular vacation destination for the family. It’s why Aspen is more than a town - it’s a village. A word of caution though - stay too long and you’ll be hooked. Ask most locals – “You come for the winter and you stay for the summer” is a common expression. “I only came for one ski season and I’ve been here [insert large number] years…” is a common story. Come visit Aspen. I’m sure your vacation here will end too soon. Don’t be surprised to find yourself making time to stop and smell the Colorado wildflowers along the way.

Farmers Market and Bluegrass on Aspen!

This week we would like to highlight two weekly events that everyone looks forward to in Aspen. For starters, there is the Aspen Farmers Market, which takes place every Saturday from 9 AM until 3 PM. The market takes place on a portion of E. Hopkins Ave. between Galena and S. Hunter. The market features all sorts of fresh Colorado produce and meats, flowers, jewelry, artisan works, and much more. The Farmers Market has been growing at an impressive clip since its inception due to its popularity with locals and visitors alike, and a growing awareness of the benefits of sourcing locally whenever possible. Strollers are treated to live music while they look around at all the wonderful goods. Fresh food is the perfect way to feed your active Aspen lifestyle! Once again, this great weekly event will be taking place every Saturday until October. Next up we would like to introduce you to Blue Grass Sundays atop Aspen Mountain. This event will take place every Sunday until September 4th from noon until 3 P.M. There is no cost for admission as this is an open air event taking place just outside the Sundeck Restaurant with sweeping views of the incredible Elk Mountains. There is a cost to ride the Gondola, though you can circumvent this expense if you are feeling ambitious, by hiking to the top and riding the Gondola down for free. In addition to the free concert, there are other activities up top, such as disk golf, euro bungee, a rock wall, an obstacle course, a sand box, and a free guided nature walk compliments of the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies. The nature walks leave every hour, on the hour, from 11 AM to 3 PM. This nature walk is 45 minutes in duration. The walk goes out on Richmond Ridge from the top of Aspen Mountain. It focuses on educating people about “the native trees, birds, and animals that thrive in the high alpine environment.” Food and beverages can be purchased at the Sundeck or you can pack some of the fresh goods you bought the day before at the Farmers Market. See you out there!

June In Aspen

Summer has arrived early in Aspen as weeks of warm temperatures and sunny skies have quickly melted the winter snowpack. June is an exceptional time to visit Aspen, especially with the weather we've been having this Spring! There are many great events taking place this June including Chili and Brew Fest, The Food and Wine Classic, and the start to the Aspen Music Festival and School’s concert season, just to name a few. At this time, we would like to profile The Chili and Brew Fest since it’s just around the corner! Chili and Brew Fest is set to take place on the weekend of June 8-9. Chili and Brew Fest is a celebration of Chili, Micro Brewed beer, and Music. This event is great for people of all ages. Though due to the fact that food will be served, festival goers are asked to leave their four-legged friends at home. Contestants from all over the country (in addition to some local hopefuls) are set to compete in a chili cook-off in both a green and red chili category, as well as a salsa category. In the same spirit of friendly competition, 30 brewers are set to compete in a summer ale competition, in addition to showcasing some of their other offerings. Festival goers are of course encouraged to sample the goods while they take in the beautiful scenery and live music. The music lineup for Friday consists of Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars at 4:30 P.M followed by The Congress at 6:00 P.M. For Saturday’s event, Galactic is set to take the stage at 1:00 P.M. followed by Gogol Bordello at 6:00 P.M. For further information, please visit www.snowmasschiliandbrew.com . We have some great early booking specials in effect for both June and the summer as a whole. To view our current early booking specials, please visit our website: www.theinnsbruck.com Thanks for reading! -The Innsbruck Staff

Spring Has Sprung

It’s always a little sad when the end of ski season is just around the corner. Although when the weather is as nice as it’s been lately it’s hard not to be excited about all of our favorite spring and summer activities. Much like the rest of the U.S.A, we have experienced a prolonged period of near record temperatures and minimal precipitation over the last few weeks. The ski conditions held up very well due to the hard work of the Aspen Skiing Company’s efforts to preserve the slopes and most reports from guests said that they had a great time and enjoyed the weather. The early start to spring has put the entire Roaring Fork Valley way ahead of schedule in terms of the breadth of outdoor recreation available. As of today a visitor of Aspen would have the option of skiing/snowboarding, road biking, mountain biking, climbing, golfing, hiking, rafting, climbing, or snowshoeing. All of Aspen’s most popular road biking destinations are completely clear and as you can imagine, they are not busy compared to peak season. Reports from local fishing enthusiasts say that the fishing is excellent from Carbondale to Aspen, and beyond. In fact, while writing this post, our mail carrier, Gary, just informed us that he caught 6 nice fish yesterday in an hour and a half on the Roaring Fork River just outside of Aspen. As far as mountain biking goes, all the popular rides in Basalt and Carbondale are completely dry and in great shape. Many of the popular mountain bike rides in Aspen are still snow covered or too muddy to ride, though many people have been riding up Smuggler and a ways beyond just to get a good workout. For all the hikers out there, both Sunnyside and Smuggler are completely dry. We need to do some more reconnaissance to be sure, but we guess that Sunnyside may possibly be dry up to four corners which is a fantastic hike that’s not usually useable until mid to late May. As previously stated it’s always sad to see winter leave a ski town, though now we have other fun activities to look forward to. There is a reason that there is a saying in town the many locals “came for the winter, but stayed for the summers.”

Highlands Bowl

The Bowl at Aspen Highlands provides what is unquestionably one of the best “in bounds” riding experiences in the world. We have talked to guests who are lucky enough to have skied all over the world who have said that the bowl provided one of their most memorable skiing or riding experiences. As many of you know already, the bowl is only accessible by hiking, and it’s not a particularly easy one at that. There is a snow cat available to get you past the first part of the hike, which would save on average 15 minutes or so of hiking. This still leaves you with about 30-45 minutes of high-altitude hiking in ski or snowboard boots. The hike itself discourages enough people from making the trek that the bowl is always the least “bumped out” part of all of Aspen’s four mountains. The bowl also usually gets more snowfall than other parts of the mountains both because of its elevation and also because, well, it’s a bowl. As a bowl, it has wide range of aspects which will usually mean that at least one area in the bowl is “wind loaded” meaning much more snow has built up than the ski report would indicate. When you combine the low traffic with high snowfall, the bowl almost always impresses anyone who gets to ride it. If the snow is good on other parts of the mountain, it’s great in the bowl. What is most important about the bowl, however, is the incredible amount of work that goes into making it a safe adventure. It essentially provides a back country experience without the significant risk involved with back country riding. As soon as there is a foot or more of snow, Highlands ski patrol along with an army of volunteers literally walk up and down the bowl to boot pack the early season snow. This helps create stable layers of snow that serve to mitigate what would otherwise be very dangerous avalanche conditions. Then, throughout the season, the ski patrol spends lots of time and money on the bowl to make sure it’s safe. They continually boot pack, cut the snow into zig zag patterns to decrease the size of a potential slide, and bomb fresh snow causing it to slide under controlled conditions. It’s pretty incredible that the bowl offers powder skiing on 40+ degree slopes while keeping the risk of an avalanche exceptionally low. Hiking the bowl is not for everyone. But for those who are ready and able it provides great memories, lasting motivation to stay in peak condition, and perhaps the best run of their life.

Winter X-Games 2012

Today is the first official day of the 2012 Winter X-Games in Aspen Colorado! Much like years past X-Games are set to bring snow to the mountains of Aspen as we have 7-10” of snow in the forecast for Thursday night through mid-morning on Friday. As always, the various courses and obstacles, from Superpipe and Slopestyle to the snowmobile courses are incredibly impressive, even from as far away as the highway. The entertainment factor and energy of the X-Games is through the roof. But what separates it from other more conventional sporting events is the guarantee that at least one athlete will set a new standard in their said sport, which in turn makes their competitors react so that they are able to stay competitive. This is perhaps why every year we all ask “what will they do next?” This year’s events of course have a special meaning and unusual gravity in comparison to years past due to the untimely and tragic passing of one of the biggest icons in the skiing industry, Sarah Burke. Her legacy will be honored throughout the weekend. To view the schedule of the weekend’s events, go to: http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/entertainment .
Another aspect of the X-Games that adds to the excitement of the weekend is music. This weekend at The Bellyup, which is Aspen’s premier live music venue, big acts such as Nas, Deadmau5, The All American Rejects, and Sebastian Ingrosso will all be putting on performances. In addition to these concerts, Awolnation will be putting on a free concert at the base of Aspen Mountain on Saturday, January 28th at 5:30 PM. The concert is timed so as not to conflict with any X-Games events. All in all it should be a great weekend!

Aspen: More Than Just Skiing

While Aspen is best known for its ski slopes, what truly distinguishes it from other ski resorts is its historic town and abundance of things to do if one decides they need a day off from skiing or snowboarding. Even the most dedicated skier or boarder will need a day off from time to time. Fear not! Aspen has plenty of great activities both cultural and physical, that don’t involve buying a lift ticket (yes, even in the winter). There is of course always the option of perusing Aspen’s famous shopping scene, or eating at one of the many world class restaurants, or checking out one of the many art galleries. But for those of you that still want to experience the great outdoors on your day off from the slopes, opportunities abound. Believe it or not, winter is a favorite time of year for dedicated anglers. Not only is the fishing still fantastic, but crowds are nearly non-existent. While the cold can be a challenge, the right equipment and proper guidance can make winter Fly Fishing a very pleasant experience. Much like Fly Fishing, people think of Aspen’s hiking trails as a strictly warm weather pursuit. What many don’t realize is that with a good pair of boots and stabilizers, or some snowshoes, most of Aspen’s most popular hiking trails lend themselves well to winter hiking. There is nothing quite like watching a winter sunrise over Aspen from your favorite hiking trail! Aspen has quickly become well known for the miles and miles of free Nordic skiing trails. From the impeccably maintained municipal golf course and Rio Grande trails, to the back-country, Aspen has something to offer for all levels of Nordic skiers. If your body truly needs a rest, yet you still want to get outside, Snowmobile tours with the T-Lazy 7 ranch are a great option. These tours will take you through the stunning Maroon Creek valley just outside of Aspen. Another popular activity is to take a guided snowshoe tour with the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies. These tours depart from the summit of Aspen Mountain every day at 10:00 and 1:00 pm. The two hour tour costs $57 for adults, $45 for youths (13-27) and $35 for children (7-12) and seniors (65+). This ticket price includes the gondola ride to the top and back, beautiful scenery, snowshoes, a knowledgeable guide, and basic snowshoe instruction. Not only are these tours an invigorating way to experience the outdoors, they are also very informative. Guides with The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies are trained educators equipped with a vast knowledge of local geographic history, wildlife, and human history. So as you can see, Aspen has a lot more to offer than lift-serviced skiing!