Aspen in Summer: High-Altitude Fun at Down-to-Earth Prices
by DAVE PEARSON
What do you visualize when you hear “Aspen, Colorado?” Soaring peaks and equally high prices? Toned bodies and toney fashions? Say “Aspen” and many minds conjure up a mega-resort for the rich and richer nestled somewhere in Colorado’s mountains. For much of the year, that definition holds true. Aspen is, indeed, sometimes a glitzy place full of glamorous people. It wasn’t always that way—and truth be told—it isn’t always that way even now. Warmer weather brings a different attitude to this high altitude playground.
Summer has always meant vast cultural offerings and recreational opportunities in a place that was created to be a utopian community in the heady days after World War II. Back then, Chicago businessman Walter Paepcke envisioned a cultural enclave amid inspiring scenery. In addition to starting the Aspen Skiing Company (the forerunner of today’s fashionable Aspen and Snowmass resorts), he founded the Aspen Institute by inviting intellectual luminaries such as Albert Schweitzer, Artur Rubinstein and Thornton Wilder to a celebration of German author and philosopher Johann von Wolfgang Goethe’s 200th birthday. Soon the emergence of the Aspen Music Festival and School made the town a year-round international destination for recreation, arts, business and intellectual discourse.
Aspen quickly became the playground for the rich and famous. Suffice it to say, the name Aspen has the ring of money to it. For good cause. Since Paepcke’s day, property values have grown as lofty as the scenic summits. Hollywood A-listers and business titans continue to seek winter refuge here. Through the years, it has attracted the likes of the late pop singer John Denver, who wrote Rocky Mountain High about the place, and gonzo-journalist Hunter A. Thompson, who found his own brand of mountaintop inspiration just outside the town. These are the slopes where Donald Trump’s first wife, Ivana, once squared off with soon-to-be, second-wife Marla Maples and current part-time residents Jack Nicholson, Kevin Costner, Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones seek solace. Yet, while you might glimpse a celeb or two in the summer, be assured, you don’t need a fat wallet to have fun.
When the days grow long, lodging rates can dive by as much as 50% (and sometimes more). Rooms that cost $350 during ski season are offered for $150 or less. For example, a studio apartment at the Timberline Condominiums during Presidents’ Week in February costs about $310. Over the July 4th weekend, it’s typically $160. Some summer lodging is as low as $80 per night.
While prices drop, the entertainment quotient remains high. All year-round, there’s more to Aspen than the old mining town. Now, the Aspen area includes four mountains and the village of Snowmass. The entire area offers a varied, yet complementary, array of amenities. During a Snowmass summer, check out the massive mountains and access diverse hiking and biking trails via the scenic Burlingame Chairlift. You’ll discover extraordinary panoramic views and fields of wildflowers. Make it a relaxing day trip by combining a ride with a picnic lunch from Fuel, a gourmet café. The chairlift ride will set adults back $10. It’s $6 for children over the age of six and seniors. A wrap sandwich and vitamin water from Fuel costs less than $12—a day’s adventure for around $20 per person. Other recreational opportunities abound. Ski lifts also give mountain boarders access to adrenaline pumping adventure. This extreme sport, also known as all-terrain boarding is a lot like snowboarding—without the snow. Last year, Snowmass, the first Colorado resort to open lifts and trails to mountain boarders, hosted the U.S. Open Mountain Boarding Championships. Camp Snowmass offers the nation’s largest mountain board summer camp for kids.
Less adventurous types can enjoy hiking or the fairly new innovation DISC golf. Snowmass Village boasts two, 18-hole courses designed for those who love to chase Frisbees. To play on the courses doesn’t cost a thing. Traditional golfers find a bounty of greens and packages appealing to a wide range of budgets. Smacking the ball at high altitude is a lot of fun. Visit www.coloradogolf.com for more information.
The arts are alive and well during an Aspen summer. Strolling through high-country galleries is a great day “on the cheap.” And the free music is unbeatable. Every Thursday night, several thousand people gather on Fanny Hill at Snowmass to hear acts presented by Jazz Aspen Snowmass. Getting around is easy—and better than low-cost. Free public buses shuttle between Aspen and Snowmass all summer long.
To enjoy great food at drastically reduced prices, remember “The Bar Menu Secret.” Many restaurants in Aspen Snowmass have bar menus consisting of all the same food and ingredients found on their regular menu, often in smaller portions, and priced at about half the cost of the traditional dinner menu. Bar menus make Aspen’s finest restaurants affordable for anyone, and allow patrons to enjoy fine food in a more relaxed setting.
To eat like a local, check out the Woody Creek Tavern—the late Hunter S. Thompson’s favorite hangout. It’s an eclectic burger-and-Mexican food joint specializing in fresh lime margaritas. For a less rustic ambience, there are plenty of more civilized options including Boogie’s, purveyor of exceptional sandwiches and milkshakes, and The Grill Next Door. Run by a long-time resident and former local postman, The Grill is a classic mom-and-pop burger joint located next to the Rio Grande Skate Park—one of the nation’s best public skateboarding venues. The skate park draws accolades from the likes of legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk and ESPN X-Games athletes. Kids can skate for free on more than 13,000 square feet of terrain. Helmets are mandatory; watching the stunts is another version of gratis entertainment.