ML - Aspen Peak

2014 - Issue 2 - Winter

Aspen Peak - Niche Media - Aspen living at its peak

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Backcountry Bon ViVants aspen Expeditions elevates the hut experience with a suite of on-call lifestyle pros. A diffcult trek into the backcountry can be sweet, but a melted chocolate fondue at the end of the trip is even sweeter. That's where Aspen Expeditions comes in; the company offers three levels of backcountry experiences, with the top tier being an epicurean hut trip customized to the needs and culinary tastes of the group. Besides renting and transporting gear and providing a ski guide (Colorado's version of a Sherpa), the company also sends a private chef into the woods with clients to prepare three meals each day. Picture this: After a day spent quietly skiing through the Elk Mountains, you arrive at a quaint pine cabin. The fre is roaring and after taking off your boots and donning pillowlike slippers, you're given a schnapps-spiked hot cocoa and gooey chocolate chip cookie. (And that's just the afternoon snack.) The beds are already made and dinner is in the oven. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the stunning alpenglow on the surround- ing 12,000-foot peaks. Tight shoulders? Bring a massage therapist along, too! aspen expeditions.com photography by c2 photography; courtesy of aspen expeditions (skiers) huts were named after legacies such as Peter Estin and Sangree M. Froelicher. Introduced in the '80s, skiing the 10th Mountain hut system has grown to be one of Colorado's more iconic wintertime activities. Many of the huts were originally constructed as shoddy back- country outposts and have gradually been rebuilt into the charming, solid structures they are today. While a number of the huts are relatively easy to get to, such as Continental Divide or Point Breeze, which are three-quarters of a mile from the Tennessee Pass trailhead, others require serious mountaineering skills and some navigation experience to reach, like Opa's Taylor hut, accessed by a seven-mile journey along an unmarked trail. Like the iconic routes in Italy and Switzerland, it's possible to link up multiday trips between huts for an authentic off-the-grid experi- ence. For others, one night suffices. Regardless of the distance t raveled or time spent in the snow y mountains, the reward on hut t rips is usually the same: a sense of achievement followed by complete awe for the vast expanse t hat makes up the Rocky Mountains and the sheer solitude that can be found there during the winter—when most of life has gone into hibernation and all that's left is a g roup of friends, the pack on your back, and a glistening, white, unt racked t rail waiting to be discovered. For optimal dates, become a member with the 10th Mountain Division hut system and enter the annual lottery. Applications are due mid-February. After all member requests are filled, hut reservations open to the public in June. For more information, visit huts.org AP Firewood is always stowed on-site, as are basic items such as stoves and kettles. Everything else visitors must pack in—and out. The more remote cabins are located up to seven miles outside of Aspen and at considerably higher altitudes. THE REWARD Of HUT TRIPS IS A SENSE Of ACHIEVEMENT fOLLOWED BY COMPLETE AWE. LiVinG tHE LiFE 48  aspenpeak-magazine.com

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