Try out alternative Aspen

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10 April 2012

Few American resorts conjure up decadent stereotypes quite like Aspen. This is a resort that counts Goldie Hawn, Kevin Costner and Mariah Carey as locals and has a fleet of private jets lining the runway at the local airport.

Aspen has at least five dedicated glossy lifestyle magazines, two daily newspapers, a permanently rictus-grinned client base, and a high street with shops by Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Ralph Lauren and Dior as well as the usual ski outlets. But the Colorado super-resort also has another less celebrated side.

Perhaps its roots as former rough-and-ready mining town help to explain it. For years, it was epitomised by writer Hunter S Thompson, who railed at the commercialisation of the place from his "compound" in nearby Woody Creek.

This other Aspen also has some surprisingly brutal skiing and snowboarding, as I discovered on my recent visit. Initially my group had decided to eschew the main resorts (there are four in Aspen: Aspen, Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk) altogether. Instead, we had decided to walk to one of the many "10th Mountain Division" Huts that pepper the backcountry between Aspen and Vail.

It sounded simple on paper: a seven-mile hike on showshoes (or touring skis, for our dual-planked brethren) from a trailhead at the ghost town of Lenado to "Margy's Hut", a 16-berth cabin near the summit of Mount Yeckel. True, this involved a tricky sounding height gain of 2,600 to 3,400 metres, and I'd be carrying a heavy pack and my snowboard. And I had jetlag. But how hard could it be?

I had my answer about three hours in. Up until this point I'd been going fine but as I rounded yet another false trail summit, the beauty of the silent, gladed scenery had long ceased to be a consolation and my legs and resolve began to falter. Still, the thought of the seven-mile run down the next day spurred me on and, finally, after another hour of muscle-sapping trudgery, I collapsed on the deck of the hut.

Refuges of this kind are common in Europe but few are as much fun as Margy's. Groups can hire the whole place, as we did, or share it with like-minded strangers. With no heating, bath or shower, an apocalyptic outdoor loo and top-to-tail dorm style sleeping, it probably isn't for the fussy but it has unique charms of its own for those prepared to make the effort.

The main draw is the backcountry skiing on Mount Yeckel, just to the north of the hut. True, more hiking means you have to earn your turns, and the avalanche danger can be high. But it is a form of skiing and snowboarding at its purest: untouched powder snow, complete silence and nobody but you and your group to share the moment.

Back down at the hut, after a spag bol, some homemade vin chaud and a sleepy-eyed goggle at the clearest starscape I've ever seen, our group disappointed our US hosts by ignoring the piles of booze we'd carried up and retreating to bed at 8pm.

As a result, the next morning we were up early to ride back down the trailhead to Lenado, and from there made our way to Thompson's old manor, Woody Creek. It might only be a few miles geographically from Aspen itself but culturally this hotch-potch of ranches and trailer parks is a world away. It is also where we found the Woody Creek Tavern, Thompson's spiritual home.

The locals are justly proud of their links to Aspen's favourite maverick. Posters, photos and assorted Gonzo paraphernalia adorn every inch of wall-space. My favourites were snaps of a confused-looking Roman Abramovich, another Aspen regular, and posters celebrating Thompson's doomed 1970 campaign to become Mayor of Aspen on a "Freakpower" ticket.

The margueritas and Mexican food are locally renowned, and after a couple of pitchers of Fat Tire I was beginning to look at that four-hour hike a little more fondly. Later that day, we relocated to Aspen proper, and the hip surrounds of the Sky Hotel. It's the kind of place where the reception staff look like extras from Zoolander and the mini bar carries sex toys and bottled oxygen.

The Sky Hotel's bar was also being touted as another Aspen melting pot, so before heading out we headed down to do some people watching, Aspen-style. Local snowboarders rubbed shoulders with the celeb crowd and eccentrics like "Benny the Blade", a wild-eyed local renowned for getting around town on rollerblades.

Later, we took a ride into town on the "Ultimate Taxi", a souped-up yellow cab piloted by another Aspen eccentric who sings while driving — narrowly avoiding oncoming traffic. It was rather unnerving, and I was ready for a ski rack of local ales at the Aspen Brewing Company run by four friendly beer-mad locals.

The next morning we made our way to Aspen Highlands and the last challenge of our trip: the Highlands Bowl. "Have you done The Bowl yet?" had been the question on everybody's lips from the beginning of our time in Aspen.

After my epic backcountry experience, the 45-minute hike to the summit was straightforward, and I was surprised by the sheer scope of the terrain once we began the descent. In-bounds off-piste is not something the majority of American resorts do particularly well but this — with everything from brilliant tree skiing to steep, narrow chutes on offer — was thrilling stuff.

Later, we headed to the wild Cloud 9 restaurant for lunch — where I finally came across the swanky Aspen I'd heard so much about.

A lunch of fondue and raclette swiftly became rowdier and rowdier as the shots began to flow, and soon the waiting staff were shifting tables and installing a stripper's pole. As the music boomed, the crowd began to sway and hysteria began to grip the room, a ski patroller abruptly broke the party up. So my companions and I ended our stay the way we'd begun it: with another memorable, deserted Aspen run. A resort of contrasts? Aspen was full of surprises to the end.

DETAILS: ASPEN

Ski Independence has seven nights B&B at the four-star Sky Hotel, including return flights from Heathrow to Denver with British Airways and transfers, from £1,255pp (book by November 30 for a free night), ski-i.com

Margy's Hut is available to hire from £350 per night, huts.org

Rent equipment and book a guide through Aspen Expeditions, aspenexpeditions.com

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