Colorado Ski Country USA Welcomes Kendall Mountain As Newest Member

Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA), the state trade association and global voice of skiing and snowboarding in Colorado, today announced that Kendall Mountain Ski Area will join the association effective immediately.

Kendall Mountain, which is located in Silverton, Colorado in the southwest San Juan mountains and is known for its family friendly atmosphere, becomes the 24th member of CSCUSA. The ski area will join Colorado Ski Country USA’s existing pass programs: the Passport Program, which offers 5th graders three free days of skiing and riding at 23-member resorts and 6th graders four days for only $125, and the Gems Card, which can be purchased for $25 and provides two-for-one lift tickets or 30 percent off adult lift tickets at the now 11 Gems Resorts.

“Kendall Mountain’s family-oriented ski area is an exciting addition to Colorado Ski Country USA’s world class ski resorts,” said Colorado Ski Country USA President and CEO Melanie Mills. “Kendall does some of our industry’s most important work: getting kids and families into the sport and creating life-long participants in outdoor winter sports. We are delighted to welcome them to the Colorado Ski Country USA family.”

Kendall Mountain is in its 53rd year of operation and is owned and operated by the town of Silverton, CO. The ski area offers four groomed trails, multiple tree runs, 240 vertical feet, a terrain park and a double chairlift. Visitors can also enjoy an ice skating rink, sledding, snowshoeing or cross-country skiing during the season.

It was developed by the Grand Imperial Hotel in the 1950s and opened for business in the early 1960s. In 1983, the area was found to be operating without a permit and remained closed until the late 1990s. It advertises itself as "the cheapest ski area in the West." The area has run with a single 950-foot (290 m) tow rope for most of its operation but recently purchased a double chairlift from the Quechee Ski Area in Vermont to replace it. Kendall Mountain's base elevation is 9,300 feet (2,800 m) and has 35 acres (140,000 m2) of skiable terrain in 11 runs.

“The Kendall Mountain community and the town of Silverton are excited to be joining Colorado Ski Country USA,” said Malcolm MacDougall, Ski Area Operations Manager of Kendall Mountain. “Kendall offers a fun, laid-back family friendly environment for skiers and riders of all abilities within minutes of Silverton’s downtown.”

Kendall Mountain is opening for President’s Day weekend and operates regularly Friday-Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. To celebrate President’s Day weekend lifts will be spinning Friday through Monday, children’s tickets will be $17 and adult lift tickets will be $25. Visit www.colorado.gov/pacific/townofsilverton/ski-kendall for more information including additional ticket prices and operating schedule.

Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA) is the not-for-profit trade association representing Colorado’s 24 ski & snowboard resorts. CSCUSA is the global voice of the Colorado ski industry. The Association’s primary functions are concentrated in marketing, public policy and public relations.