Winter Park: 80 Year Old Eskimo Ski Club Program To Fold

The Eskimo Ski Club was a part of  Colorado skiing from 1939 to 2018 but has now passed into the annals of history.

Annie Bulkley Eskimo Club Director and founder Frank Bulkley's daughter emailed members to say:

"It is with great sadness that I am writing this. Winter Park needs the Eskimo Headquarters room for their employee lockers as they are presently stacked 3 to a locker and there is no more available space that will work for the Club's needs.

"We have given it much consideration and Winter Park has been helpful in trying to make it work but I have come to the extremely difficult decision that we would no longer be able to give our Eskimo Club members the safe, quality, affordable program that we have been known for.

"It's been a really great run (since 1939) and Winter Park has supported us in many ways and for many, many years and for that we are very thankful.

"I am also truly grateful to all of our members, past and present, who have supported the Eskimo Club for generations and for our dedicated, skilled instructors who have made the Club what it was." 

Winter Park responded:

"It’s a matter between the Eskimos and Winter Park Resort. The issues arose because we were severely strapped for space in the aging Balcony House, a problem that has been growing over the last few winters due to the steady growth of our own programs.

"We presented them with a series of alternatives, including moving to the Mary Jane base. The locker room at issue was used for their storage and for their instructors to stash gear, meanwhile our own employees were sharing lockers three apiece. We thought we were close to a solution, and had even started to talk internally about places at the Jane where they could park their buses, when we caught wind of Annie’s email Sunday. Until that point we were planning on having them back this winter."

In the early 30s, Frank Bulkley, who later became a Colorado ski industry pioneer, took up the infant sport of skiing when one arose at 2 am to drive to the mountain, hike to the top and skie down. As he said “If you had enough nerve, you pointed your skis straight downhill. If you had enough sense, you figured out how to turn”.

He chartered a bus for the trips up to Berthoud, which was soon referred to as the “Ski Bus.”  Students from other schools soon joined the group.

In the middle 30’s, George Cranmer, the farsighted Manager of Denver Parks and Improvements, asked Bob Balch and Frank Bulkley to evaluate the terrain of what is now Winter Park and they reported that it was ideal for a ski area. So began Cranmer's incredible & successful effort to fulfill his dream of creating a winter park for Denver. With his influence, funds were raised to clear slopes and install a T-Bar tow on the lower slopes. 

Frank Bulkley was one of the numerous Arlberg Club members volunteering on weekends to clear ski trails for the soon-to-be Winter Park Ski area, though he said they could scarcely compete with the crew of 30 burly Swedes "with arms 18 inches around”  that George Cranmer rounded up to expedite the work.

As Denver grew and the cross-country buses became more reliable, Bulkley began using the buses to transport the Eskimo Club members directly to the ski area so the Ski Train was used only by a few members and eventually by none.

Through the years, thousands of Denver children leaned to ski with the Eskimo Ski Club at Winter Park, "the place where Denver learned to ski".