Aspen Highlands

Aspen Highlands is one of the four ski mountains run by Aspen Skiing Company, on the ridge between Maroon Creek and Castle Creek just west of Aspen. Whip Jones founded it in 1958, and it was the last of the four to join the Aspen group. It is the locals' mountain for steep skiing: of its roughly 118 runs, none is rated beginner and more than half are rated expert.

The lifts climb about 3,600 feet from a base at about 8,040 feet. The best-known terrain is Highland Bowl, opened in full in 2002, which you reach by a free snowcat ride and then a hike of up to an hour along the ridge to 12,392 feet; from there the bowl drops steeply back to the lifts. Deep Temerity, a lift added in 2005, serves the steep lower part. Cloud Nine Alpine Bistro, at the top of the Cloud Nine lift, is known for its views of the Maroon Bells and for long lunches. There is also a memorial to three ski patrollers killed in a 1984 avalanche.

One Aspen Snowmass lift ticket covers Highlands, Aspen Mountain, Snowmass and Buttermilk. On the full Ikon Pass, skiers get seven days shared across the four mountains, without reservations; the cheaper Ikon Base Pass does not include Highlands. Aspen Snowmass also sells its own passes. For 2026/27 Highlands is scheduled to open on 12 December 2026; it usually closes in early to mid-April.

Aspen/Pitkin County Airport is about 3 miles away. Free RFTA buses run from Aspen's Rubey Park transit centre to the Highlands base. From Denver the drive is about 200 miles; in winter Independence Pass is closed, so the route is I-70 to Glenwood Springs and then Highway 82.