Treasure Mountain - Ski

Date: 04/29/2025
Partners: Alex Neal (Junior), Krishna Gandhi
Trailhead: Crystal
Distance: 8.75m
Elevation Gain: 4850ft
Duration: 5hrs 10min
GPX

Treasure Mountain's northern aspect into Bear Basin is arguably Colorado's longest ski descent at 4800ft from the summit to the Crystal River. We were lucky enough to ski 4500ft of beatiful powder and corn before the snow ran out.

The climb to the summit is easy going and ski descent is cruiser... the crux lies in logistics.

First... Is the road from Marble to the Crystal Mill Open and driveable? If not it is a long walk.

Second... there is private property between the Crystal River and the Treasure Mountain.

Although we were not aware of it at the time and didn't see any signs... my friend Natalie later mentioned that she was once escorted from the land by the owner himself. Here is an excerpt from her report.

"The biggest surprise was awaiting us at the bottom. Another reason for us to visit the Bear basin was to swing by the Crystal Mill. Sarah hasn't been there, and it's been several years for me. So once we ran out of snow, we put our skis on the packs and started hiking down a logging road towards the river. We saw some people and approached them with a question about the river crossing. Well, turns out we ran into the owner himself and we were on his private property! He was nice enough to escort us from his property and gave us a hand in crossing the raging Crystal river. While the Mill is in conservation trust, it is still on private land which has been owned by the same family for the last 150+ years. After profusely apologizing for intrusion and promptly exiting the gates, we went to see the Crystal Mill from the legal side."

So... while we had a great time you may want to consider other options for skiing Treasure.