WINTER PARK, Colo. – For generations of Colorado skiers, Mary Jane has been more than just another place to ride a chairlift. Known for its steep moguls and unforgiving terrain, the mountain has long served as a proving ground for skiers looking to test themselves.
This season marks 50 years since Mary Jane officially opened as part of Winter Park Resort, a milestone that offers a look back at how one mountain helped shape what skiing in Colorado looks and feels like today.
“Mary Jane is iconic to Colorado ski culture,” said Jen Miller, a spokesperson for Winter Park Resort.
Mary Jane opened to the public on Jan. 10, 1976, during what was considered one of the largest ski-area expansions of its time. But its roots stretch back much further than lift chairs and season passes.
The land was once used by Indigenous peoples and later by sheepherders and miners. Then, the Arlberg Club acquired a mining claim in the area and cut what is now known as the Mary Jane Trail in the 1920s and 1930s. That trail is widely regarded as the first downhill recreational ski trail in the western United States.
“This is kind of the origins of recreational skiing in the western United States,” Miller said.
When Mary Jane officially opened, resort leaders made a deliberate choice to preserve the mountain’s rugged character rather than soften it for wider appeal. The terrain quickly became known for its steep pitches, tight trees and mogul-heavy runs.
“The terrain on Mary Jane is known for being steep and rugged, so it gets a lot of moguls,” Miller said.
That decision helped cement a mindset still closely associated with Colorado skiing, one where challenge is expected and effort is part of the experience.
Allan Bock skied at Mary Jane during its opening week in 1976. He stopped skiing in 2024 after a knee replacement but says the mountain shaped decades of memories.
“It was really a joy to be able to ski someplace that hardly anybody was skiing,” Bock said.
Bock said Mary Jane became a central part of his family’s life in Colorado, with his children learning to ski there at a young age.
“This was a family joy activity for us,” he said.
That generational connection is part of what has kept Mary Jane’s reputation alive for half a century.
For Bryn Dessel, a 22-year skier who grew up on the mountain, Mary Jane still feels like home.
“My parents have been skiing Winter Park and Mary Jane since 1989, so this is the mountain I grew up on,” Dessel said.
Dessel describes Mary Jane as “perfectly unpolished,” a place where the focus remains on the mountain itself rather than luxury amenities.
“It’s a place where skiers who really love to ski get to ski,” Dessel said. “It’s not about the experience and the restaurants. It’s about the mountain and the terrain they’re offering.”
Fifty years after opening day, Mary Jane continues to challenge skiers, shape memories and define a style of skiing many say is uniquely Colorado.
“If you can ski Mary Jane, you can ski anywhere,” Dessel said.
Winter Park Resort says celebrations marking Mary Jane’s 50th anniversary will continue throughout the season, but for the skiers who keep returning year after year, the mountain’s legacy has been built one run at a time.
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