Highland Bowl

The top of Aspen Highlands is capped by the Highland Bowl. This terrain can only be accessed by hiking. There is a snowcat that can shorten the hike, but it will not take you all of the way up to the bowl. The Highland Bowl is full of terrain that is for experts only.

The wide shot photos on this page were taken from Aspen Mountain. The view of the Highland Bowl from the Aspen Sundeck is pristine.

Highland Bowl and Temerity Terrain at Aspen Highlands
Highland Bowl trail map for Aspen Highlands

It’s all double-black diamonds in the Highland Bowl. There is no beginner or intermediate terrain here or anywhere else on this mountain.

Terrain Brief

Open bowl skiing in avalanche territory. Hiking only.

Highland Bowl Stats

  • Peak Elevation: 12,392'
  • Vertical Drop: 2,500'
  • Area: 270 Acres
  • Max Pitch: 48 Degrees
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Highland Bowl and Highland Ridge as seen from Aspen Mountain
Highland Bowl and nearby peaks in the Elk Range

Highland Bowl Snowcat – The snowcat runs once every hour, and it will trim about 15 minutes off of your hike. This might not seem like a lot, but if you have never hiked at 12k feet in altitude before, you will soon appreciate the snowcat ride when its available.

Highland Bowl at Aspen Highlands seen from Aspen Mountain
Highland Bowl seen from Aspen Mountain
aspen highlands summit hiking route to highland bowl
Beginning of the path to Temerity Terrain and the Highland Bowl

The hike from the top of the chairlift to the Highland Bowl is about 45 minutes. You can continue to hike upward from there, or drop into the bowl whenever you feel like you have gone far enough.

The summit of Highland Peak is more than 4,300′ above the base area. You can expect the temperature to drop approx. 4°-5° F. for every 1k feet of vertical rise, so this means that it can easily be 20° F. colder at the top. It will also be significantly windier, so be prepared. You should dress in layers, because you will also be doing some tough hiking while entering a cold, windy, high alpine environment at the same time.

Hiking path up the Highland Bowl
Snowcat tracks and the boot path up into the bowl
Highland Bowl gate for skier access into the bowl at Aspen Highlands
Highland Bowl main access gate
a skier drops into the Highland Bowl at Aspen Highlands on a powder day

Highland Bowl History

People were skiing in the Highland Bowl as far back as the opening of the ski resort in 1958,  long before it was officially opened to the public. The resort began charging skiers to enter this territory sometime during the 1970’s, but the bowl was officially closed at the end of the decade when the Skier Safety Act was passed by the Colorado Legislature.

By 1982, the bowl was briefly opened to the public again. However, it was closed after 3 ski patrollers: Tom Snyder, Craig Soddy and Chris Kessler, died in an avalanche in 1984.

The bowl remained closed until the 1997-’98 season. Pieces of the bowl were gradually opened in coming years with better avalanche controls in place. By the 2002-’03 season, the entire Highland Bowl was opened to the public once again.¹

Aspen Highlands Highland Bowl ski patrol memorial plaque at top of Loge Peak lift
Memorial for Tom Snyder, Craig Soddy and Chris Kessler

Getting to the Highland Bowl

You’ll need to take the Exhibition lift to the Loge Peak lift in order to get up to the boot path.

approaching the top of the Loge Peak chairlift at Aspen Highlands
Top of Loge Peak
  • Exhibition Lift ->
  • Loge Peak Lift ->
  • Start Hiking...

Can I hike to the Highland Bowl from the base area without taking any lifts? Yes, uphill access to the mountain is allowed, but you will still need to buy an uphill pass or lift ticket.

The G Zones of this bowl are where you will often find the most snow. This is the northern-facing side of the bowl, and it requires the farthest hike up the boot path in order to get there. This will usually be the first part of the bowl to open each season.

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1.Gardner-Smith, B. (2023) The history of skiing in Highland Bowl, Aspen Daily News. Available at: https://www.aspendailynews.com/the-history-of-skiing-in-highland-bowl/article_4fa3eda1-2e83-5c7b-8d2b-81f4aa84e483.html (Accessed: 29 December 2023).