As a 31+ year local, I’m frequently asked about Aspen Snowmass’s best-kept winter secret. Well, I'm here to let the "snowcat" out of the bag. With over 1,500 acres of ungroomed terrain exclusively for the use of up to 36 people per day, it's the Aspen Mountain Powder Tours. If you're an intermediate skier/rider or better, there's nothing more fun than skiing or boarding "hero snow" all day long with your own private guides and snowcat. Try it—you'll thank me! 

This Thanksgiving, we’re thankful for the many guests who’ve become a part of the Hotel Jerome family through the years. We’re also thankful for reaching a very special milestone: 130 years since the hotel’s namesake owner Jerome B. Wheeler first opened our doors on Thanksgiving Eve 1889.

With its lively buzz and Old West vibe, the legendary J-Bar isn’t just Aspen’s social hub. It’s also a reminder—and bustling relic—of the town’s rich history. Cowboys and miners once rode their horses through J-Bar’s doors during Aspen’s silver boom, and drinks are still slung over the original century-plus-year-old maple bar. When Prohibition struck in 1920, J-Bar went the way of a host of other bars across America: it became a soda fountain. “Necessity is the mother of invention,” as they say, and the Aspen Crud was soon born.

Hotel Jerome has a rich history, one that parallels with the history of Aspen itself. During its silver boom years in the late 19th century—when fortunes rose dramatically and all anyone could see was up—department store magnate Jerome B. Wheeler envisioned a rival to the grande dame hotels of Europe. Hotel Jerome was born.

I started my career as a line cook at Hotel Jerome over 20 years ago, and I’ve been lucky to be executive chef here since 2012. Through the years, I’ve seen Aspen undergo a number of changes, but one thing has stayed remarkably constant: the Aspen Saturday Market, a community gathering spot since it opened in 1998.

As a Colorado native who grew up in San Diego, my need to be around and in the water is very intense. When I moved back to the mountains, becoming a certified instructor through the Professional Stand Up Paddling Association (PSUPA) was the perfect way to satiate that desire and to keep active. It’s also one of my favorite ways to spend time with my family in nature. There are so many local rivers and lakes that you can explore with a paddleboard, but it’s the pristine, snow-fed waters of the North Star Nature Preserve, just five minutes from downtown Aspen, that I love best.

My wife Maggie and I are Co-Captains of the Banquets Team, where you will usually find us presiding over wedding receptions and corporate events, orchestrating all the minute details from setting up 12-piece place settings to making sure the procession of courses and wine pairings goes smoothly. But I also lead a double life. As many mornings as possible, I soar like a bird high over Aspen as a paragliding instructor. It’s the most exhilarating feeling to see the four ski mountains—Aspen, Snowmass, Highlands, and Buttermilk—and the entire valley from such a high vantage point.

To the rest of the country, Hunter S. Thompson might be best known as the godfather of gonzo journalism. Thompson lived and wrote on the edge in a style epitomized in “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” which first came out in two installments in Rolling Stone before being published as a book that would end up defining the post-'60s counterculture. But to Aspenites, and especially here at Hotel Jerome, he’s best remembered for his 1970 run for sheriff of Aspen Pitkin County.

I moved to Aspen last summer and soon adopted the same ritual as a lot of locals I know: trekking up Smuggler Mountain for an invigorating morning hike. The usual reward is a sweeping view of the town of Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley from the observation deck at the summit. But on my last trek, I found another reward far sooner. Just off the first turn, I spotted a wooden swing carved with the words #AspenSwingProject. Whether you use it for a short rest, or pump your legs for a childish thrill like I did, the swing truly is a “random act of kindness.”

We specialize in events all over the world. With offices in both Costa Rica and Colorado, we work with clients seeking very different weddings. With the world as your oyster, narrowing down a destination wedding venue can be challenging, albeit exciting. It’s my job as a destination wedding planner to help our clients see their vision come to life in a setting that’s perfect for them. Over the years, I’ve created a formula for getting us to the right place. Follow these guidelines and you’ll be celebrating in paradise in no time!

Dance down halls, cannonball into the pool without reservation, keep the music alive into the wee hours of the morning, and turn every corner knowing that you will only run into your closest loved ones. Go ahead, and rename our modern Aspen landmark as your very own for the weekend. With a Hotel Jerome buyout, enjoy unparalleled privacy in legendary spaces including the Bad Harriet, Living Room, Spa, Prospect Restaurant, and Grand Ballroom, to name a few.

Ok, I actually have a Grad Degree in Labor Relations, but now starting on my 9th winter in Aspen with over 100 days of skiing every year, I feel like I now have a PHD in downhill. That’s a Dream Degree. Nothing is better than waking up in the early morning and hitting the fresh powder.

The J-Bar has seen it all— silver booms and busts, the Depression, wars, the who’s who of screen stars clinking glasses, and artists of the counter-culture movement lying low. Temporarily turning into a soda fountain during the 1920's, the J-Bar even weathered Prohibition. It was then that miners were known to have tossed back the iconic J-Bar concoction that still remains on the menu: The Aspen Crud. Made of bourbon and vanilla ice cream, the whiskey-spiked milkshake was dreamt up to evade the era’s laws. Today, J-Bar bartenders don’t need to hide their spirits behind walls anymore, but the famed drink still tastes like a secret.

There’s one thing you need to know about Aspen; you’ll come for the winter, and stay for the summer. Ski season might be total heaven, but the world-renowned events going on during the warmer months make it tough to say goodbye come September.

A word of warning for parents— your kids are one Junior Je-Roamer trip away from breaking your croquet winning streak, taking the "ski-ripper" family title, or showing you up at fishing. Aspen may be an adult’s paradise, but it doubles as a kid’s disneyland. While there are a myriad of adventures to explore, a Je-Roamer favorite is T-Lazy-7 Ranch, where winter is for suiting up to tour the white wonderland via snowmobile, and summer months are remembered for riding horses through Maroon Creek Valley and catching a trophy-sized rainbow trout while fly-fishing for the first time. (Don’t worry, young in age or young at heart, all are welcome.)

You can find Marilyn Monroe’s bra on the Aspen slopes— kind of. I'll let you in on the local secret; Aspen’s four ski mountains are covered with mysterious shrines. The snowy sanctuaries are built anonymously and largely dedicated to famous entertainers ranging from Elvis Presley to Jerry Garcia.

In Aspen, once you're on the gondola, the only things really worth talking about are where you've skied before and where you're gonna go skiing next. I've lived in Aspen for 18 years and each morning I get up and go on a run through the Aspen Institute, which is one of my favorite places.

Hotel Jerome’s rooms look even more historically accurate than the original historic rooms did, thanks to the multimillion dollar renovation in 2012. Travel back in time and sink into leather furniture reminiscent of the 1930’s, be greeted by a grand portrait of Jerome B. Wheeler above the front-desk fireplace, or enter a room with new detailing that takes you back a century.