Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2025 i 5280 Magazine

I learned to ski on a fake-snow-covered landfill in southern Michigan, and although I’ve conquered blue groomers—and even, ahem, a few black diamonds—across Colorado since then, I wouldn’t call myself an expert. Luckily, two of my colleagues who are the real deal collaborated on our cover story, “Best. Winter. Ever.” Starting on page 44, it’s a guide to all the fun that’s to be had at Colorado’s 24 ski resorts (plus eight smaller municipal hills). Digital director Maren Horjus, who conceived of and wrote most of the feature, grew up shredding slightly more challenging terrain than I did: Lake Tahoe, the birthplace of freeskiing in North America. “It’s showboat central,” Horjus says. “Granite ramparts, feastor-famine snow, moxie.” She is the self-declared best skier on the mountain, but she’ll always hang…

On January 4, 2017, Brett Beasley asked Cole Walters-Schaler a question that countless powder hounds had posed before: “Wanna ski a lap?” Beasley, a U.S. Forest Service ranger, and Walters-Schaler, a 15-year-old who was friends with Beasley’s daughter, had traveled with their families from their hometown of Salida to Uncle Bud’s Hut, part of the 10th Mountain Division Hut Association, near Leadville, for a backcountry skiing trip. They figured they’d take a quick spin, then meet up with the rest of their group. Instead, the pair became trapped in Porcupine Gulch during a massive snowstorm. Only one of them survived. The loss reverberated through Salida, as friends and family tried to make sense of what happened. No one alleged foul play, but with the survivor seemingly apprehensive to divulge in-depth…

The Denver barbecue riot of 1898 wasn’t the first time Colorado’s carnivorous history veered lawless (see: cannibal Alfred Packer), but it was hopefully the last involving so much bear and possum. The trouble started when the National Stock Growers convention promised a free six-ton feast of smoked elk, buffalo, and said bear and possum to whoever lined up. When the event ran out of food, chaos ensued, with 30,000 ravenous would-be barbecue eaters throwing bones and punches, stealing cleavers, and draining beer barrels to express their ire. That scene is the inspiration for instantly popular Riot BBQ, a counter-service spot with some chaotic history of its own. Local barbecue lovers might know that Riot took over Michelin Bib Gourmand–recognized AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q (tucked into the Overland neighborhood), which closed earlier…

For years, Paul Karolyi had watched as the political clout of DoBetterDNVR—the anonymous social media profile deploying crowdsourced images of homelessness and public drug use to launch withering attacks against Mayor Mike Johnston and the Denver Police Department—rose alongside its follower count. “Everyone has opinions about the account, but no one wants to talk about it on the record,” says Karolyi, the senior executive producer of City Cast Denver, a daily news podcast. “It was whispers, speculation. Who is DoBetterDNVR? Little did we know, the real story hadn’t even started yet.” While Karolyi reported his deep dive into DoBetterDNVR (“Antisocial Behavior,” page 30), the account’s administrator abruptly removed their profiles from Instagram and X—only to restore them two weeks later, promising to engage in more respectful, constructive discourse about the…

If it seems like the e-bike fad exploded on area streets and trails in recent years, well, it did—but not by accident. Launched in August 2023, Colorado’s e-bike rebate program reached as high as $1,100 and helped nearly 8,000 residents replace short car trips with two-wheel, battery-powered excursions by April 2024. That’s when the state switched gears to one $450 point-of-sale tax credit, which was good for one bike per person, per year. But in 2026, that’s getting slashed—along with other green-energy incentives—due to sagging state budget forecasts. Starting January 1, residents will only be eligible for a $225 tax credit. So, if you want to electrify your riding experience and benefit from more of the state’s generosity, consider this the eleventh hour. These four tips from local experts will…

CHRIS WALKER Blood Vines Our former associate editor left the Rocky Mountains for the dewy vineyards of California to report this riveting eight-part podcast about a powerful wine-industry family drowning in fraud, murder, and White Zinfandel. ALLYSON REEDY Mrs. Wilson’s Affair: A Great Gatsby Retelling No one in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby pays much attention to Tom Buchanan’s mistress. 5280 food critic Allyson Reedy remedies that by giving readers Myrtle Wilson’s perspective on the Jazz Age drama. KATE SIBER The Hidden Wisdom of Animals Inspired by the wildlife near 5280 contributor Kate Siber’s Durango home, this illustrated guide for kids turns animals into life coaches: squirrels plan ahead, wolves work together, and vultures clean up.…

For: CAROLINA-STYLE PULLED PORK The regional twist at Smokin Yard’s BBQ is the mustard-based sauce on melt-in-your mouth pork, while the new Mama Jo’s Biscuits & BBQ dresses its pig in a tangy vinegar mop. 900 W. First Ave.; 3525 E. Colfax Ave. For: TEXAS-STYLE BRISKET Just how legit is Post Oak Barbecue? Texas-raised pitmaster Nick Prince uses only Hill Country–sourced post oak to perfume his Prime angus brisket. For another legendary Texas-style brisket, follow the smoke to Barbosa’s Barbeque & Catering food truck. 4000 Tennyson St.; various Denver locations For: COLORADO ’CUE The closest thing to Colorado-style barbecue can be found at Rosedale’s Roaming Buffalo Bar-B-Que, where you can bite into pulled local lamb shoulder, hefty smoked bison ribs, and venison or bison green chile cheddar sausage. And, fittingly…

PICK YOUR BATTLES Tucker rarely signs off on an all-white kitchen, but “painting cabinetry is a nightmare,” she says. So she kept the ivory cupboards, adding texture to the stark space via deep teal cafe curtains and woven pendant lights. In the adjoining bar, Tucker executed the only hard-finish fix of the whole renovation: She replaced a mirrored-gold-tile backsplash with earthy green ceramic subway tile to create continuity with the kitchen’s window treatments. “I usually like medium-format tile for a backsplash,” Tucker says. “Too small of a tile is hard to clean.” Boulder-based interior designer Emily Tucker doesn’t always wait for projects to come to her. “I look at on-the-market houses all the time,” she says, and sometimes asks the listing agent to connect her with the eventual buyer. But…

ON APRIL 25, 2013, the governor of Colorado walked into the tiny Bluebird Theater on East Colfax Avenue. John Hickenlooper, like most everyone else in the audience, was there to see Joe King, of hit local band the Fray, who was headlining the show in support of his new solo EP. But Hickenlooper also knew the opening act. He liked the singer’s soulful folk ballads and, in the past, had even pulled together a few thousand dollars from the National Governors Association budget to pay the obscure musician, who was barely scraping by, to perform at a conference in Colorado Springs. Nathaniel Rateliff, Hickenlooper says, needed all the help he could get. Hickenlooper settled into the crowd at the Bluebird, waiting to hear Rateliff’s gently rasping vocals and soft strumming.…

Colorado’s favorite daughter—or at least its fastest one—can sleep in her own bed this Thanksgiving. Vail’s Mikaela Shiffrin will headline the Stifel Copper Cup at Copper Mountain, from November 27 to 30, after the women’s FIS Ski World Cup circuit was forced to skip its usual stop in Killington, Vermont (the resort is replacing a lift). Copper quickly seized the opportunity to host its first top-flight alpine competition since 2001. It even expanded the scope by inviting boys; like a middle-school dance, World Cup events are typically separated by sex. Not so at Copper, where men, including River Radamus of Edwards, will compete during the first two days in the super G and giant slalom. Shiffrin and the women then take center stage with giant slalom and slalom. Beyond serving…

In 2014, Enas Alsharea fled her home in Baghdad as threats to her safety became imminent. She settled in Colorado as a refugee and eventually became an assistant professor at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Nursing. But before her 40th birthday in 2023, Alsharea made a wish: to go home. “I didn’t know what I was missing,” Alsharea says. “The art felt very alive. The city was very vibrant. The colors, the spices…I wanted to bring that vibrancy to the United States.” Two years later, Alsharea opened Innana Creations, a rug shop in Superior that specializes in custom and vintage weavings from the Middle East. Here, Alsharea shares how the business has changed her perspective on community. 5280: The Middle East produces an array of beautiful objects. Why…

Animal Attraction The name of RiNo’s new subterranean eatery, BearLeek, gives only a partial hint at what the menu holds (never bear meat, sometimes leeks). The moniker actually comes from the German word for wild ramps, bärlauch. But your dinner could start with a visual that conveys meaning where the name falls short: a pudgy, short-limbed, Haribo-style bear made of butter that arrives with housemade brioche rolls. The childhood emblem evokes memories of food that can be both weird and somehow delightful. The butter is certainly that; it’s blended with charred leeks (or other seasonal ingredients) so the tiny bear comes speckled with color and tastes a little savory and toasty. Later, after a smattering of small and large plates that aren’t weird but rather just plain good—a homey pierogi,…

WHETHER YOU’RE WATCHING A REGIONAL PREMIERE BY THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE’S CURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY, MEANDERING THROUGH THE MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY Art Denver, or snapping a pic of RiNo’s latest mural, that moment of inspiration likely cost more to produce than what you paid to enjoy it. Only about half of nonprofit arts and culture organizations’ budgets come from admissions; private donors and government support generally cover the rest. So, when the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency that helps fund arts organizations, began withdrawing grant offers on May 2, Colorado’s creative community was understandably alarmed. The emailed revocation announcements came hours after President Donald Trump called for eliminating the agency entirely in his budget proposal, but the messages offered little detail: “The NEA is updating its grantmaking policy priorities…

PRICE KEY Average Entrée $ under $15 $$$16 to $20 $$$ $21 to $30 $$$$ $31 and higher SYMBOL KEY Indicates a restaurant featured in 5280 for the first time (though not necessarily a restaurant that has just opened). Indicates inclusion in 5280’s 2025 list of Denver’s best restaurants. These selections are at the discretion of 5280 editors and are subject to change. ABEJAS $$$$ Golden/Seasonal Enjoy seasonal new American plates at this community restaurant. The ever changing menu features farm-fresh produce, sustainable fish, and organic meats, and the bar highlights small wineries and local brewers. Reservations accepted. 807 13th St., Golden, 303-952-9745. Dinner, Brunch AFRICAN GRILL & BAR $$ Lakewood/African Explore Africa at this warm and inviting restaurant run by the Osei-Fordwuo family. Peanut soups, fried fish, samosas, and jollof rice are just some of…