purgatory alpine slide
The Purgatory alpine slide is a dual-track concrete bobsled run stretching more than half a mile down Purgatory Resort in the San Juan Mountains. It opens for summer 2026 on June 20 and is the only alpine slide in Colorado, one of the few left in the American West. You ride a chairlift partway up the mountain, grab a wheeled sled, and control your own speed down twin lanes of banked turns and straightaways.
TL;DR
The Purgatory alpine slide opened in 1979 and remains a Durango summer staple for a reason: it is fast, simple, and works for ages 3 to adult. Tickets start at $20 per single ride and drop to under $10 per activity with the $49 adult 5 Activity Pack. The slide runs daily June 20 through August 16, 2026, from 10am to 5pm. Go early to beat afternoon mountain storms, wear closed-toe shoes, and pair it with the Inferno Mountain Coaster on the same 5-pack ticket for the best value.
How long is the Purgatory alpine slide?
The official resort page describes it as more than half a mile. Third-party guides peg it at roughly 2,300 feet from top to bottom on a dual-track setup. The ride itself takes about 1 minute 45 seconds depending on your speed, though first-timers who ride the brake can stretch it closer to three.
Riders take the Lift 4 chair to the top, collect a sled at the start platform, and choose the left or right track. Both lanes follow the same twist pattern through the trees, so racing a friend side by side on the dual track is part of the draw.
Compare that to the park's other thrill ride: the Inferno Mountain Coaster runs roughly 4,000 feet and uses a steel rail system instead of concrete troughs. More on the comparison below.
How much do tickets cost in 2026?
Per the official 2026 pricing:
| Ticket Type | Price |
|---|---|
| Single Activity Ticket | $20 |
| 5 Activity Pack, Adult | $49 |
| 5 Activity Pack, Child (9 and under) | $39 |
The math is straightforward. Five single-activity scans at $20 each come to $100. The adult 5-pack cuts that to $49, a savings of more than 50 percent. The child pack at $39 works out to $7.80 per activity.
The 5-pack works across all summer activities: alpine slide, Inferno Mountain Coaster, scenic chairlift, Twilight Lake paddle sports, and treasure panning. You can mix them however you want. One scan gets you one slide run, one coaster lap, one chairlift ride, and so on.
Tickets are valid for the entire 2026 summer season. If weather shuts things down mid-day, your unused scans carry forward to another visit. Extra slide rides beyond the 5-pack can be added at the base of Lift 4 once you have a pack active. For a full breakdown of how the activities stack up for the price, see our Purgatory summer activities value guide.
How old or tall do you need to be?
The age and height rules from Purgatory Resort:
- Age 3 and older, at least 36 inches tall, to ride with an adult
- Age 6 and older, at least 48 inches tall, to ride solo
- Maximum combined weight of 300 pounds per sled, single or double rider
- Closed-toe shoes recommended for all riders
The bottom of the age range matters because the lift ride up is fully part of the experience for young kids. A three-year-old riding alongside a parent gets the chairlift views of the San Juans on the way up, then the slide on the way down. There is no separate lift ticket required: the activity scan covers both the chairlift ride and the slide run.
For the mountain coaster by comparison, riders must be at least 52 inches tall to drive and 36 inches to ride as a passenger with a driver 16 or older. Kids under 9 must be passengers, which gives the alpine slide a wider age band for independent riding.
When is the alpine slide open?
The 2026 schedule from Purgatory:
- Daily, June 20 through August 16
- Weekends only (Saturday and Sunday), August 22 through October 4
- Open Monday, September 7 (Labor Day)
Operating hours are 10am to 5pm. The ticket office effectively stops scanning around 4pm since the chairlift ride up plus the slide run takes time, so plan to arrive before then.
All operations are weather permitting. The mountain coaster has the same schedule and same weather dependency since both share the same lift and base area staffing. Tickets are valid all season, so a rainout does not burn your money.
Mountain weather in the San Juans shifts fast, especially in July and August when afternoon thunderstorms roll through reliably. The concrete track needs to be dry to operate, and the resort follows a strict lightning protocol. Arrive at opening to get your rides in before the clouds build.
How fast does the alpine slide go?
Rider-controlled speed is the core design. Each sled has a hand lever: push forward to release the brake and let gravity do the work, pull back to slow or stop on the concrete track.
On a full-send run with the brake released, the sled picks up serious speed through the lower straightaways and banked sections. The curves feel faster than they are because the sled hugs the concrete wall at an angle. On a conservative run with the brake feathered, the pace drops to a scenic cruise where you can actually look at the mountains instead of the next turn.
There is no minimum speed requirement. Riders who want a gentle, sightseeing descent can take it as slow as they like as long as they clear the track for the next sled behind them.
Alpine slide or mountain coaster: which should I ride?
Both are on the same 5-pack ticket, so the real answer for most visitors is both. But they feel different in ways worth knowing before you go.
The alpine slide is a concrete trough with a loose sled you steer with your body lean and a hand brake. The mountain coaster is a steel-rail track with a fixed car, a seat belt, and anti-collision software. The coaster climbs 300 vertical feet on its own lift system before descending through banked turns, with cars capable of reaching 25 mph.
Alpine slide advantages: lower age minimum for solo riding (6 vs 9 for the coaster), dual-track racing against a friend, and a more raw, less engineered feel. The slide is the older, weirder, more analog of the two.
Mountain coaster advantages: runs in winter too (the slide is summer only), feels more secure for anxious riders because you are strapped in, and the 4,000-foot track is nearly twice as long.
If you can only do one, choose the alpine slide if you want the classic ride that has been running here since 1979. Choose the mountain coaster if you want the longer, more modern experience. If you buy the 5-pack, ride both back to back and decide for yourself.
What should I wear to ride?
Closed-toe shoes are recommended by the resort because you sit low in the sled with your feet forward. Sandals and flip-flops are a bad idea: the sled footwell can catch toes on entry and exit, and the concrete loading platform is rough.
Beyond footwear: the base area sits at elevation, and the slide start is higher still. Even on a 75-degree day in Durango, it can be 10 to 15 degrees cooler at the resort. A light layer or hoodie is worth tossing in the car.
No loose items. Phones, keys, sunglasses without a strap: anything not secured will exit the sled during the run. There is no storage on the sled itself. Leave valuables in the car or a base-area locker.
Is the Purgatory alpine slide worth the trip?
From downtown Durango, Purgatory is a roughly 35-minute drive north on US-550. The road climbs through the Animas Valley past the hot springs, Trimble Lane, and James Ranch before opening into the resort.
For families with kids between roughly 3 and 14: yes, absolutely. The age range of the slide is wider than almost any mountain attraction in Colorado. The 5-pack pricing means you can add the coaster, chairlift, and lake activities without paying extra.
For adult groups: the slide is legitimately fun at speed, especially as a racing activity, and the mountain coaster adds a different kind of rush. Plan a half-day at the resort, then head back to Durango for the afternoon.
For anyone staying at Purgatory on a summer trip, it is a no-brainer. You are already here, and the first chairlift loads at 10am. For the full picture of what is open and when, see our Purgatory summer 2026 guide.
After your slide session, Durango Hot Springs Resort and Spa sits on the drive back toward town and makes a strong case for soaking sore muscles from an active morning. Zia Taqueria on North Main serves fast, well-built tacos and burritos on the way into Durango proper, no reservation needed.
If the group wants to linger in town, 11th Street Station is a converted food-hall space with multiple kitchens, a full bar, and outdoor seating that handles groups of any size. For gear or last-minute outdoor supplies, Ski Barn just south of downtown rents and sells everything from helmets to hiking poles and has staff who know current trail and resort conditions. Cap the day with a local pint at Steamworks Brewing on East Second Avenue, one of Durango's longest-running craft breweries with a deep tap list and a patio built for debriefing a solid mountain day.
Local's Take
The Purgatory alpine slide has been running since 1979, which means kids who rode it in the early eighties are now bringing their grandkids. That longevity is not nostalgia: the slide is genuinely well-designed, straightforward to operate, and holds up against newer attractions like the Inferno Mountain Coaster because it asks more of the rider. You steer. You control speed. You can race. It rewards a second lap because you learn the turns. For a half-day mountain outing from Durango that works for ages three to adult, there is nothing else in the area that covers that span as cleanly.
Sources cited in this analysis
- Alpine Slide, Purgatory Resort
- Inferno Mountain Coaster, Purgatory Resort
- Summer Activity Tickets, Purgatory Resort
- Alpine Slide (Purgatory Resort), Coasterpedia
- Purgatory Resort Summer Activities, Durango.com
- Purgatory Alpine Slide, Uncover Colorado
- Purgatory Resort Alpine Slide Guide, Alpine Coasters
