Have you ever heard of Mirabilis Jalapa? No? Me either. Perhaps maybe you have heard of them by their more popular name, “Four O’Clocks?” Still no? It’s okay, but there has got to be something magical about this four o’clock hour for a South American flower to take on this moniker, and for a Breckenridge ski run (and road) to epitomize it as well.

Hold on, back to the flower for a minute. These “Four O’Clocks” are aptly named this because the flowers open in the late afternoon and stay open until morning. This Marvel of Peru pretty much does the opposite of what skiers on Peak 8 at Breckenridge do, don’t they? While four o’clock may signify a spring to action for the flower, it indicates a different sort of action for the mountain … closing time. So, as Semisonic utters in their hit song Closing Time, “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Most likely one of the first Breckenridge runs cut through the woods, Four O’Clock run was named so in 1961 for the sole purpose that it was the way down the mountain and into town after the resort closed. Naturally the longest trail at Breckenridge, this 3.5-mile run varies in difficulty from start to end with its “Most Difficult” section starting with Upper Four O’Clock at the Imperial Express SuperChair before transitioning into “More Difficult” just below the Vista House Restaurant and then “Easiest” onto Lower Four O’Clock all the way to Park Avenue in town.

So, what does this mean for the guests of our Breckenridge hotel? Well, while we are not technically ski-in/ski-out Breckenridge lodging, at four o’clock in the afternoon you can make your way to any section of Four O’Clock run and navigate down to the Snowflake Lift and find yourself directly across the street from our property. Ski-side lodging without the expense!

Mirabilis means wonderful in Latin. Isn’t it wonderful that you can take Four O’Clock run to 535 Four O’Clock Road to end your day on the hill? Isn’t it wonderful that 4:00pm coincides with the flowering of the Mirabilis Jalapa for the day and the beginning of the end to your ski day? There’s got to be something magical about this four o’clock hour, don’t you think?