As a winter passes that closed many mountains on the West Coast as early as January, it has become even more obvious that ski resorts across the globe need to think beyond snow. Bike parks in places like Whistler, British Columbia; Åre, Sweden; and here at Winter Park and Keystone, Colorado, certainly keep the lifts spinning. But U.S. legislators and resorts have thought even bigger in envisioning just how ski areas can offer more comprehensive experiences in the green season.
Sponsored by then Colorado senator Mark Udall, and passed in 2011, the Ski Area Recreational Opportunity Enhancement Act rethought the way the U.S. Forest Service permits ski area use on public lands. It amended a 1986 law that limited use to alpine and nordic skiing and allowed for serious summer development. The bill opens up the possibility of building inclusive, family friendly activities like mountain bike parks, ropes courses, zip lines and frisbee golf courses (it doesn’t allow for more classic resort amenities such as golf courses and tennis courts, however).
Last spring, the Forest Service finalized its policy of exactly how it will implement that law. It also estimated that opening resorts up to more summer use would add 600,000 visitors to national forests in the summer, creating 600 new jobs and pumping $40 million into mountain communities.
No resort has embraced this new policy with more gusto than Vail. Hot on the heels of the new legislation, the mountain introduced its Epic Discovery plan in 2012, with a focus not just on expanding the way people can play on the mountain in summer, but also encouraging education through a partnership with The Nature Conservancy. The result is quite possibly the best family destination for the summer. Already, Vail’s Adventure Ridge offers up everything from a four-line zip tour to an intense ropes course with varying levels of difficulty to horseback rides and disc golf, which made it one of our favorite spots to escape the Front Range heat with the kids and our bikes in tow.
Last fall, the Forest Service approved Vail’s $25-million Epic Discovery plan. This year, the mountain will add summer tubing to the menu of activities up on Adventure Ridge. But the big thrills will launch in 2016, with the debut of a full Canopy Tour, which will include a series of zip lines and suspended bridges in Game Creek Bowl, and the Forest Flyer, a raised-rail alpine coaster that will whisk riders 3,700 feet down the mountain.
If that all seems like too much of an amusement park, remember that the mountain is also keen on teaching visitors about the ecosystem as well. It plans on building micro-interpretive centers across the mountain that will link into trail systems. Vail Resorts CEO Robert Katz has even said he wants the mountain to do a better, more engaging job at interpretation than the National Parks Service.
If all you really want to do is ride your bike, don’t fear. The resort also promises to expand its trail system, which already includes some rollicking downhill runs and gems like the Grand Traverse, which takes off into the lush wildflowers and open vistas of the Back Bowls.
No matter what, the kids (big and small) will not be bored this summer. And if more jobs and money come to town, everyone should be happy.
