The U.S. Forest Service has given Vail Resorts Inc. a final approval to expand summer activities at its Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado.
The Nov. 13 decision – available here for download – will allow the resort to construct and operate zip lines, obstacle/challenge courses, and off-highway vehicle tours, in addition to more mountain bike and hiking trails and chairlifts during the summer months. It’s a win for the ski resort business, which is trying to diversify its year-round offerings and be less winter-dependent.
“Due to ongoing, year-round tourism growth, Breckenridge Ski Resort is becoming a summer destination for guests,” Scott Fitzwilliams, Forest Supervisor for White River National Forest, wrote in his decision. “I have concluded that we must be open to the reality that individuals may be just as inspired to gain a greater appreciation of and engagement with the natural world by being exposed to the types of activities proposed at Breckenridge Ski Resort, as they would be by engaging in more traditional activities. The entire spectrum of activities we offer and promote on the White River National Forest may engage and inspire families to go further into the Forest – hiking on our trails, camping at our campgrounds or becoming agency employees and future stewards of this incredible landscape.”
Still, there were environmental concerns and Breckenridge wasn’t approved for everything it had applied for.
As approved, the plan will result in about 27 acres of disturbance (mostly related to hiking and biking trails), including roughly 13 acres of forest overstory removal, officials said. The majority of the vegetation impacts will occur in disturbed ski trails and throughout Mountain Pine Beetle-affected lodgepole pine stands.
