Forest Service rules catch up with the growth of year-round activities at ski resorts

 

After spending a day of mountain biking on the Colorado Trail this summer, I stopped near my car to watch the tourist season circus at Copper Mountain’s base area. The crowd milled around a bungee-and-trampoline contraption, a mini golf course and a concert stage that blared mediocre funk music. Signs along the trail pointed “mountain bikes and Digglers” to the bottom. But there were none in sight, leaving me to wonder: “What the heck is a Diggler?”

It was clear that I had just rolled out of the national forest and into the off-season gimmicks of a ski resort responding to changing times. Ski areas are facing what their industry group calls “unfavorable demographic trends” – namely loyal baby boomers aging out of the sport. And equally daunting is the squeeze climate change puts on the already-capricious snow season. For example, between 2000 and 2010 skier visits in Colorado were down seven percent during low snowfall years, compared to high snowfall years, according to a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council.

CopperMountainSummer.JPG
An amusing summer day at Copper Mountain in Colorado. Photo by Sarah Jane Keller.

Many resorts are coping by bolstering business with year-round recreation. Since 122 ski areas operate on Forest Service land, the agency is proposing new guidelines so resorts can provide nature-based fun in the off-season, without further developing public land into a Disney-fied high-alpine amusement park.

The trend towards year-round recreation at ski areas isn’t new, especially when it comes to trail-based activities like mountain biking. But the law that permits ski areas on Forest Service land, the 1986 National Forest Ski Area Permit Act, was specific to Nordic and alpine skiing.

The Act didn’t even mention snowboarding, and a strict reading of it could have restricted any off-season activities like mountain biking or concerts, according to Sean Wetterberg, the Forest Service’s National Winter Sports Program Manager. Digglers, which I eventually learned are mountain scooters, advertised as easier to master than bikes, were certainly not included. (Copper Mountain still only lets people ride them near their base area.) But of course the Forest Service has allowed snow-less ski area recreation in the past two decades. They just permitted it on a case-by-case basis.

To streamline Forest Service policies, keep up with the less snow-centric aspects of the ski industry, and give operators some certainty that their plans are going to be approved, Colorado Senator Mark Udall introduced a bill standardizing the kinds of non-skiing development that can happen on Forest Service land. The Ski Area Recreational Opportunity Enhancement Act passed an otherwise gridlocked Congress in 2011.

The Act gave the Forest Service authority to approve year round recreation in general, but the agency is now proposing specific guidelines for permitting those activities. The guidelines are focused on keeping recreation natural resources-based, where the existing landscape is a dominant part of the activity. So, for example, disc golf is okay under the guidelines, but traditional golf is not because it requires too much change to the natural vegetation and the landscape. Mountain biking, zip lines and ropes courses are in the clear as well. But tennis courts, water slides, and amusement parks are a no-go.

In addition to outlining those specifics, the new regulations have a number of criteria to determine if a ski area’s snow free recreation plans are in line with the nature-based values of public land. For example, the proposed activity can’t expand the approved footprint of the resort, and it must “encourage outdoor recreation and the enjoyment of nature,” while not requiring significant new infrastructure.

So what will Forest Service ski areas look like over time as these rules are applied to summer development? Given the grab bag of non-traditional activities resorts are using to bring in visitors and fill hotel beds in the off-season, it’s kind of hard to tell. But that’s part of the point of the new rules. “We’re going to be getting proposals from ski areas for all kinds of things that weren’t in the (2011) Act, and the criteria are the filter we’re going to run them through,” says Wetterberg.

The Forest Service is taking public comment on the guidance for year-round recreation, along with rules for advertising and user fees, until December 2.

Even as ski areas like Crested Butte acknowledge in their master plans that “the North American ski industry has entered a new stage in its development,” which includes offering a wider variety of year-round activities, the Forest Service still requires that snow sports remain the primary activity ski areas offer.

Though they don’t mention climate change, the very existence of the new rules is a reminder that it’s going to become difficult to focus on snow if it doesn’t fly, or when it melts away faster than usual.

Plus, for some of us, there’s no replacement for what nature provides for free. Before I peddled away from Copper’s base area that July afternoon, I also noticed a group of kids playing in a lingering snow pile. With ample frozen water to keep them busy, they could care less about putt-putt, trampolines, or Digglers.

Sarah Jane Keller is the editorial fellow at High Country News. She tweets @sjanekeller.

High Country News Classifieds
  • INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS EDITOR - HIGH COUNTRY NEWS
    High Country News is hiring an Indigenous Affairs Editor to help guide the magazine's journalism and produce stories that are important to Indigenous communities and...
  • STAFF ATTORNEY
    Staff Attorney The role of the Staff Attorney is to bring litigation on behalf of Western Watersheds Project, and at times our allies, in the...
  • ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
    Northern Michigan University seeks an outstanding leader to serve as its next Assistant Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion. With new NMU President Dr. Brock...
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Clark Fork Coalition seeks an exceptional leader to serve as its Executive Director. This position provides strategic vision and operational management while leading a...
  • GOOD NEIGHBOR AGREEMENT MANAGER
    Help uphold a groundbreaking legal agreement between a powerful mining corporation and the local communities impacted by the platinum and palladium mine in their backyard....
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Feather River Land Trust (FRLT) is seeking a strategic and dynamic leader to advance our mission to "conserve the lands and waters of the...
  • COLORADO DIRECTOR
    COLORADO DIRECTOR Western Watersheds Project seeks a Colorado Director to continue and expand WWP's campaign to protect and restore public lands and wildlife in Colorado,...
  • DIGITAL MEDIA SPECIALIST, THE NATURE CONSERVANCY: WYOMING, MONTANA AND UTAH
    Digital Media Specialist - WY, MT, UT OFFICE LOCATION Remote and hybrid options available. Preferred locations are MT, WY or UT, but applicants from anywhere...
  • GRANT WRITER (PART-TIME, FREELANCE CONTRACT) HIGH COUNTRY NEWS
    High Country News seeks an energetic, articulate and highly organized grant writer to support a growing foundations program. This position works closely with our Executive...
  • EXPERT COMPUTER & TECH HELP, PROVIDED REMOTELY
    From California, I provide expert tech help remotely to rural and urban clients. I charge only when I succeed. Available 7 days. Call for a...
  • ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF HISTORY - INDIGENOUS HISTORIES OF THE NORTH AMERICAN WEST
    Whitman College seeks applicants for a tenure-track position in Indigenous Histories of the North American West, beginning August 2024, at the rank of Assistant Professor....
  • DAVE AND ME
    Dave and Me, by international racontuer and children's books author Rusty Austin, is a funny, profane and intense collection of short stories, essays, and poems...
  • CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
    Rural Community Assistance Corporation is looking to hire a CFO. For more more information visit: https://www.rcac.org/careers/
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness Foundation (ABWF) seeks a new Executive Director. Founded in 2008, the ABWF is a respected nonprofit whose mission is to support...
  • CANYONLANDS FIELD INSTITUTE
    Field seminars for adults in natural and human history of the northern Colorado Plateau, with lodge and base camp options. Small groups, guest experts.
  • COMING TO TUCSON?
    Popular vacation house, everything furnished. Two bedroom, one bath, large enclosed yards. Dog-friendly. Contact Lee at [email protected] or 520-791-9246.
  • ENVIRONMENTAL AND CONSTRUCTION GEOPHYSICS
    We characterize contaminated sites, identify buried drums, tanks, debris and also locate groundwater.
  • LUNATEC HYDRATION SPRAY BOTTLE
    A must for campers and outdoor enthusiasts. Cools, cleans and hydrates with mist, stream and shower patterns. Hundreds of uses.
  • LUNATEC ODOR-FREE DISHCLOTHS
    are a must try. They stay odor-free, dry fast, are durable and don't require machine washing. Try today.
  • WESTERN NATIVE SEED
    Native plant seeds for the Western US. Trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers and regional mixes. Call or email for free price list. 719-942-3935. [email protected] or visit...