“We talk about the local history, fl ora and fauna,” explains Nate Goldberg, director of Beaver Creek Hiking Center. “It’s a very interpretive nature hike.”
KEY: EASIEST MORE DIFFICULT MOST DIFFICULT
Aspen/Snowmass
Ride a horse to lunch Colorado is cowboy country, so an appropriate
way to visit the state’s most photographed peaks may be atop a horse. Four-hour lunch rides to the Maroon Bells from T-Lazy-7 Ranch (970-925-4614,
tlazy7.com) clomp through glades where deer, moose and the occasional bear can often be spotted below three of Colorado's famed fourteeners. “Right in front of us is Pyramid Peak,” guide Meghan
Little points out. “We’ll see it for a bit. We’ll see the Maroon Bells for the rest.” At Maroon Lake, guests enjoy box lunches beneath Colorado's iconic crags. It’s then time to hoof it back.
Bike the Rio Grande Trail Like most successful mining towns, Aspen grew
with help from a railroad. The bygone tracks now serve as a 42-mile bike trail connecting Aspen to Glenwood Springs. The route parallels the Roaring Fork River. Most is paved, and it’s downhill nearly the entire distance. “When you coast, you coast a long, long way,” chuck-
les Aspen Meadows Resort’s Doug Crawford. Once in Glenwood Springs, bicyclists can hop a RFTA
bus back to Aspen. Regular coaches hold four bikes in front-mounted racks, and during summer months, there are special, high-capacity bike buses available.
Paraglide off a mountain The scariest aspects of paragliding off Aspen
Mountain are takeoffs and landings. Between those earth- touching events, participants simply sit back, suspended thousands of feet above the ground. “Smooth as riding the most comfortable lawn chair,”
promises Alex Palmaz, of Aspen Paragliding (970-925- 6975,
aspenparagliding.com). Tandem fl ights begin atop a black-diamond ski run.
Harnessed to pilots, participants bound toward what appears to be an abyss. Wings fi ll, and the pair becomes air- borne. Riding rising thermals, Aspen paragliders often reach altitudes loftier than neighboring 14,000-foot peaks. The lawn chair fl ight ends with a feet-down or seat-fi rst landing.
26 EnCompass May/June 2013
Beaver Creek
Take a nature hike Come summertime, the on-mountain Spruce Saddle
Lodge offers picnic tables, lawn chairs and calendar-worthy views. Arriving by chairlift, it’s tempting to simply relax and take it all in. But alas, there are trails to tread. Every summer morning, guides from the Beaver Creek Hiking Center (970-754-5373,
beavercreek.com) lead free, one- hour Nature Valley Spruce Saddle Loop Hikes. “We talk about the local history, fl ora and fauna,”
explains director Nate Goldberg. “It’s a very interpretive nature hike.” Those craving more exercise can hike back down
on one of the resort trails, with several designated for hikers only.
Zip across a canyon A platform sits on the rim of Alkali Creek Canyon.
Across the abyss stands another. Between them stretches a steel cable. Adventurers clip on and step off, their bodies zinging across the void. “It doesn’t matter how you’re coming in,” guide Teller
Emmer of Zip Adventures (970-926-9470, zipadventures. com) assures everyone. “We’ll stop you no matter what.” Zip Adventures, which operates from a ranch near
Wolcott, offers six lines. Each stretches farther or higher than its predecessor with one that’s 1,000 feet long and another topping 20 stories above the canyon fl oor.
Scale a fourteener Reaching the summit of a 14,000-foot peak involves
hours of gasping for breath while trudging mile after mile up seemingly unrelenting slopes. It hardly fi ts Beaver Creek’s “not exactly roughing it” motto. “We’ll be fi nishing up with drinks, chips and a nice cold
towel,” beams hiking director Nate Goldberg. “That’s not roughing it." The Beaver Creek Hiking Center (970-754-5373,
beavercreek.com) offers weekly ascents up a selection of Colorado fourteeners. With gear provided, the trips pro- vide hikers with a hankering to get a chance to stand atop one of the state's 54 loftiest summits.
AAA.com
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