Author Archives: Jill Adler

Mark Your Calendar For 2015 Fee Free Parks Days

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It’s always nice to get a break. The U.S. Forest Service just posted their calendar to encourage your visits next year. They’re waiving fees at most of its day-use recreation sites several times in 2015, beginning with Jan. 19, in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. “These fee-free parks days are our way of thanking our millions of visitors but also to encourage more people to visit these great public lands,” said U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell. “These lands belong to all Americans, and we encourage everyone to open the door to the great outdoors.”

The 2015 scheduled fee-free days observed by the Forest Service are:

  • Jan. 19: the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which honors the legacy of the civil rights leader and encourages Americans to participate in the MLK Day of Service
  • Feb.
    16: Presidents Day, honoring our nation’s Presidents with particular attention towards commemorating President Washington and President Lincoln.
  • June 13:
    National Get Outdoors Day, a day when federal agencies, nonprofit organizations and the recreation industry encourages healthy, outdoor activities.
  • Sept. 26:
    National Public Lands Day, the nation’s largest, single-day volunteer effort in support of public lands
  • Nov. 11:
    Veteran’s Day, commemorates the end of World War I and pays tribute to all military heroes past and present.

This year parks are free Nov. 8-11 in honor of Veteran’s Day.

America’s national forests offer more than 150,000 miles of hiking, biking, equestrian and motorized trails trails and more than 10,000 developed recreation sites. Visitors can choose a wide variety of recreational activities using more than 57,000 miles of streams, 122 alpine ski areas, 338,000 heritage sites, 9,100 miles of National Scenic Byways, 22 National Recreation Areas, 11 National Scenic Areas, seven National Monuments, one national preserve and one national heritage area.

The fee-free program is in cooperation with other federal land management agencies under the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act. Fees are waived generally for day-use areas, such as picnic grounds, developed trailheads and destination visitor centers. Concessionaire operated sites might also be free depending on the operator. Contact your local national forest or grassland to learn if your destination requires a fee and if that fee is waived.

Protected lands are meant to sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands for future generations. The Forest Service manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world.

They’re also money makers; contributing more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the nation’s clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year.

Check Recreation.gov to see if your destination charges a fee. Fees are used to help cover the cost of safe, clean facilities. Use the Forest Service map to find a national forest or grassland near you.

 

 

 

DATES

EVENT

PARTICIPATING AGENCY
Jan. 19 Martin Luther King Jr. Day U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceNational Park ServiceBureau of Land Management
Feb. 15-17 President’s Day Weekend U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceNational Park ServiceBureau of Land Management
June 13 National Get Outdoors Day U.S. Forest Service
April 18-19 First Weekend of National Park Week National Park Service
Aug. 25 National Park Service Birthday National Park Service
Sept. 26 National Public Lands Day U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceNational Park ServiceBureau of Land Management
Oct. 11 First Sunday of National Wildlife Refuge Week U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Nov. 11 Veterans Day U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceNational Park ServiceBureau of Land Management
*The Forest Service will offer fee-free day on Feb. 16 only


Deer Valley Buy$ Solitude Resort!

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deer valley

Solitude on a Sunday.by Ryan Freitas

And then there were two.

Vail Resorts buys Canyons; Park City’s Ian Cumming buys Snowbird; Vail Resorts buys Park City Mountain Resort and today Deer Valley got into the Ski Area Monopoly game with their announcement that they have purchased Solitude Mountain Resort in Big Cottonwood Canyon.

“It’s coincidental that we’ve had four ownership changes in Utah in the last year,” said Deer Valley’s Bob Wheaton after discussing the various reasons behind his resort’s interest in Solitude. “I don’t think it is a trend though. It’s recognition from individual resorts that we’re all in the same industry and we need to cooperate at a higher level than we have had to 20/30 years ago when all the independent mountain people started up the resorts and operated them. They weren’t interested in cooperation (back then). That has certainly changed.”

The elite Park City resort will take over operations of what has always been considered an affordable, Utah locals’ secret beginning May 1, 2015. “We are not looking to rebrand Solitude. Nor should we,” said Wheaton. “Solitude has a strong brand already. We are looking to be there just to help and to integrate (the operations and marketing). It’s an incredible resort just as it is.”

But some Utah skiers worry that change is coming. “There goes the affordability of one of my two favorite resorts. I bet the yurts along the X-country trails turn into multi-million dollar condos soon too,” commented one Salt Lake Tribune reader when the press release surfaced.

“The first thing that popped into my head was that my favorite resort, which has historically been one of the best bargains in the Wasatch, will likely have their prices trend up to similar territory of the fancy (and accordingly priced) Deer Valley,” commented Redd Bradshaw on Solitude’s Facebook page. “Deer Valley day passes are $40-46 more expensive per day, and their season pass is about three times the going rate for a Solitude full season pass. Yeah it’s nice and swanky, but that’s not what I ski for. I don’t care for corduroy groomed slopes and caviar. I ski for the steeps, the powder, the serenity of silent first tracks, and a slew of other things that I’m not sure this merger will bring to my favorite resort. This will be my 29th season at Solitude. I’m hopeful that I can have many more good years there and I don’t get priced out of my home-resort.”

Still another Trib reader posted, “Truly reiterates my idea that Utah is just a playground for the rich to pass around resort to resort. Nuts to our water, nuts to those that work to see beauty. Hey! Let us add ziplines from one peak to the next so we can attract tourists.”


Wheaton did confirm that although prices and policies (i.e. allowing snowboarding at Solitude and maintaining the Sol-Bright connection) remain in place for 2014/15, there will be future improvements. “We’ll see some reinvestment and reinvigorating and a better product for both local and destination skiers,” he hinted. “We’re darned excited and we’ve been watching Solitude over the ridge for a lot of years. We recognize that the market that Solitude has truly is complementary to Deer Valley and I would like to think that Deer Valley’s market would be complimentary to Solitude as well.” In other words, Deer Valley would be able to grab both the destination and local markets with this deal.

“Deer Valley is acquiring a gem. I’m sure the game-plan is to keep what has worked for Solitude over the years with loyal followers and make change only were needed,” posted Robert M. Stianche Jr. “I’m a firm believer that the positive will outweigh any negative.”

Many, however, are excited by the acquisition if only because it keeps Solitude out of Vail Resorts’ hands. Matt Farinelli posted, “This could have easily been Vail or Powdr Corp. This seems like a win for the Wasatch.”

Todd Wake commented “My two favorite Utah resorts. Hopefully they can maintain their character. Love to ski both, love the food at DV and brown bagging at Solitude. Thank God DV bought Solitude before Vail got a hold of it.”

It will still be business as usual for the Park City and Big Cottonwood resorts as it still requires a one-hour car ride to get from one hill to the other; at least until One Wasatch becomes a reality. But it looks like Utah skiing just took one giant step closer to the interconnected reality when you consider the remaining link between Park City and BCC (Guardsman/Bonanza Flats) may be up for sale soon. Could Boyne’s Brighton Resort be the next sitting duck for one of the two Park City resort companies to gobble up? And then there would be one…..

Alta Wins Round One Against Snowboarding Plaintiffs But It Ain’t Over Yet

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“We are not at all dissuaded,” said Rick Alden about yesterday’s ruling in U.S. District Court. The legal war summoned against Alta Ski Area last season for refusing to allow snowboarders on its lifts came to a head when Wasatch Equality (Alden, Drew Hicken, Bjorn Leines, Richard Varga) had their day in court.

 Judge Dee Benson not only decried that snowboarders are not a protected class but said that they had a “misplaced and mistaken” view of the 14th amendment. The Equal Protection Clause is not a general fairness clause he said and concluded that the plaintiffs failed to show the Forest Service had anything to do with the Little Cottonwood Canyon resort’s policy prohibiting snowboards.

“They didn’t really go after the public lands issue but instead claimed animus [towards boarders] and whether we questioned their ability [to ride safely],” said Alta’s Ono Wieringa. “That doesn’t have anything to do with public lands.” Alta’s permit with the Forest Service allows it to make its own policies. “It’s a business decision (to ban snowboards) and skiing works really well there,” he added. “Public lands are riddled with separating users for the betterment of other users.”

‘Bifftacular’ commented on the Deseret News site, “Why should a bowling alley be allowed to restrict their lanes only to the usage of bowling balls? I’d kind of like to roll a pumpkin. “No shirt, no shoes, no service”? Not anymore. Those restaurants should have to serve us even if all we are wearing is a diaper. Why only golf carts allowed on a golf course? That seems rather discriminatory to real cars. I’d like to drive my Honda hole to hole. Only ice skates on the community skating rink? How backwards. Where are the rights for toboggans, sleds, and snowmobiles?”

 Alta has maintained that they have never discriminated against snowboarders only snowboards. And the court affirmed this choice. Benson wrote in his ruling that there’s “a common-sense recognition that all laws discriminate in one way or another, which is the very nature of laws and regulations.  All that is required for (USFS) to be found in compliance with the Constitution is that the government has a rational basis for its actions. There are many forums Plaintiffs can resort to in an attempt to accomplish their goal of snowboarding down the Baldy Chutes at Alta. Seeking an injunction from this court is not one of them.”

But Alden doesn’t see it that way. “Alta is just plain wrong and unfortunately they are wrong on public lands. Let the snowboarders decide what public lands they want to ride,” he said. “We are 100 percent committed to the appeal process.”

Unfortunately for those who commented that they were glad the fight is over, it doesn’t look like it is. “They probably have some legal recourse to appeal or reshape the case so I doubt that it’s over,” said Wieringa. “[Alden’s] not happy with our stance. We’re not worried. I would like to spend the money on the ski area instead of lawyers but life goes on.”

As to whether Alta will have to allow snowboarding in the future to be part of One Wasatch Wieringa said those decisions are far enough away that they don’t have to think about that. “I’d say it’s just like always; it’s part of a business decision that we always make about our market. If we’re going to do things differently we’d have to look at all the parts and see what makes sense.”

Nerdy Nummies Cracks A Good Egg

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My poor baby got a huge dose of reality today by way of my kitchen. I’m a decent cook and used to bake up a storm when I was a kid but Sage developed some overzealous expectations after watching episode after episode of this YouTube channel called Nerdy Nummies.

She’s been begging me for days to let her try out a recipe and I told her to find an easy one. Take a look at what happened.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/ckwM3KmTapo]

 

Sage hopes Rosanna responds but in the meantime we plan to stick to chocolate chip cookies and regular cupcakes to rebuild the confidence. Not sure if she’ll ever look at Nerdy Nummies the same. If anyone out there has tips on where we went wrong we’re all ears. 


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