Vision

PRISTINE TERRAIN FOR SKIING AND HIKING:

Grand County is one of Colorado’s premier recreation sites. Ski areas, lakes, wilderness areas and national forest lands offer almost limitless opportunities for all sorts of recreation. From Berthoud Pass to Grand Lake, along the west side of the Continental Divide, there is great potential for development of a system of backcountry huts which could link with existing facilities.

A PERFECT COMMUNITY FOR A HUT SYSTEM:

Proximity to Denver, excellent terrain and an established Nordic ski infrastructure make Grand County a natural place for an extensive hut system.

Winter Park Resort and Sol Vista are well established ski areas that have attracted millions to the mountains of Grand County.

Cross-country skiing Devil’s Thumb Ranch, Snow Mountain Ranch, Latigo, Sol Vista and the Grand Lake Nordic Center serve Nordic skiers throughout the county—and countless miles of national forest and wilderness terrain extend beyond the boundaries of these facilities! Hiking

The National Sports Center for the Disabled is located at Winter Park Resort and a location is already designated for a future hut that would be convenient to their existing programs. The Second Creek Hut also will be fully accessible—click here to read about the design plans!

AN ESTABLISHED COLORADO RECREATION INDUSTRY

Summit Huts Association's Francie's Cabin

More than 70 cabins dot the Colorado High Country, localizing impacts and offering shelter to hikers, skiers and mountain bikers. The Tenth Mountain Hut System enjoys national acclaim. Tenth Mountain Huts have been built by groups of friends and family members as memorials to loved ones who have enjoyed the Colorado high country.

Grand County has great potential to develop this industry. Many ski country locations have benefited from the development of backcountry hut systems—Summit County, Aspen, Vail and Telluride.

For more than 100 years Europeans have recognized the need to centralize the impacts of thousands of citizens who love to escape into wilderness. Hundreds of cabins, lodges and restaurants dot the Alps and mountains of Scandinavia. Increasing use requires responsible users of our “back yard” to make similar efforts to keep our mountains from being loved to death.

GHA’S FIRST PROJECT

The Second Creek Hut, in the Second Creek Basin on the west side of Berthoud Pass, is one of the finest high altitude skiing and hiking locales in Colorado. Ease of access and relative safety from avalanches make for excellent backcountry recreation opportunities. Another important part of the project is to develop an outdoor education plan focused upon the local ecology of sub-alpine and alpine environments, snow science and avalanche hazards, and Tread Lightly! backcountry travel, targeted at hut and trail users as well as local schools. It will be a great venue for teaching!

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