Ski season has ended here on Winter Park for the 2012/13 year and the snow is melting.  That means it is time to start thinking about summer and all the fun activities at the base of Winter Park Resort.  This year promises to a great time to get up into the Colorado Rocky Mountains and escape the heat of the lowlands.  Trestle Bike Park and all the Winter Park Base activities will open June 15th.

Trestle opening for 2013 is approaching! Although the snow is still on the ground Winter Park Resort, the trail crew planning on trails for the summer. Opening day is again slated for June 15, so tune-up your ride and get ready for another great summer at Trestle Bike Park. Now that Phase #1 trail building is complete, with one last trail to be opened, the trail crew will be spending the summer upgrading the existing trails system and dialing in ‘older’ trails.

After the snow melts Winter Park Resort turns into a lively high-altitude destination with fun-filled activities sure to entertain the young and old alike. With Colorado’s longest Alpine Slide, mini golf, scenic chairlift rides to more than 33 miles of chairlift-accessible mountain bike terrain, Winter Park Resort is a great destination for the active guest.

So get you plans set, your bilk tuned and your gear packed for a great summer trip up to Winter Park, Colorado.

Winter Park Summer Lodging

Pet Friendly Lodging

Check out the best Winter Park Restaurants

This fundraising event benefits the Grand Foundation & the Fraser Valley Metropolitan Recreation District Youth Programs, and welcomes a diverse range of personalities and abilities on to two of the areas favorite golf courses: Pole Creek and Granby Ranch.

Players will test their skills on each course over the two days and enjoy drinks, food & entertainment in the evenings.  A silent auction at Base Camp Lodge will also take place during the first evenings festivities, and a cocktail party and awards ceremony will conclude the event at the close of the second day.

Players should be ready for a shot gun start at 10 am on Friday 14th June; and second day play will commence at 8 am on Saturday 15th June.  An admission fee of $1200 per foursome will be charged for entry into the event.

About The Courses

Pole Creek Golf Course is located 10 miles north of Winter Park, and offers 27 holes of links style golfing.  Golf Digest rated this 10,709-yards, Par 108 course “Best New Golf Course in America” in 1985 and “Number One Place to Play in Colorado” in 1998.

Golf Granby Ranch’s links style course has something for everyone.  18 holes are cut into the draw that runs through Granby Ranch, the front nine holes wind along the Fraser River and serves as a warm-up to the back nine, where golfers will encounter  lakes, wetlands, elevated tees, and large, deep bunkers.

To learn more about the event, please visit The Grand Foundation or call 970-887-3111.

Learn more about all of the golf courses in the Winter Park & Fraser Valley.

Summer Sangria
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Refrigeration Time: 1 hour (or, if you just can wait throw in a dozen ice cubes instead!)

Ingredients:

2 bottles chilled dry red wine, like Rioja, Zinfindel, or Merlot
1 cup brandy
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup superfine granulated sugar
2 oranges, cut into thin rounds
2 lemons, cut into thin rounds
1 limes, cut into thin rounds
2 apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 cups cold club soda

Directions:

In a large jug or bowl, combine the wine, brandy, orange juice, and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves.  Add the fruit and refrigerate until well chilled (normally about 1 hour). Remove from the refrigerator and add the cold club soda.

Serve in a glass over ice, sit back, and smile.

Brussel Sprouts
Ingredients:
1 Pound Brussel Sprouts
4 Tablespoons Butter
Sea salt to taste
Directions:
Bring 1 gallon of salted water to a rolling boil.  Add brussel sprouts and boil, covered for 8 minutes.  Drain and let cool, do not rinse.  Shave the bottom off sprout and then cut in half.  Toss in melted butter and sprinkle with sea salt.  Roast in oven at 425F for 8 minutes and serve hot.

Garnish with garnish of your choice: bacon, cashews, almonds, apples, chilli flakes, ponzu sauce etc….let your mind go crazy!

We are still skiing here in Winter Park but plans for the summer season are all coming together.  The biggest event of the Winter Park summer music season has announced its lineup.  And what a lineup it is!  Looks to be a great weekend of cool jazz in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

Here’s the best part:

Book your lodging before April 30th & you will be automatically entered into our VIP Ticket Draw – now that’s something to croon about!

Check out the lineup and get ready for a great weekend in Winter Park, Colorado.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

• KOOL & THE GANG
• EUGE GROOVE WITH SPECIAL GUEST JEFF GOLUB
• THE SOUTHERN GENTLEMAN feat. ERIC ESSIX, JOEY SOMMERVILLE, MICHAEL WARD
• DOTSERO

Sunday, July 21, 2013

• DAVE KOZ SUMMER HORNS feat. GERALD ALBRIGHT, MINDI ABAIR, RICHARD ELLIOT
• MUSIQ SOULCHILD
• DOWN TO THE BONE
• ERIC DARIUS

Tickets go on sale March 27th at Noon.  Get your tickets early as these shows will sell out. Probably quickly.  There are seating changes for this years Jazz Fest that should make the days at the show more enjoyable.

Tickets & Seating

Tickets on Sale March 27 at Noon (MST)

General Admission

• Includes seating on lawn
• Price $40 in advance, $50 day of (day of only available at Box Office)
• Price is per person per day

VIP

• Includes VIP seating closer to the stage
• Chair provided
• No reserved seating
• Price $60 in advance, $70 day of (day of only available at Box Office)
• Price is per person per day

Add – On’s: 

Express Lane

After Party 

The Official Jazz Festival After Party at Winter Park Resort presented by Becky Taylor and Jazz @ Jack’s featuring the Soul School Band 

• Doors open at 7pm
• Show starts at 8pm
• Tickets are non-refundable General Admission Seating
• Must be 21 or older to enter
• West Portal Station at Winter Park Resort

Festival Rules 

NOT Permitted
• No dogs or tents
• No alcoholic beverages or illegal drugs
• No glass or aluminum
• No large ice chest or large coolers
• No filled hydration packs/camelbacks
• No Frisbees, firearms, weapons, confetti, bullhorns, noisemakers, laser pointers(will be confiscated and patron subjected to ejection)

Permitted
• Factory sealed-plastic beverage containers
• Empty Camelbacks/hydration packs
• Plastic or paper cups
• Small soft coolers 6 pack size or smaller (9″ x9″ x9″)
• Cloth bags-soft packs preferred
• Allowed food- pre-sliced fruits/vegetables/small snacks
• Binoculars, folding chairs (General Admission only), seat cushions, small umbrellas

Winter Park Jazz Festival Lodging is already filling up so do not delay, book your Jazz Festival Lodging today.  Check out all of Winter Park Lodging Company’s vacation rentals for the Winter Park Jazz Festival.

Last years WP Jazz Fest had beautiful weather and was the highlight of the summer music season so don’t pass this great show up.

Spring has arrived and that means we are looking forward to some great warm weather skiing and the alway fun end-of-ski-season Splash. Lets not count the ski season over yet, as the forecast is calling for a wet and snowy spring here in Winter Park.  But it may be time to make plans to for your spring trip up to Winter Park and Mary Jane.

The closing of ski season 2012/13 is April 21 and that is known as Splash here in the Fraser Valley.  Haven’t been to splash?  Well, you are seriously missing out! Check out the photo above.  That is Winter Park Lodging Company’s own Billy making his way completely across the skimming pond at the bottom of Winter Park Resort last year.

At the Mary Jane base is the edgier part of splash with all the Winter Park locals and C-lot veterans giving it their all to celebrate a ski season coming to an end.  There will be a stage over in C-lot with local musicians providing entertainment.  The celebrations will go into the night as stated it can get on the edgier side.  Over at Winter Park base the family friendly affair is  a great celebration for the kids with pond skimming and live music. Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will be headlining Springtopia on Sunday

Winter Park Resort is calling Splash weekend Springtopia but we will here just keep it to “Splash”.  Springtopia is the whole closing weekend of Winter Park/Mary Jane.  Julian Marley & the Uprising will be headlining the Saturday concert at Winter Park base.

So spring is here, it is time to get your Winter Park Resort lodging plans set to send this ski season off with a bang and get ready for opening day of next ski season.

Needless to say, it didn’t last long…soooo good!

Thank you Ty & Lynn!

Chocolate Coffee Liqueur Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 Package (18 oz) Devil’s Food Cake Mix
• 1 Box (3 oz) Instant chocolate pudding
• 3.5 Tablespoons instant coffee granules
• 4 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 3/4 Cup Water (divided 1/2 & 1/4)
• 3/4 Cup Kahlua coffee liqueur (divided 1/2 & 1/4)
• 1/2 Cup Butter or margarine
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 3/4 Cup Pecans, finely chopped

Directions:

For the cake: Butter the bottom and sides of a 10″ fluted Bundt pan.  Sprinkle pecans in the bottom and up the sides.  Combine cake mix, pudding mix, coffee granules, eggs, oil, 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup coffee liqueur using an electric mixer at medium speed for 3 minutes, or until well blended.

For the saturating glaze: In a medium sized pot, mix 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup water and 1/2 cup butter/margarine and warm over a medium heat until it comes to a boil and the sugar is dissolved (stir constantly).  Take off the heat and stir in 1/4 cup liqueur.  Pour over the hot cake in Bundt pan and coll 30 minutes before removing the cake from the bundt pan.

Number of servings: 20-24 

Don’t Strike Out At The Winter Park Wipeout!

Support The Mountain Family Center and have a blast at Winter Park’s first full scale Urban Adventure Race: The Winter Park Wipeout.

On April 6th, Winter Park will officially live up to it’s brand as Colorado’s Favorite Playground with a 2.5 hour mad cap adventure from the slopes to the streets.  Expect ridiculous challenges, unexpected thrills and more than a few fabulous spills as competitors take on 12 mystery challenges and run the gauntlet in the Wipeout Zone.

The race is open to all aged 7 (kids under 13 must be accompanied by an adult) to 70 years old, and spans approximately 2 miles of variable terrain.

So, if you want to join in the fun and show off that hidden talent in lunch tray surfing, visit the Winter Park Wipeout site today and complete an online registration.

‘Who Let The Dogs Out?’

A full weekend of International Sled Dog Association sanctioned races will be taking place at Grand Park, this February 16th & 17th.

Watch the incredible display of communication between each musher and his pack as the area’s top teams battle it out in 4, 6 & 8 dog races.

Also, check out the one and two dog skijouring races, where the mushers fly along with the pack on skis rather than sleds.  If you really like the look of it, you can even give it a try with your very own BFF (Best Furry Friend) in a free clinic on Saturday.  Find out more about the Grand Park Dog Days Of Winter, here.

Did you know that many of our properties are pet friendly?  If you are thinking of bringing the whole family on vacation with you this winter, check out our Pet Friendly Properties.

Winter Park/Mary Jane on Google Maps

Google Inc has been spending some time in the Winter Park, Co area with their quirky little car and its antennae.  The results are that all the Winter Park and Mary Jane ski runs are now on Google maps.  Take a look above at those wonderful ski runs captured on Google maps.

Here is the link to check out the page for yourself: Winter Park Resort.

This is now a great way to plan your ski day and get away from the crowds on one of our busier weekend up here in WP.  Check out our five favorite runs at Winter Park/Mary Jane and you can find some of the locals favorites and hit the best trails at WP/MJ using Google Maps.

If you are wanting avoid all crowds you can also try out all the snowshoe and cross-country  trails that art in the Winter Park area.

Snow Mountain Ranch and Devils Thumb Ranch can also be found on Google Maps but their ski trails have not been added yet.

And last, but certainly not least, you can find Winter Park Lodging Company on Google Maps also.