10 Holes Opening Saturday, May 10th!

Special Rates: $35 for 10 holes or $50 play all day! (includes a cart)

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18 Hole Opening is TBD, keep checking back for updates.

Peak Properties can build you a customized Golf package the lets you play almost every course in the Vail Valley, call today for rates and availability!

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The Basics
	Location:	Vail Pass
	Difficulty:	Easy
	Length:	11.4 Miles
	Highest Elevation:	11,086 Feet
	Time to Allow:	2 Hours

Directions to Trailhead

You will need two cars for this shuttle ride. First, leave one in Redcliff. To get there take I-70 west to Minturn- Leadville exit 171. Drive 10.4 miles east on Hwy 24 to Redcliff, turnoff before Turkey creek bridge. Shrine Pass Road (where your ride will end) is the first left, 0.6 miles after turnoff. Do not park on private property in town. Leave the second car at the Vail Pass Rest-Area, this is where the ride begins. To get to the pass take Interstate 70 east 12.5 miles from the Middle Vail (Village) Exit.

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Lost Lake Trail

The Basics
	Location:	Red Sandstone Road
	Difficulty:	Advanced
	Length:	12.7 Miles
	Highest Elevation:	10,248 feet
	Time to Allow:	4 to 5 hours
	Season:	Late May - October

Directions to Trailhead
	Off Interstate 70, take Exit 176 for Vail. Turn to the north and proceed on North Frontage Road to Red Sandstone Road #700. Proceed up Road 0700 to the first right turn, which will be the Lost Lake 4 WD Road. Park where available.

4 Eagle Ranch: The ranch has been entertaining guests to the Vail Valley for over 12 years in a private valley setting, just 30 minutes from Vail and Beaver Creek. Homesteaded in the 1880s, original cabins, open pastureland and beautiful high mountain views contribute to a Genuine Colorado Experience. Hearty lunches, featuring big burgers, salads and  “award-winning” chili are available daily through the summer. Western Family Nights, offered on select Wednesdays in July and August, have become a summer tradition. If you are looking for a unique venue to hold a private party, they specialize in groups.

Lazy J Ranch: Make it a LAZY J DAY. There’s not much time to be lazy at the Lazy J Ranch, unless you want to be lazy. If you’re looking for adventure, you’ve come to the right place. Home of the Vail Rod & Gun Club, the Lazy J is a ranch rich in history as it is in natural resources. Nestled in the Vail Valley, just ten miles west of Beaver Creek, it’s a rustic club and Ranch, with 4,000 scenic acres spread before you. There’s something for everyone. In SUMMER you can Fly Fishing, Clay Shooting, Horseback Riding or go on a Cattle Drives. Then we have interesting combinations like our Cast and Blast, Horse Flies and Caddis Flies. Hike or just plain relax. In WINTER we have Guided Snowmobile Tours, Snow Shoeing, X-Country Tours & Ice Skating. The ranch offers these fun filled days for whatever season you are visiting Colorado’s high county.

Piney River Ranch: Experience a Piney River Horseback riding adventure, the most scenic horseback riding tour in the Vail Valley!  Not only are we in Vail’s backyard but you can experience the breathtaking views of the Gore Mountain Range, crossings on the Piney River itself and soak in the high mountain Aspen scenery with the help of our experienced Wranglers. Vail Weddings at Piney: Piney River Ranch with its pristine lake and mountains is one of Colorado’s most photographed sites. Piney is a glorious site for a Rocky Mountain Wedding. The historic ranch is located just 11 miles north of the famous Vail Resort. Our wedding deck seats 175 and reaches out over the shimmering waters of Piney Lake with the awesome backdrop of the Gore Mountain Range. The ranch has two covered pavilions with a 250 person seating capacity.

The Basics
	Location:	Sylvan Lake State Park south of Eagle
	Difficulty:	Easy
	Length:	2 mile roundtrip
	Trailhead Elevation:	8,500 feet
	Time to Allow:	1 to 1.5 hours

Directions to Trailhead
	Sylvan Lake State ParkExit I-70 at Eagle and head south. Take Hwy 6 west. Turn left on Broadway (second left). Turn left on 5th Street and right on Capitol. At the next stop sign, turn left. Travel south on Brush Creek Road (CR 307) for 10 miles. Veer right at the fork in the road and travel an additional five miles on West Brush Creek Road to the park.

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Intermediate: Dotsero Ute Trail

The Basics
	Location:	17 miles northeast of Glenwood Springs
	Difficulty:	Intermediate
	Length:	4 miles/6.4 km one way
	Elevation:	1,850 feet
	Trailhead Elevation:	6,150 feet
	Time to Allow:	3 to 3.5 hours
	Season:	April - October
	Map:	USGS 1: 24,000 quads: Dotsero

Directions to Trailhead

From I-70 at Dotsero drive north on the Colorado River Road. (Eagle county 301) about 0.5 miles to trail head on the West Side. Although the trail connects to other trails into the Flat Tops, presently it lacks public access over several segments and therefore dead-ends about 3 miles above the trailhead. Use limited to hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding; motorized vehicles are prohibited.

-Scott Mattson, Peak Properties Reservations Manager

This picture is a shot of one of my fishin’ buddies Matt Cheek (Frisco/Breckenridge Real Estate guru) in action working a dry fly and surveying some big Rainbows at “Windy Point” on the beautiful Colorado River, just below State Bridge Lodge.

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*LIVE FLY-FISHING CONDITIONS IN VAIL, COLORADO*

GORE CREEK

EAGLE RIVER

COLORADO RIVER

Chris Freud of the Vail Daily

Vail, Colorado

April 7, 2008

GYPSUM, Colorado ( Eagle / Vail Valley) — It’s been a long winter for golfers, but it is finally spring as the Cotton Ranch Golf Club in Gypsum has opened all 18 holes for the season.

The Pete Dye course’s opening has marked the beginning of the year since it opened in 1997 and this track usually welcomes play in mid-March, but Mother Nature had other plan this years.

“We’re tremendously excited,” said Tim Garton, Cotton Ranch’s president and 50-percent owner. “It is our latest opening, but it’s not nearly as late as other courses in the region. We have all 18 open and we’re in quite good condition.”

Being located 2,000 feet lower than Vail certainly has its advantages to the tune of being about 10-12 degrees warmer in Gypsum than in the eastern end of the county.

And now that course is open golfers rejoice and are filled with a bit of foreboding at the same time. That’s because Cotton Ranch’s Mesa, hole Nos. 4-8, arguably one of the toughest stretches of golf in the county, is looming.

A water amenity?

Cotton Ranch’s first three holes are relatively straight-forward with a few hints. An iron off the first tee is usually a good idea on the 420-yard, par-4 as native grasses will swallow your shot if you pull driver. On the second, avoid the water left and it’s a birdie opportunity, and watch the crosswind on the par-3 third.

Then the fun begins. The fourth is a par-5 at 555 yards from the tips. The kicker is that it’s all uphill. Good luck reaching this in two. The fourth takes the golfer up to an elevated stretch of four holes, which can raise a handicap very quickly.

The fifth, a par-4 411-yarder has an intimidating tee shot. The fairway is wider than it appears from the tee, but with a pond installed there last year, golfers have a hard time convincing themselves of that.

“That was a big improvement for two reasons,” Garton said. “One, we needed additional water storage, and it doubles as a water amenity or a hazard, some might say.”

Once safe from the “water amenity,” the approach to a small green is protected by a ravine, which has its fair share of lost golf balls from years past.

There is no debate as to why the par-5 sixth is ranked No. 1 on the score card. It’s long at 568 yards and very tight with sagebrush waiting for any errant shot. Just like the previous hole, golfers have to negotiate a gully and bunkers on their approach.

After the dogleg right seventh, it’s off to one of the signature par-3s in the county. Drop shots are common on the local links, but this one is a jaw-dropper. The hole is 164 yards, but 150 feet down. Clubbing down is a wise play here.

The back nine finishes with an often overlooked hole, a 455-yard, par-4. In fact, this one was Dye’s favorite when the course opened. The reason was that little earth had to moved, making the ninth a hole which blends in naturally with the environment.

While the tee shot is not exactly easy, it’s the approach that can be most golfers’ undoing. The ninth has a two-tiered green, so pin placement is critical and shots that go over the putting surface are pretty much donations to the golfing gods.

Coming Home

While the general strategy at Cotton Ranch is to hang on during the front nine and make hay on the back, the final nine is not a pushover.

The course resumes its links-style theme with back-to-back par-4s on 10 and 11, holes which usually play into the wind. After, a 194-yard, par-3, No. 13, along with 16, is the first of two reachable par-5s on the back. If golfers have had a few big numbers on the front, this is where to make up ground.

In between those two par-5s are two beautiful par-4s. A word to the wise, though, if the pin is up front on the 14th, be careful. Dye put that pot bunker there for a reason. Hitting out of there is a highly-overrated experience.

Cotton Ranch finishes with an excellent risk-reward hole. The 18th is 389 yards from the tips. An ideal drive puts you within 150 yards with a clear view of the green, which is guarded by Gypsum Creek. If you don’t have a good tee shot, it is best to take your medicine and lay up here.

Chip Shots

Cotton Ranch has special rates until Memorial Day. For Eagle and Gypsum residents, it’s $52; Eagle County golfers $59 and the rest of the public $69. … Cotton Ranch’s driving range, including practice chipping a putting greens are open. … The clubhouse restaurant is under new management and is now the Cotton Ranch Club (CRC) Restaurant. … The course will have its annual Frostbite Tournament April 18-20, and the first 8-Inch Cup tourney of the season in May. … New for 2008 is a a tee box sponsoring program in which homeowners will be growing plants and flowers to give each hole a distinctive look. While we don’t endorse wagering, our money’s on hole No. 15. … Cotton Ranch also is able to host group outings. … Lessons are available from new pro Brian Ryall. For more information or to book a tee time, call (970) 524-6200.

Sports Editor Chris Freud can be reached at 748-2934 or cfreud@vaildaily.com.

Demanding luxury

At Peak Properties Vail, where vacation home rentals range from $1,200 to more than $4,000 per night, luxury already abounds. The homes, many of which have earned the highest lodging quality rating from the Vail Valley Partnership, come with more than soaring ceilings and cozy stone fireplaces.

Peak Properties concierge Jessica Kober says people who pay a premium for lodging expect a certain level of service, and that means having her as their 24/7 personal assistant.

In less than a year in the position, Kober has fielded eight-page grocery lists, left cigars waiting for guests’ arrivals and handled a 3 a.m. phone call about an overflowing toilet. Kober won’t divulge some of her more odd requests, but her attitude seems to be as long as it’s legal, it’s fair game.

“I think that people really want to be pampered on vacation,” she says. “They want to feel like they are the most important client, the most important person to the entire staff.”

*Click here for the complete article*
Sarah L. Stewart can be reached for comment at sstewart@vailtrail.com.

Open from 9:00 am to 4:00, the Nordic Sports Center offers a complete rental shop and is an official center for Fisher cross-country skis, Atlas snowshoes and the Tele-Tech Center.

Nordic Cross Over Ticket:
Use one days of your multi-day pass for a half-day cross country/snowshoeing lesson or tour, including equipment rental. Additional charges may apply to discounted tickets including but not limited to the Perfect 10 pass, Colorado pass, and group tickets.

Group Tours: Snowshoeing
If you can walk, you can showshoe - it’s easy and it’s fun!

• Offered at 10:00am-12:15pm and 1:15pm-3:30pm, Group rate is $70/person, equipment not included.
• Half-day private available ($255 per group of 1-3)
• Full-day private available (call for rates) (970) 754-5313

McCoy Park Trail Map (click here)

Ice climbing: The ultimate vertical

Ian Cropp
February 9, 2006

EAST VAIL — Everyone in the Vail Valley raves about the powder, but the valley’s best-kept secret is its ice.

Yes, that’s right, ice. And what’s more is that the best way to experience the ice is to ascend it yourself.
I turned my winter experience upside down Monday by spending a day ice climbing in East Vail.

Before Monday, I had never ice climbed before, and my rock climbing experience was limited to a 15-foot wall in high school, but by the afternoon, I had scaled the “Designator” and was planning my next climbing trip.

Of all the winter activities I have tried, ice climbing proved to be one of the most exciting and rewarding. The sport is challenging, but not so much that only the uber athletic can participate. And the learning curve is quick.

But much like nobody would ever get into a plane and fly solo the first few times, it’s not the best idea to go ice climbing without supervised instruction.

Fortunately, I was in the good hands of David Roetzel of Vail Rock and Ice Guides (I’d like to attribute my triumphant climbing to athleticism and determination, but David played a large part in the process). And I wasn’t the only one climbing. Pat Curran, a 65-year-old who had been climbing for a few years, showed me up big time, but also provided me with enthusiasm, motivation and amazement.
We started out the day with a 20-minute hike from the pumphouse parking lot to the Designator-Fang amphitheater, which sits in the White River National Forest across the highway from the Vail Mountain School.

As we approached the Designator, the sight reaffirmed what the name suggested: It wasn’t a bunny slope.

David explained to me the water ice ratings, which range from 1-6, and that the Designator was a 4-to-4-plus (the pitch approaches vertical and has vertical sections).

We got all of our climbing tools out, and David gave me a quick tutorial. Strapped onto the bottom of ice climbing boots are crampons — a metal frame that has primary and secondary spikes on the front, as well as spikes on the bottom. I strapped on a helmet, and put a harness around my waist. Then in each hand I would hold an ice tool, which had a pick on the front, and a hammer on the back.

Before either Pat or I set foot in the ice, David climbed to the top, placing screws in the ice every so often and clipping the rope into the screws. When David reached the top of the Designator, he set up a slingshot top rope (both ends of the rope are on the ground), then rappelled down.

With the slingshot top rope in place, David tied in Pat to one end, and then fastened the other end to himself. As Pat climbed, David, who was belyaing, controlled the amount of slack on the rope, and made sure that if Pat fell, he would be secure.

After watching Pat tackle the ice and rappel down, it was my turn.

Like a baby learning to walk, my first few steps weren’t graceful, but David was right there to tell me how to jam the pick into the ice and how to position my feet.

I quickly realized that you need to confide in your tools 100 percent in ice climbing.

As I climbed higher, to about thirty feet, it was difficult to trust that an ice pick and two crampons pegged into a sheet of ice would hold me in a completely horizontal position while my other ice pick moved to the next position. And as I found out soon enough, you can’t be afraid to fall, because a calm reaction will help you swing back into place if you lose your bearings.

Forty feet was enough for my first climb, and what took fifteen minutes to climb took a few seconds to rappelled down.

After Pat’s second ascent to the top, he affirmed to me what I had been thinking about David’s instruction.

“He doesn’t load you up with too much information,” Pat said.

David let me climb, gave me advice just when I was about to ask, and had me focus on one or two parts of technique at a time.

With over 13 years of climbing experience (rock and ice), a B.S. in kinesiology from Boulder and a personal training degree, David is not only well-versed in climbing, but knows exactly how to tell you to use your body.

Also, it was easy for me to put my trust in a guy who designs climbing equipment for Mountain Smith and whose input has influenced other companies to change their equipment.

Final push

I started my second climb not knowing how high I was going to go. My progression was quicker than the first time as I got the feel for the placement of the picks and improved my foot placement. After climbing 45 feet, however, I hit a wall. Well, it was just a few degrees steeper than the near vertical wall I had been climbing up to that point before, but it didn’t have as many ready-made pock marks in which to place my ice picks or feet.

David told me to take a break and keep going, and Pat, the sexagenarian who climbed with the exuberance I thought I would bring, cheered me on. I needed to finish the climb for myself, but Pat and David’s encouragement made it that much easier to reach for the top.

The steepest part of the climb gave me some trouble, and I may have resembled a sloth on a heavy dose of Percocet, but I was making headway. I put on the blinders, and didn’t let myself look more than four feet above, and did my best not to glance too far below.

Before too long, I approached the final 10 feet, which proved to be the easiest, as the path narrows, and there were plenty of ready-made holes in which to jam the picks and crampons.

At the top, I glanced down for a photo, but didn’t need to be reminded to smile. Conquering the climb was a liberating feeling, like grabbing huge air off a ski jump of a cliff, except I was suspended in midair and had time to appreciate all the work I had done to get that high.

David and Pat welcomed me back on the ground with high-fives and I felt like a rock star.

We packed up, did a sitting glissade (where you slide on your butt down a chute) and hiked back to our cars.

On my ride home, in addition to thinking about how sore I would be the next morning, I made the decision to become polytheistic. No longer was I only going to pray to the powder god, I had to start paying homage to the ice god as well.

Sports Writer Ian Cropp can be reached at icropp@vaildaily.com.

Vail, Colorado

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Vail Rock and Ice Guides - www.vailrockandice.com

See the full article here: - www.vaildaily.com

Play all day and well into the night at Adventure Ridge with ski bikes, kids snowmobile track, a slippery slope of rip-roaring tubing lanes and more.

Tubing

Grab a tube, hop a lift, get a rush. Our multi-lane tubing hill whisks you downhill while the easy-access surface lift takes you back up quickly.

Tubing begins on the hour and the half-hour starting each day at 2:30 p.m. (based on availability). Session length is one hour. Children 5 and under must be accompanied by an adult on the hill. All tubers must be at least 36 inches tall.

*photo courtesy of Jack Affleck and Vail Resorts*

Ski Biking

Part bike. Part skis. All adventure. If you’re a skier looking for a challenge, you’ll definitely want to sign up for nighttime downhill guided tours. Recommended for intermediate, expert or advanced-level skier or rider. Starting at 5 p.m., our guides show you how to ride the bikes and lead you down the mountain with the help of Dark..ENDS’ head lamps. Children must be at least 14 years old and 4′6′ in height.

Kid’s Snowmobile

Kids cruise around Blizzard Speedway in specially crafted mini-snowmobiles. Designed for children 6-12 years of age and less than 110 pounds, the snowmobiles travel at a child’s preferred pace.

Sessions start every 30 minutes from 2:15 p.m. -8:15 p.m. *Weather permitting*

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The adventure center is scheduled for the following dates - weather dependent:
Open December 18, 2007 - April 12, 2008
Tuesday through Saturday 2:00 - 9:00pm

Closed Sundays and Mondays

Call the Resort Information Center at 970-476-9090 for more information or reservations.