Beaver Creek to debut Red Buffalo Park beginner area during 2017-18 ski season

Beaver Creek, which opens for the 2017-18 ski season a little over a month from now on Wednesday, Nov. 22, will feature a new mountain-top beginner area with a new chairlift this ski season. Beaver Creek put out a press release on the new Red Buffalo Park beginner area on Tuesday.

It looks like it will be a great way to get young kids up high on the mountain and out of the more trafficked Haymeadow area. Keep it in mind if you’re planning to ski with kids or even adult beginners at the Beaver Creek this coming winter. Here’s the full press release:

Beaver Creek to debut Red Buffalo Park during 2017-2018 ski season

BEAVER CREEK, Colo. – October 17, 2017 – To improve the experience for beginner and intermediate skiers and further establish Beaver Creek as the world’s best luxury family resort, Beaver Creek Resort is dedicating more than 200 acres of terrain as a family and adventure learning area. Red Buffalo Park, located at the mountain’s highest elevation, 11,440 feet, provides 13 trails designated as a family learning area. At the heart of Red Buffalo Park, the new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5), a high-speed quad, will improve the beginner experience by decreasing lift lines and providing a shorter, 4.3 minute ride to the top of the mountain. Red Buffalo Park amenities include Kids’ Adventure Zones, snow sculptures, Park 101 and Zoom Room terrain parks, and a dedicated Ski School Skills Zone on Upper Sheephorn trail. Beaver Creek Ski & Snowboard School students will have access to the new Cookie Cabin, a mountaintop refuge serving Beaver Creek’s famed, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies daily.

“Red Buffalo Park is all about more time skiing with your family in an area that focuses on beginners and intermediate skiers and riders. Upgrading Red Buffalo Express Lift will provide high-speed lift access to the amazing beginner terrain at the top of Beaver Creek, resulting in less time riding the lift and more time skiing,” said Beth Howard, chief operating officer of Beaver Creek Resort. “We expect this improvement to take significant volume off Cinch Express, Beaver Creek’s second most-popular lift, and it really is an improvement befitting of Beaver Creek’s luxury, family experience, as it enhances a key beginner and family area of our mountain.”

 Red Buffalo Park

Unlike most beginner learning areas, Beaver Creek’s Red Buffalo Park is located at 11,440 feet, the highest point of the mountain. The gentle slope of the designated learning trails provides terrain fitting for beginner and intermediate skiers and riders, plus breathtaking panoramic views of the Gore Range. Guests can ride the new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5), located at the heart of Red Buffalo Park, for quick access to all 13 trails.

Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5)

The new Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5) is named after the signature, beginner Red Buffalo trail, which provides incredible views of the Gore Range and is named after two signature peaks of the Gore Range, the Red peak and Buffalo peak. The new lift will reduce ride time by 50 percent, from 8.6 minutes to 4.3 minutes, and will increase uphill capacity by 75 percent. With the upgrade, all primary lifts on Beaver Creek will be high-speed.

 New Ski School Experiences at Red Buffalo Park

Cookie Cabin
Guests enrolled in Beaver Creek Ski & Snowboard School will have access to the Cookie Cabin, located at the top of Red Buffalo Express Lift (#5). Serving up Beaver Creek’s famed, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies all-day long, the Cookie Cabin provides the perfect rejuvenation during a day on the slopes.

Sheephorn Ski School Skills Zone
Upper Sheephorn, a signature trail in Red Buffalo Park, is designated as a Ski School Skills Zone. The wide trail with sweeping views of the Gore Range is the perfect place for guests to refine their skills. After mastering the Sheephorn Skills Zone, guests can move on to explore the rest of the mountaintop terrain offered at Red Buffalo Park.

Activities & Events in Red Buffalo Park

Snow Sculptures
Explore Red Buffalo Park to discover various snow sculptures located alongside the trails. Watch as the sculptures grow in size throughout the season – guests might even see Beaver Creek’s master snow sculptor at work.

Kids’ Adventure Zones
With banked turns, covered wagons, teepees and more, these fun areas are perfect to build confidence and challenge children’s skiing and riding abilities. Discover a sense of adventure on these runs designed just for kids within Red Buffalo Park.

• Jack Rabbit Alley: This is a perennial favorite for kids of all ages. This trail starts at the very top of the mountain and winds its way through the trees of Red Buffalo Park challenging advanced and intermediate skiers.
• Wild West Trail: A little bit of the Wild West built into Jack Rabbit Alley. Ski through a covered Calistoga wagon or explore the inside of a Native American teepee.
• Mystic Maze: A fun interpretive trail winding through the lower trees just off the Ski School Skills Zone. This is a great piece of terrain for intermediate skiers to explore and learn about the animals on Beaver Creek Mountain.

Terrain Parks

• Park 101: This beginner terrain park is great for people who are just learning the basics of freestyle snowboarding or freeskiing. The entry-level park contains small jumps, boxes, rails, and stall features designed for beginner riders and skiers to learn the basics of a terrain park.
• Zoom Room: An intermediate-level park designed to flow through a variety of different and unique features including boxes, rails, log-slides, stall features, and jumps. Zoom Room is the natural progression once skiers and riders get comfortable with the basics.

Ski With A Ranger
Join partners from Walking Mountains Science Center and the United States Forest Service on a fun, engaging and complimentary tour of the beautiful natural surroundings here at Beaver Creek. Come learn more about the forest around you including wildlife, plants, history and the mountain ecosystem in winter. The tour will meet every Monday, starting December 11, at 1:30 p.m. at the top of Red Buffalo Park for an hour long educational adventure. Ability Levels 3 and up, open to all ages.