Eco-friendly vacations | Have a green ski trip

I never thought about it till actually visiting a proper ski resort but alpine skiing is a gas guzzler. Heating and cooling rooms, operating the multiple ski lifts and the army of bobcats that move and smooth the snow just to name a few. If you love skiing take theses eco steps to ensure your future family ski vacations are green. Colorado Ski Areas are leading the pack in sustainability both on-piste and apres ski. People who love to ski have a vested interest in ensuring the earth doesn’t overheat and make it impossible for them to enjoy the beloved sport in the great outdoors.

If it’s your first time skiing, check out an extensive list of what to wear on your first trip here. There are a few things you can do to ensure you have a green ski trip even before you head to the slopes.

Choose a green ski resort

Some mountains are more aggressive than others when it comes to being green. However more and more of them are seeing the importance of protecting the mountains they call home.  Colorado ski areas, by and large, are leading the pack in the green ski movement. When looking for a ski resort to visit on your next trip be sure to find out what green initiatives they are incorporating into running the mountain. What kind of energy is running the lifts? Where is the food waste going? The information is often readily available online but call ahead because you never know what kind of new initiatives are in play.

Choose Eco friendly ski gear

Thankfully most of the manufactures of ski gear have woven eco-friendly practices into the very fiber of their businesses. Cute green ski gear exists on droves for every style. Utilizing state of the art technology to keep the whole family both warm and stylish on your next ski vacation. many furthermore

Reuse ski gear

I have a penchant for 70’s ski gear because the styles are so much more luxurious then present-day styles. even if you’re not into the slightly belled styles of decades past purchasing pre-loved ski gear is one of the greenest things you can do before hitting the slopes for an eco-friendly vacation.

Take an Eco-Friendly ride to the ski lodge

Ski locations are rarely located in the midst of popular metropolitan centers so there is a high probability you will have to drive to your final destination. One way of being green on your next ski vacation is by carpooling to the slopes. Skiing is an expensive sport, so wherever you can save money is an added bonus, many lodges offer reduced-price parking passes for cars with more than four passengers. If no one in your party wishes to drive in the harsh conditions that usually accompany ski towns you can always schedule an airport pickup with a shuttle service. These shuttle services will pick you up from the airport and deliver you to your accommodations.

Keep the cycle going and reuse \ donate old ski gear

I’m a firm believer in checking your local thrift store because there are always really cute. However, you also want to be sure to contribute to the green circular economy by handing down you and your kids’ old gear to friends or participating in a ski gear swap in your neighborhood.

SkiGreen Tags

In addition to all the things, you can do personally saki enthusiasts who wish to offset their travel-related emissions to and from the resort should look into purchasing SkiGreen Tags.  Bonneville Environmental Foundation in partnership with the Aspen Skiing Company has started selling wind energy in the form of Green-e certified SkiGreen Tags. You can add SkiGreen Tags to your season pass for $20, purchase a single day SkiGreen Tag with each lift ticket for $2.

Each SkiGreen Tag represents 100-kilowatt hours of wind energy and offsets 140 pounds of global warming pollution or approximately the equivalent of driving 150 miles in a vehicle that gets 21 MPG

Re waterproof old gear

If you’re going to take advantage of purchasing vintage ski gear or receiving pre-loved goodies from friends and family a good tip to know is that you can easily re-waterproof gear at home.

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