DOUBLE YOUR
PLEASURE
Shanty Creek Offers Two Resorts for
One
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FEW EATING PLACES OFFER A VIEW equal to that from Shanty Creek's Lakeview Dining Room. By reserving early, my wife Rose had scored us a table for six beside the window overlooking the ski slopes and, far below in the distance, Lake Bellaire. You can ski under lights at Shanty until 9:00 in the evening, later during weekends, and although I had no desire to do so following a full day of skiing, it was fun to watch others still having fun under the lights. |
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Northern Michigan is one of my favorite destinations for skiing, both downhill and cross-country. One reason is convenience. We can jump in the car where I live in Long Beach, Indiana at the bottom of Lake Michigan and four to five hours later unload our skis at resorts such as Shanty Creek near Traverse City, Michigan. Another reason is cost. Travelling by automobile is a lot cheaper than travelling by plane to a mountain resort, especially when you have grandkids to transport. Plus the Michigan resorts focus on families and offer attractive packages where kids ski free or at much reduced rates. Skiing never will be an inexpensive sport, but kids can get a buffet dinner at Lakeview Dining Room for only $5.Still another reason is management. Earlier in the winter I had visited a resort in another state where the skiing was superb, but everything at the bottom of the hill was chaos, about as much fun as being stuck at O'Hare Field during a snowstorm. And while the resort filled during the weekend, few skied there during the week. In contrast, during a recent midweek visit to Shanty, we actually encountered lift lines. Okay, maybe 30 seconds at most, but I don't mind waiting that long to catch my breath at the end of a run, and I find it more fun being around other skiers. Tip to other ski resorts: Manage your resort properly and people keep coming back.
"It trickles down from the top," claims Barry Godwin, director of marketing, nodding toward his boss, Terry Schieber, Shanty's chief executive officer. "People enjoy working here." That has a subtle effect, difficult to categorize on "how-did-you-enjoy-your-visit" cards in the rooms. Standing in line in the cafeteria, I overheard a woman guest gushing to the cash register employee how much fun they had and how much she and her family wanted to come back. That's not an endorsement from a grizzled ski writer interested mainly in vertical drop and numbers of trails, but one from a paying guest. Mike Terrell, president of the Midwest chapter of the North American Snowsports Journalists Association and a resident of the Traverse City area, notes that while Michigan resorts remain competitive in trying to attract guests, they also cooperate to attract guests to their region first, then to their specific resorts. "We know skiers will ski Crystal one visit, Sugar Loaf another," says Godwin, "but if we get them used to Michigan skiing, we'll get our share of visits at Shanty Creek."
An Elegant Resort
Shanty Creek certainly gets my share of business. Apart from the view at the Lakeview Dining Room, I like the elegance of the resort at Summit Village, the quaintness of its companion Schuss Village, and the convenience of both being linked together. (Shanty is actually two formerly separate resorts, golf and skiing, now managed together under the name Shanty Creek.) Shuttle buses run frequently between the two villages. The ride covers a few miles and takes five or ten minutes.
Each village has a separate identity. Summit is a good area for beginners and also serves as a warm-up for the more challenging Schuss. During a recent two-day visit to Shanty, my two grandsons and I skied an hour in the morning at Summit, then jumped on the bus to finish the day's skiing at Schuss. Ten-year-old Kyle likes luring me onto the steep-and-narrow Sarajevo and Surprise runs as a mano a mano between Grandpa and Grandson. I enjoy skiing with him and eight-year-old Wesley so much that I don't mind taking an occasional spill keeping up with the pair.
More of a surprise was the shift in the cross-country operation. Cross-country sells well at Michigan resorts; in fact, Michigan has some of the best Nordic trails in North America. The Nordic Center was moved several years ago from Summit to Schuss much to the benefit of beginners. The previous trails at Summit that wound through the woods and along the fairways of The Legend (the golf course designed by Arnold Palmer), were enjoyable but you had to get to the bottom of the downhill slopes to access them. That meant either skiing down or riding the chairlift down, either of which could be intimidating to beginners. With the Nordic Center now at Schuss, beginners have access to gentler trails, while the more experienced skiers can still find challenges aplenty back in the woods.
After an afternoon's skiing at Schuss, I borrowed my wife's cross-country skis and skied the Mountain Creek Trail to get back to Summit. The well-groomed trail is 9 kilometers long and there's a second series of trails, including the Legend Loop, connecting Shanty's two areas that is slightly longer. The White Pine Stampede, a cross-country ski race in early February, utilizes these same trails. The Stampede begins in Mancelona with a 20-kilometer event finishing at Shanty, a 50-kilometer event finishing at Summit.
Without pushing the pace, I covered the distance in about 90 minutes. The shuttle bus system makes it convenient to ride one way and ski the other. Previously, I had ranked Crystal Mountain and Boyne Mountain as the two Midwest downhill ski resorts offering the most satisfactory cross-country alternatives. Shanty Creek has now elevated itself to that level. Credit Nordic director John McGee for initiating the move. "We're still not finished with the trail system," says McGee. "We'll be making more changes after we finish the condo construction on the other side of the mountain." Construction of Cedar River Village, Shanty's latest set of condos, is due to finish in the summer of 1999.
Skiing at Shanty Creek: Shanty Creek is actually two resorts in one: Summit Village and Schuss Village. Summit and Schuss are separated by several miles of well-plowed back roads, each one accessible by shuttle bus. The resort is located near Bellaire, 35 Miles northeast of Traverse City or 4 miles west of Mancelona on Highway 88. Most travellers from Chicago come north out of Grand Rapids on Highway 131 and turn left (west) at Mancelona. Detroiters take I-75 to Grayling or Otsego Lake and cut across 72 or C38. Shanty Creek is a top-ranked golf course during summers; the winter focus is downhill skiing.
Summit Village is a marshmallow ski area, comfortable for beginners with two chairlifts and 12 trails. The two trails marked black diamond would not earn that rating at even most Midwest ski areas. The trails are lit at night, providing a pleasant view for diners at The Lakeview, the resort's main (and elegant) restaurant.
Schuss Village is larger and with 450 vs. 290 feet vertical drop more challenging. Four of its five chairlifts funnel into the same area at the top of the mountain, meaning you can access almost any of its 31 trails from any lift. A half dozen of those trails are black diamond and deserve the rating, particularly Surprise and Sarajevo, a chute narrow enough so almost all you can do is schuss it. The decor of the buildings at the bottom of the ski slopes is Bavarian. Schuss seems to attract more families with children, judging from the crowd at The Ivanhof, when we ate at that restaurant.
Cross-country Skiing: Expect the best, and you won't be disappointed. My wife Rose and daughter-in-law Camille skied the Pine Cone Trail, winding 4.5 kilometers through the woods and across golf course fairways near the Nordic Center at Schuss the first day and enjoyed it so much, they came back to do it again the second day. I skied the 9-kilometer long Mountain Creek Trail at the end of a day of downhill skiing to get back to Summit Village where we were staying. Had I wanted to, I could have walked across a road and skied down the downhill slope (Greenway can be done easily on cross-country skis) then returned via a series of connected trails, covering an additional 11 kilometers for a total of 20, round-trip. The White Pine Stampede (20-K, 50-K) is a cross-country race usually held the first weekend in February that begins in Mancelona with finishes at Schuss (20-K) and Summit (50-K). For information, contact race director Jack McKaig at 517/587-8812.
Contact: Shanty Creek, Bellaire, MI 49615; (616) 533-8621; (800) 678-4111; Fax: (616) 533-7050; Email:info@shantycreek.com. For more information, visit the Shanty Creek Web site at: www.shantycreek.com.
Copyright © 1999 by Hal Higdon. All rights reserved.
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