Outdoor Fun Trifecta at Mountain Creek

We were hosted and spent the night at Mountain Creek to check out and give you (my readers) feedback on their adventures.  After staying at the hotel and soaking in the hot tubs and pool Monday night, Tuesday was game on for the heat and outdoors. When the resort’s hashtag is #livelifeoutdoors they mean it! We were onto the Outdoor Fun Trifecta- Zip-lining, mountain biking and TreEscape.

Zip-lining

We kicked off the morning with the first tour of the day, we set out with 6 others, max group is 10 and they run 3 tours daily so book quickly.  There were 4 guides with us, so when we hit the lines, 2 loaded us and 2 unloaded.  The kids loved the friendliness of the guides and as a mom, I loved how they answered my nervous son’s questions, told him to look for turtles and were patient.  My daughter was zipping with her hands out and laughing.  We did 3 different lines over the lake, what a thrill, I really wish I had taken my Go-Pro and can’t believe I left at home, I did have my phone but not while actually zipping.  The excursion took about 90 minutes and included a ride back to the top of the mountain where we took the gondola back down. This is not for the faint of heart but totally relaxing, quick and fun.   IMPORTANT: Minimum weight is 60lbs and max is 270.  Minimum height is 48″

 

Mountain Biking

We like to ride our bikes, but on a ski mountain, this was a first for us so we took a lesson with Luke.  Luke was patient with my kids, who while are bikers had never never done this before.  We all came out of our comfort zone learning to keep both hands with fingers on the breaks, riding position and leaning into bike, using front break was a new adjustment for the kids, and my daughter flipped (and laughed) twice.  My son was overly cautious.  He also could not touch both breaks with his hands as he had issue, if we had owned the bike we would do modifications but without he just went little slower, a personal issue, not something MC could have done anything about.  Luke was understanding and helpful throughout, even taking breaks and pictures for us.  If you are a new rider, we highly suggest a class, what I would have done a little different is leave the kids with Luke and ride with my husband, but it was a family bonding trip and we wanted to stay together.   Also we would have spaced out adventures and gone on the trails for much longer but due to our own scheduling, we had to move on to our next adventure.  So next time plan 4+ hours to ride with or without lessons.   Mountain Creek rents bikes/helmets or bring your own stuff and just do a lift ticket purchase.

TreEscape

Have you walked through the trees? Harnessed with your own zip tool?  TreEscape provides families with 3 hours of fun on numerous courses or various skill levels.  Children under 6, can do limited courses while 7+ have more options and 10+ have unlimited choices once they master the levels below them.  **The time is 3 hours from reservation, so show up early to get checked in and the shuttle up to the course.   Then we were geared up, a short tutorial lesson and you are off.   For families with adventurous kids but the parents are not, they can supervise from the below.   We were up there 2 hours before it became too hot to continue and honest we had done all the above activities we were tired,  we all did 4 courses in that time.  This was Jack’s favorite thing of the day to do.  You are in the most control of  yourself, speed, and what you are doing, which is good for him.  TreEscape is located far from everything else, it also needs a shuttle to actually get to the courses, so plan at least 40 minutes before your reservation to get their from the main areas of Mountain Creek, pay  ($40 for ages 7+) and take the shuttle ride which is bumpy.   The staff was not in the woods around the trails, there was one on the platform where the course all started and the others were in one general area.  As a mom, I would have preferred if they were within the course as I have experienced as similar places.

As you can see we had a jam-packed day of adventure at Mountain Creek.  Staying overnight at The Appalachian had been a great decision, arriving the night before to have dinner and swim in their huge outdoor pool.  We had a suite which included 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen and living room.  For longer stays this would have been even better, especially in the winter when you are coming in to warm up and/or split with another family for a weekend and want more privacy.  We ate at the Beirgarten twice and the service and conversation with the staff was great.  Friendly, accommodating and helpful. Located at the bottom of the lift/waterpark we stopped for mid day bites and drinks between Mountain Biking and dinner the night before.

Location:

Mountain Creek is located 200 Route 94, Vernon, New Jersey 07462

Just 90 Minutes from Brewster, 60 minutes from Nyack, 80 from Yorktown and and 60 minutes from Newburgh.  Super close to the Hudson Valley.

Other Attractions:

Mountain Creek has a huge outdoor water park, mountain coaster we did not do on our trip due to time.   In winter there is skiing and snowboarding, making Mountain Creek your extreme sport destination.  We are already looking at coming back for some snowboarding!