Summertime in the Welch Valley

When it comes to summer tourism and recreation in our great state of Minnesota, most people instantly think about the lakes country to the north.  We like to think here in the Welch Valley that we have sort of a hidden gem in the summertime.  We recently dodged another flood this weekend thanks to 8+ inches of rain in the Faribault area.  When it rains that much in the Faribault, Owatonna, or Northfield area we get a little nervous because all of that water eventually makes it's way here via the Cannon River.  But, when the Cannon River is not flooding, it provides a beautiful addition to what we think is a unique and scenic area of our state and the entire Midwest.  I would encourage anyone who has only visited our area to ski or snowboard in the winter to stop down on a spring, summer or fall afternoon to enjoy what the area has to offer especially if you like to bike, canoe, kayak, ride motorcycle, fly-fish etc.  The Cannon Valley Trail is a wonderfully maintained paved bike path that stretches from Cannon Falls to Red Wing.  The trail takes you through meadows, wooded areas, and for several miles right along the Cannon River.   If you prefer something on and in the water, visit the Welch Mill Canoe and Tube downtown Welch.  They rent tubes, canoes, and kayaks.  When you're finished with your bike ride, water adventure, or fishing excursion...be sure to stop by the Trout Scream Cafe in downtown Welch for ice cream. So if you don't feel like fighting traffic northbound to the lakes country some weekend in the summer, come down to Welch and bring your bike, your fly rod, and/or your swimming suit.  Enjoy your summer... (snowmaking is just a few months away!)

A crowded Welch Mill Canoe & Tube on a warm 4th of July.

 The Cannon Valley Trail looking West

 A view of Welch Village from Heidi's Hollow

 The Cannon Valley Trail looking east

 A view of the Belle Creek from Hwy 7 in betweenWelch and Vasa

 Thunderheads building above Bakke & Chicken

What do you do all summer?

What do you guys do all summer?  That's a question we get frequently, and it's a good question.  On the business side, we usually host 10-20 weddings throughout the spring, summer, and fall.  This year we will have 18 weddings.  We spend most of the spring, summer, and early fall getting ready for winter.  There are daily projects our maintenance crew takes such as snowmaking equipment maintenance & repairs, erosion control, lighting & electrical improvements, chalet repairs, chairlift repairs and much more.  Right now, our staff is performing annual maintenance and repairs on all of our chairlifts which includes moving all chairs and testing clips and grips.  In some years, we are able to make more substantial/capital improvements to the area on a larger scale.  In recent years, we have added installed new chairlifts, added the Back Bowl, improved snowmaking, added onto the chalet etc.  I have posted some photos of these projects in recent years below.  The first photo below is the only photo from this year, taken this week, and relates to this summer's capital improvement for Welch Village.  We are currently making plans to build a state of the art maintenance facility in the land between the west end of the main chalet parking lot and the east chalet.  This will also mean the removal of the former maintenance shop.  We are also making plans for some additional exciting new things for 2013/14...stay tuned!

Future location of state of the art maintenance facility 

 New Lookout Chairlift 2010

 New Snowguns 2012

 Back Bowl Expansion 2008

 Back Bowl Chairlift 2008

 New Lookout Chairlift 2010

Snowmaking Pipe Expansion 2007

An Introduction

This is the first entry of hopefully many in the weeks, months, and years to come.  My first entry in this blog is meant to briefly introduce myself and layout what I hope will be our goal with this new channel of communication and information for all Welch Village guests. 

The VP's Blog is meant to be a source of content, information, and communication which we hope will be interesting and valuable to the Welch Village community.  This blog is not meant to be a vehicle for sales pitches, promotions and advertising tactics.  However, if I feel that certain promotions and sales would be of value to our guests, I may mention those from time to time in an informative way.  The goal here is not to sell, sell, sell, but to provide some insight and information on certain promotions from the perspective of Welch Village management.  We have a lot of membership options, methods for buying lift tickets, lesson programs etc. Therefore, I feel that it might be useful to offer some straight-forward and educational substance to explain some of our programs and services.

My goal in creating this blog is to provide a channel of communication and engagement between a member of our management and our guests.  This will be an insider source of information on the ski and snowboard industry as well as a "behind the scenes" look at the day-to-day operations of Welch Village.  I am a an avid skier, a race coach, a recreational racer, Nastar participant, a ski instructor, the marketing guy, and someone who is active in this community.  I am also a father a three daughters, the husband of a snowboarder, and the grandson of Welch Village founder/owner and still current president, Leigh Nelson.  Therefore, there really isn't anything at Welch Village that I am not "plugged into." 

There are a variety of topics that I plan to cover consistently in-season and out of season.  Some of these topics will include expansion plans, capital investment plans,  general improvement projects to our business, our membership/sales strategies, special events, lesson programs, racing programs, food and beverage, social media trends, terrain parks, guest service, snowmaking & grooming, snow conditions,  family ski trip ideas, ways to convince friends & family to take up this sport,  industry partnerships, environmental issues, public relations etc. etc. etc.

Blogs are also meant to be interactive which means that I hope to get inspiration and ideas from our guests and Welch Village community.  As I engage with guests via our social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc. I will attempt to address your concerns, questions, and interests at some point in the blog.  I ski everyday and ride the chairlift with you the guest every day.  Therefore, I will also collect ideas in-person, face to face with our Welch community.

I may be biased but I don't know if there is another industry that has stories as interesting and exciting as the ski and snowboard industry.  Those stories need to be told and we think that will only add to your experience at Welch Village!