ArcaMax

Twenty-five miles isn't a long distance, but it can sometimes seem like a world away. At least it can here in tiny Clark, Colorado, at Vista Verde Guest Ranch, outside the famous ski town of Steamboat Springs that has produced more winter Olympians than any other town in North America.

The stars are so bright in the clear night sky we have no trouble seeing the famous Winter Circle, the distinctive star pattern in the southeast skies, consisting of eight stars and rises, visible when the winter solstice arrives in late December. Throughout winter, the circle slowly moves west until it disappears.

The staff has obligingly left us an Evening Sky Map. Earlier, when the sun was going down, we could sit on our cabin porch and watch the horses in the snow-covered meadow.

Though close, we couldn't be farther in spirit from the bustling ski town and crowded slopes. I wondered when I planned this trip if my gang of grown kids, who love nothing more than tearing down those steep slopes, would like a more laid-back holiday -- at least for a few days on a week-long winter trip to Colorado.

I needn't have worried. "Sweet!" is how my 30-something nephew, Chris Yemma, described our ranch stay, acknowledging that when snow conditions are poor, "We could use a change of pace from downhill skiing or snowboarding." We spent more time together too than we might on the slopes.

Millennials, according to the new research presented at the TMS Family Travel Summit I co-chair, are not only traveling more with their parents (who typically pay the tab), but also crave active and different experiences, including on trips to the snow like this one where they can backcountry ski, snowshoe, horseback ride, fish, snow bike and more, all with knowledgeable guides. Vista Verde is one of seven Colorado ranches open in winter.

"We have the ability to do a wide array of activities and to do so with a guide, who can really teach us," said Bryan Hancock whose family, including two boys (12 and 10), have come from Atlanta for four winter vacations. His boys, he said, have learned how to build a shelter and make a fire in the snow -- not something they'd learn at home or at a big ski resort.

We all went over to Steamboat Resort one day, but even the kids were glad to leave the crowds and tumult to get back to the ranch where we shared 500 acres with fewer than 60 guests, horses, staff and resident dog and cat.

"When families first come, they think the kids will want to go into the downhill mountain every day -- and we provide free shuttles -- but they just want to play in the snow," says Steve King, who oversees the winter Nordic program and summer adventure program here. "It seems there is more interest in the natural world and less in the groomed world and they really dig it!"

Dave and Brenda Walters from San Diego have been coming here for six years, since their son Adam was six. "You have a mix of "parents' activities/kids' activities" and "family activities" and then a lot of flexibility to do "whatever you want to do," said Dave, already booked for a trip this winter. "By the end of each day, you head back to your cabin and you want to build a big fire and talk about all the things you experienced."

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